Atherosclerosis in cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a growing health problem, especially in developing countries. Hyperlipidemia is known as a dominant risk factor for the development of atherosclerosis. This study was designed to investigate the effects of Eurycoma Longifolia (EL) also known as Malaysian Ginseng/Tongkat Ali on the testosterone level, biochemical changes of lipid profile and intima media thickness (IMT) in rats fed on high-fat diet. Twenty young, adult male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were housed for 12 weeks. After one week of acclimatization, they were randomly divided into four groups of 5 animals each and treated for 12 weeks as follow: Group ND was given only normal diet, group NDEL was given normal diet and EL extracts (15mg/kg) dissolved in distilled water, group HFD was given only high fat diet and group HFDEL was given high fat diet and EL extracts (15mg/kg). Rats which were treated with EL (NDEL and HFDEL) showed a significant increase (p<0.05) in the testosterone levels. There was a significant decrease (p<0.05) in triglyceride (TG) in HFDEL group compered to HFD group. The histological sections of aortas revealed a significant decrease (p<0.05) in IMT in HFDEL as compared with HFD group. No histological changes were observed in NDEL group compared with ND group and there was no significant difference in IMT values between NDEL and ND. These findings suggest that EL is a promising protective agent against atherosclerosis induced by high-fat diet.

The objective of this study was to examine the effect of Eurycoma longifolia (EL) extract on intima media thickness (IMT) of aorta in Sprague Dawley (SD) rats fed with high-fat diet. Twenty healthy male SD rats were divided into 4 groups of 5 animals each and treated for 12 weeks as follows: Group ND was given only normal diet, Group NDEL was given normal diet and EL, Group HFD was given only high fat diet, Group HFDEL was given HFD and EL extracts. The aortic thicknesses of the intima media were photographed and measured with Dino-Capture (R) 2.0. In this study, the HFD produced obvious atherosclerotic plaque; treatment with aqueous extract of EL has reduced the size and formation of atherosclerotic plaque. The aortic IMT was more significantly increased in the HFD group than that of ND (p < 0.05); on the other hand, the aortic IMT was more significantly reduced in HFDEL group than that of HFD group (p < 0.05). It is concluded that the aqueous extract of EL significantly attenuated the formation of atherosclerotic plaques in the aorta of rats and preserved the vascular structure.

Background: Hypertension disorder in pregnancy (HDP) is the second most common contributor to maternal morbidity and mortality worldwide. Blood pressure variability (BPV), with the assistance of ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM), measures blood pressure readings in pregnant women and has the potential to predict the occurrence of pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) or preeclampsia (PE) before any symptoms develop. Methodology: Studies involving ABPM among pregnant women were identified using electronic databases such as PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, Medscape, Ovid and ProQuest. These electronic databases were assessed from 1990 to 2018. Keywords used to search for literatures included a combination of BPV matched with pregnancy, pregnant women and HDP, gestational hypertension and/or PE. Results: Out of 21,526 articles identified, a total of 10 studies met the criteria. Seven articles used the spectral analysis method while another two articles used a combination of spectral analysis, time domain and a nonlinear method for BPV analysis. The final article described BPV as vagal baroreflex. Four articles agreed that high frequency (HF) BPV was mainly dominant from the second trimester until 4 days postpartum in HDP patients. This reflects the dominant features of parasympathetic activities among these patients. Two articles that used time domain also agreed that standard deviation (SD) BPV increased in PE patients. Conclusions: In pregnancy, BPV has a strong impact on the knowledge understanding of the disease in clinical fields, allows a superior ability to predict PIH and PE in mid-pregnancy and offers potential value for addressing hypertension in pregnancy.

Introduction: Eurycoma longifolia (E. longifolia) which is better known locally as Tongkat Ali is an indigenous plant in Malaysia. It belongs to the family of Simaroubaceae and is popular as a traditional medicine for its aphrodisiac properties. Throughout the years, several studies have been conducted to prove its effect on aphrodisiac action, antimalarial, antibacterial and anxiolytic properties but its effect to the cardiovascular system had not been fully explored. This study was aimed to demonstrate the changes that take place in the isolated heart following the injection of the extract. Methods: Three parameters that were measured included the coronary perfusion pressure (CPP), the left ventricular developed pressure (LVDP) and the heart rate (HR). Eighteen isolated rat hearts were used and were divided equally into three groups. The first group was to observe the effect of Isoprenaline, a beta agonist while the second group was to see the effect of sodium nitroprusside (SNP), a nitric oxide (NO) donor. The dose which gave the maximum effect for these two positive controls was used to compare with the effect of E. longifolia water extract in the third group of rats. Isolated heart was mounted using the Langendorff apparatus and perfused with modified Krebs-Henseleit buffer. Doses of controls and the extract were instilled through an injection port, and the effect of each dose was monitored. Results: E. longifolia extract was found to reduce the CPP in normotensive rat at two of the highest doses. A dose of 1.0 mg of the extract reduced the CPP significantly from 34.52 +/- 4.99 mmHg of the baseline value to 31.99 +/- 4.93 mmHg while the dose of 10.0 mg of the extract reduced the CPP significantly to 32.67 +/- 3.89 mmHg. However, there were no significant changes of effect of the extract on the LVDP and HR as compared to control. Conclusion: These early findings suggest that E. longifolia extract may have vasodilatory property, which supports its traditional usage with minimum cardiovascular side effects.

Background: There is no histological study evaluating the effects of insulin-containing cream on skin injury. The goal of this study was to examine the effects of insulin-containing creams on wound healing. Methods: Creams consisting of nine parts of oil and one part of aqueous phase (9:1) mixed with 1.5 mL human insulin were prepared. Eighteen male guinea pigs were divided into three groups; the control (9:1 C) group received cream without insulin. The experimental groups received Humulin N (9:1 N) and Humulin R (9:1 R) respectively. A 1 cm(2) wound of 1-2 cm thickness was created in the skin. Each animal received 0.5 g of the respective creams which was topically applied once a day for 14 days. The progress of wound healing was monitored daily. Skin tissues were excised at the 14th days from the wound sites and processed for light microscopy. Results: Skin wound treated with the long acting insulin Humulin N had an accelerated wound healing process with restoration of vascular network, increased collagen deposition and early complete wound remodeling. Conclusions: Insulin cream with long acting mechanism facilitates in normalizing cell permeability, promoting vascularization, reducing exudation and stimulate proliferation of cells. These properties render insulin cream suitable for expediting wound healing.