garlic
Chemopreventive effect of garlic powder diet in diethylnitrosamine-induced rat hepatocarcinogenesis.

Kweon S, Park KA, Choi H.

Department of Food and Nutrition, Seoul National University, Shillim-dong, Kwanak-gu, Seoul 151-742, South Korea.

This study was conducted to examine the effects of dietary garlic powder at the different levels on preneoplastic foci formation and glutathione (GSH)-dependent detoxifying enzyme activities in rat hepatocarcinogenesis. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed with garlic powder supplemented diets (0, 0.5, 2.0 or 5.0%) for 11 weeks, and induced hepatocarcinogenesis by diethylnitrosamine (DEN) and two-thirds partial hepatectomy in medium-term bioassay system. The 2.0 and 5.0% garlic powder diets suppressed the formation of placental GSH S-transferase positive (GST-P(+)) foci in number (49.7 and 63.1% of DEN-treated control group, respectively) and area (44.2 and 63.9% of DEN-treated control group, respectively). Total GSH content in 2.0% garlic powder diet group was 1.2 fold higher than that in DEN-treated control group. GSH S-transferase activity of 2.0% garlic powder diet group was lower than that in DEN-treated control group, and GSH peroxidase (GPx) activity was significantly increased by garlic powder diets (83 and 164% of DEN-treated control group, respectively). GSH reductase activity, however, did not show a noticeable difference among groups. Therefore, the suppression of GST-P(+) foci formation by garlic powder diets could be partly affected by the increase of total GSH content and GPx activity.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12954459&dopt=Abstract garlic



garlic
Garlic extract and two diallyl sulphides inhibit methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection in BALB/cA mice.

Tsao SM, Hsu CC, Yin MC.

Department of Infection, Chungshan Medical University Hospital, Taiwan, ROC.

OBJECTIVES: The inhibitory effect of garlic extract, diallyl sulphide and diallyl disulphide against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection in BALB/cA mice was studied. The influence of these agents upon the levels of fibronectin, interleukin-6 and lipid oxidation in MRSA-infected mice was examined. METHODS: Garlic extract at 100% and 50%; diallyl sulphide (DAS) at 10% and 5%; diallyl disulphide (DADS) at 1% and 0.5% were used in this study. Sixteen clinical MRSA isolates obtained from infected patients were used in this study (n=16). Mice were infected by injecting 200 microL MRSA-PBS solution, which contained 10(7) cfu, via the tail vein. At 16 h post-infection (p.i.), garlic extract, DAS or DADS at 200 microL was administrated orally. At 24 h p.i., mice were killed and blood, liver, kidney and spleen of each mouse were collected. Plasma and the filtrate from each organ and serial dilutions were used to determine colony count. Plasma fibronectin level was determined by rabbit anti-rat fibronectin antibody and quantified by ELISA. Interleukin-6 levels were determined by commercial kit. Lipid oxidation was determined by measuring malondialdehyde levels. RESULTS: The oral administration of these agents significantly decreased the viability of MRSA, in plasma, liver, kidney and spleen (P<0.05). MRSA infection significantly increased fibronectin and interleukin-6 levels in plasma of MRSA-infected mice (P<0.05); however, the oral administration of garlic extract and two diallyl sulphides significantly reduced both fibronectin and interleukin-6 levels (P<0.05). MRSA infection also significantly enhanced lipid oxidation in plasma and three organs (P<0.05). The treatments of garlic extract and two diallyl sulphides significantly decreased the malondialdehyde level and showed antioxidant protection (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: These data strongly supported the conclusion that garlic extract, diallyl sulphide and diallyl disulphide possessed multiple protective functions against MRSA infection, in which diallyl sulphide and diallyl disulphide could be considered as novel therapeutic agents for the treatment of MRSA infection.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=14585852&dopt=Abstract garlic



garlic
Bacteriocidal activity of garlic powder against Bacillus anthracis.

Sasaki J, Kita J.

Department of Medical Technology, Hirosaki University School of Health Sciences, Honcho, Hirosaki 036-8564, Japan. jisasaki cc.hirosaki-u.ac.jp

The antibacterial activity of garlic powder was examined against Bacillus anthracis using agar plate cultivation and test tube methods. On the agar plate test, 1-5% garlic powder inhibited the growth of B. anthracis and Escherichia coli O157 used as references. A 1% water solution of garlic powder in the test tube method killed B. anthracis at 10(7) cfu/mL within 3 h of treatment at room temperature. A number of intestinal bacteria in a BALB/c mouse decreased after the oral administration of 1 mL of 1%, garlic powder solution once a day for 3 d. These results suggest that the oral administration of garlic powder is effective against pathogenic bacteria invasion into the intestine as an infection.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=14598920&dopt=Abstract garlic



garlic
Endothelium-dependent and -independent effect of aqueous extract of garlic on vascular reactivity on diabetic rats.

Baluchnejadmojarad T, Roghani M.

Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Hemmat Expressway, P.O. Box 14155-6183, Tehran, Iran. tmojarad yahoo.com

Garlic has been well known for its protective effects against cardiovascular disease. In this study, the effect of aqueous extract of garlic on the vascular reactivity of thoracic aorta from streptozotocin (STZ)-diabetic rats was investigated in the presence and absence of endothelium. Although, 8-weeks of treatment with garlic extract had no significant effect on the concentration of serum glucose, but it significantly attenuated the abnormality in vascular reactivity to noradrenaline (NA) and acetylcholine (Ach). In addition, the endothelium-independent relaxation response to isosorbide dinitrate (ISD) was not affected by diabetes or garlic treatment. The results suggest that garlic treatment of STZ-diabetic rats can prevent the development of abnormal contractility through an endothelium-dependent and -independent mechanism.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=14630166&dopt=Abstract garlic



garlic
The effects of allicin on weight in fructose-induced hyperinsulinemic, hyperlipidemic, hypertensive rats.

Elkayam A, Mirelman D, Peleg E, Wilchek M, Miron T, Rabinkov A, Oron-Herman M, Rosenthal T.

Chorley Hypertension Research Institute, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Hashomer, Israel.

BACKGROUND: Commercially available garlic preparations in the form of garlic oil, garlic powder and pills are widely used for certain therapeutic purposes, including lowering blood pressure and improving lipid profile. Despite the impressive effects of garlic most studies are limited by lack of controlled methods and suitable double-blinding, and by the use of preparations with unknown amounts and chemical identification of the active ingredient. Allicin, a synthetic preparation of an active constituent of garlic, was found to lower blood pressure, insulin, and triglycerides levels in fructose-fed rats. Thus, it was considered important to assess its effect on the weight of the animals. METHODS: Male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 240 to 250 g were fed a fructose-enriched diet consisting of 21% protein, 5% fat, 60% carbohydrate, 0.49% sodium and 0.49% potassium for 5 weeks, which produced hyperinsulinemia, hypertension, and hypertriglyceridemia. Group I (controls) rats were fed a diet enriched by fructose only; group II was given allicin the last 2 weeks, and group III was given allicin the first 3 weeks. The three groups consumed the same amount of food. Weight was measured at the beginning of the experiment and after 3 and 5 weeks on the diet. RESULTS: Weight in the control group rose from 249.4 +/- 10.04 g to 274.5 +/- 15.5 g after 3 weeks and to 306.9 +/- 22.2 g after 5 weeks. Weight in group II rose from baseline 259.1 +/- 12.1 g to 306.9 +/- 22.2 g after 3 weeks on fructose alone, and declined slightly to 282.4 +/- 17.4 g after 2 weeks of allicin (P <.02). In group III, in which the protocol was reversed, the baseline weight of 260.4 +/- 13.25 g rose only to 269.8 +/-15.3 g (P <.431) after 3 weeks on fructose and allicin. CONCLUSIONS: The control group that was fed a diet enriched by fructose alone continued to gain weight, whereas the groups fed allicin did not. The difficulty of preventing weight gain after reaching the nadir of weight loss underscores the practical value of allicin for weight control.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=14643581&dopt=Abstract garlic