tannins and Respiratory-Tract-Infections

Respiratory diseases are the major cause of human illness and death around the world. Despite advances in detection and treatment, very few classes of safe and effective therapy have been introduced to date. At present, phytochemicals are getting more attention because of their diverse beneficial activities and minimal toxicity. Tannins are polyphenolic secondary metabolites with high molecular weights, which are naturally present in a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, cereals, and leguminous seeds. Many tannins are endowed with well-recognized protective properties, such as anti-cancer, anti-microbial, anti-oxidant, anti-hyperglycemic, and many others. This review summarizes a large body of experimental evidence implicating that tannins are helpful in tackling a wide range of non-malignant respiratory diseases including acute lung injury (ALI), pulmonary fibrosis, asthma, pulmonary hypertension, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Mechanistic pathways by which various classes of tannins execute their beneficial effects are discussed. In addition, clinical trials and our perspective on future research with tannins are also reviewed.

Topics: Animals; Humans; Phytotherapy; Plants; Respiratory Tract Infections; Tannins

Methods were established for estimating antibodies of protease and elastase of Pseudomonas aeruginosa by passive hemagglutination (HA) tests using fixed sheep erythrocytes coated with each of the two enzymes. High antibody titers of protease and elastase were found in the HA tests on sera in some cases suffered from P. aeruginosa infection. The evaluation of the HA tests was discussed.

Topics: Animals; Antibodies, Bacterial; Cattle; Endotoxins; Erythrocytes; Hemagglutination Tests; Humans; Hydrolyzable Tannins; Immune Sera; Mastitis, Bovine; Pancreatic Elastase; Peptide Hydrolases; Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Pseudomonas Infections; Respiratory Tract Infections; Sheep; Tannins

Tannic-acid treated sheep erythrocytes (fresh or glutaraldehyde preserved) were sensitized with 229E antigens from human embryonic lung (RU-1) cell cultures. Indirect hemagglutination (IHA) antigen titers in 229E-infected cell cultures paralleled virus infectivity and complement fixation (CF) antigen titers. The identity of the IHA antigen was confirmed by testing extracts from inoculated and control cell cultures for ability to inhibit IHA. Also, significant increases in IHA antibody were demonstrated with acute and convalescent serum pairs from patients with proven 229E infections. A comparison of IHA, neutralization and CF titers for 229E antibodies was made on human sera drawn from different populations. The IHA and neutralization results were in agreement on 93% of the 129 sera found to be positive by at least one of three tests. The number of antibody titers detected by the CF test was insufficient to permit comparison. Hyperimmune sera from animals immunized with OC 43 did not react with 229E by IHA. Also no increase in IHA antibody was demonstrated with acute and convalescent serum pairs from patients with seroconversions to OC 43. These findings suggest that the IHA test provides (i) a rapid and sensitive method for serodiagnosis of 229E infections and (ii) a simple and inexpensive method for seroepidemiological studies.

Topics: Adult; Aldehydes; Animals; Antibodies, Viral; Antigens, Viral; Cell Line; Child; Complement Fixation Tests; Diagnosis, Differential; Erythrocytes; Evaluation Studies as Topic; Hemagglutination Inhibition Tests; Hemagglutination Tests; Humans; Lung; Methods; Neutralization Tests; Respiratory Tract Infections; RNA Viruses; Serologic Tests; Sheep; Tannins; Virus Diseases