benzodiazepins immune

Globally, alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) has become an increased burden for society. Disulfirams, Benzodiazepines (BZDs), and corticosteroids are commonly used to treat ALD. However, the occurrence of side effects such as hepatotoxicity and dependence, impedes the achievement of desirable and optimal therapeutic efficacy. Therefore, there is an urgent need for more effective and safer treatments. Hovenia dulcis is an herbal medicine promoting alcohol removal clearance, lipid-lowering, anti-inflammatory, and hepatoprotective properties...

BACKGROUND: Alterations in sleep have been described in multiple health conditions and as a function of several medication effects. However, evidence generally stems from small univariate studies. Here, we apply a large-sample, data-driven approach to investigate patterns between in sleep macrostructure, quantitative sleep EEG, and health. METHODS: We use data from the MrOS Sleep Study, containing polysomnography and health data from a large sample (N = 3086) of elderly American men to establish associations between sleep macrostructure, the spectral composition of the electroencephalogram, 38 medical disorders, 2 health behaviors, and the use of 48 medications...

INTRODUCTION: Prohibited drugs in unregulated markets may be adulterated, resulting in increased risks for people who use drugs. This study investigated levels of drug adulteration and substitution of drugs purchased in Australia from cryptomarkets. METHODS: Data were collected from a darknet forum called Test4Pay from 1 September 2022 to 23 August 2023. Posts were included if they reported the results of drug samples submitted by post to the Vancouver-based Get Your Drugs Tested service, which uses Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy with immunoassay strip tests (fentanyl and benzodiazepines)...

Catatonia, a psychomotor disorder, can have underlying psychiatric and medical etiologies. Around 29% of the catatonias with medical etiologies are related to either infectious or immune causes. Benzodiazepines like lorazepam and electroconvulsive therapy are the conventional treatment modalities for catatonia. In this case series, three cases of catatonia secondary to pulmonary tuberculosis, pneumococcal pneumonia, and neurocysticercosis have been described, in which conventional treatment modalities like lorazepam or electroconvulsive therapy either failed or were disadvantageous and were successfully treated with memantine (20-30 mg)...

BACKGROUND: Anti-NMDAR encephalitis is the most common cause of immune-mediated catatonia. CASE SERIES: Three females presented with neuropsychiatric symptoms and were empirically treated with first-line immunotherapy and ovarian teratoma resection for suspected autoimmune encephalitis, preceding diagnostic confirmation via NMDAR antibody positivity. They required escalating large doses of benzodiazepines for refractory malignant catatonia resulting in ICU level care...

Casitas B-lineage lymphoma proto-oncogene-b (Cbl-b) is a RING finger E3 ligase that is responsible for repressing T-cell, natural killer (NK) cell, and B-cell activation. The robust antitumor activity observed in Cbl-b deficient mice arising from elevated T-cell and NK-cell activity justified our discovery effort toward Cbl-b inhibitors that might show therapeutic promise in immuno-oncology, where activation of the immune system can drive the recognition and killing of cancer cells. We undertook a high-throughput screening campaign followed by structure-enabled optimization to develop a novel benzodiazepine series of potent Cbl-b inhibitors...

In this focused update, the American Heart Association provides updated guidance for resuscitation of patients with cardiac arrest, respiratory arrest, and refractory shock due to poisoning. Based on structured evidence reviews, guidelines are provided for the treatment of critical poisoning from benzodiazepines, β-adrenergic receptor antagonists (also known as β-blockers), L-type calcium channel antagonists (commonly called calcium channel blockers), cocaine, cyanide, digoxin and related cardiac glycosides, local anesthetics, methemoglobinemia, opioids, organophosphates and carbamates, sodium channel antagonists (also called sodium channel blockers), and sympathomimetics...

Nonpsychotic mental diseases (NMDs) affect approximately 15% of pregnant women in the US. Herbal preparations are perceived a safe alternative to placenta-crossing antidepressants or benzodiazepines in the treatment of nonpsychotic mental diseases. But are these drugs really safe for mother and foetus? This question is of great relevance to physicians and patients. Therefore, this study investigates the influence of St. John's wort, valerian, hops, lavender, and California poppy and their compounds hyperforin and hypericin, protopine, valerenic acid, and valtrate, as well as linalool, on immune modulating effects in vitro...

Tetanus is a bacterial infection caused by the toxin of  Clostridium tetani . While it primarily affects newborns, people with incomplete vaccination schedules, it can also impact people of any age, especially in developing countries. Even though in the last 20 years several initiatives have been implemented worldwide to reduce the impact of this disease, regions like South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa have registered mortality rates highest since 2015-2019. In Latin America, regional immunization coverage rates were reported at 89% in 2017 for diphtheria-tetanus toxoid and pertussis (DTP-3), although Costa Rica has reported decreased coverage rates of the national immunization schedule from 2019 to 2021...

We reported the anesthetic management of remimazolam, a novel ultra-short-acting benzodiazepine, for a 21-month-old female with immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy (IMNM). Remimazolam has a similar chemical structure to midazolam but possesses a unique side chain that reduces its propensity to accumulate in the body, thereby minimizing prolonged sedation or respiratory depression. Our experience supports that remimazolam could be a suitable agent for anesthetizing the patient with IMNM.

Down syndrome (DS) is one of the most frequent genetic disorders and represents the first cause of intellectual disability of genetic origin. While the majority of patients with DS follow a harmonious evolution, an unusual neurodevelopmental regression may occur, distinct from that described in the context of autism spectrum disorders, called down syndrome regression disorder (DSRD). Based on four patients, two males and two females, with age range between 20 and 24, treated at the Reference Center for Rare Psychiatric Disorders of the GHU Paris Psychiatry and Neurosciences [Pôle hospitalo-universitaire d'Évaluation Prévention et Innovation Thérapeutique (PEPIT)], we describe this syndrome, discuss its etiologies and propose therapeutic strategies...

In recent years the neurobiological underpinnings of catatonia have been an emerging area of interest. Catatonia is frequently encountered in mood disorders, neurological disorders and systemic illnesses. Furthermore, the manifestation of catatonia in autoimmune disorders such as NMDA receptor antibody encephalitis and thyroiditis reinforces its neuropsychiatric nature. Irrespective of cause benzodiazepines and electroconvulsive therapy remain the standard treatments for catatonia, although a proportion fail to respond to the same...

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have reported an association between pneumonia risk and the use of certain drugs. We investigated the relationship between antihypertensive drugs and pneumonia in the general population. METHODS: This case-crossover study utilized the nationwide data of South Korea. We included participants who were hospitalized for pneumonia. A single case period was defined as 30 days before pneumonia onset, and two control periods were established (90-120 and 150-180 days before pneumonia onset)...

INTRODUCTION: Insomnia is a stress-related sleep disorder, may favor a state of allostatic overload impairing brain neuroplasticity, stress immune and endocrine pathways, and may contribute to mental and physical disorders. In this framework, assessing and targeting insomnia is of importance. AIM: Since maladaptive neuroplasticity and allostatic overload are hypothesized to be related to GABAergic alterations, compounds targeting GABA may play a key role. Accordingly, the aim of this review was to discuss the effect of GABA A receptor agonists, short-medium acting hypnotic benzodiazepines and the so called Z-drugs, at a molecular level...

The attempts to clarify the origin of eating disorders (ED) have not been completely successful and their etiopathogenesis remains unknown. Current research shows an activation of the immune response in neuropsychiatric diseases, including ED. We aimed to investigate immune response parameters in patients with ED and to identify psychological factors influencing the inflammatory response. The relationship between inflammation markers and impulsivity and affective symptomatology was explored as well. Thirty-four adult female patients with current diagnosis of ED, none of them under psychopharmacological treatment (excluding benzodiazepines), were included in this study...

Flavivirus infection of cells induces massive rearrangements of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane to form viral replication organelles (ROs) which segregates viral RNA replication intermediates from the cytoplasmic RNA sensors. Among other viral nonstructural (NS) proteins, available evidence suggests for a prominent role of NS4B, an ER membrane protein with multiple transmembrane domains, in the formation of ROs and the evasion of the innate immune response. We previously reported a benzodiazepine compound, BDAA, which specifically inhibited yellow fever virus (YFV) replication in cultured cells and in vivo in hamsters, with resistant mutation mapped to P219 of NS4B protein...

Modulation of the endocannabinoid system (ECS) is of great interest for its therapeutic relevance in several pathophysiological processes. The CB2 subtype is largely localized to immune effectors, including microglia within the central nervous system, where it promotes anti-inflammation. Recently, a rational drug design toward precise modulation of the CB2 active site revealed the novelty of Pyrrolo[2,1-c][1,4]benzodiazepines tricyclic chemotype with a high conformational similarity in comparison to the existing leads...

OBJECTIVES: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an acute respiratory infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). SARS-CoV-2 can damage the myocardium directly, or activate the immune system, trigger a cytokine storm, and cause inflammatory cells to infiltrate the myocardial tissue and damage the myocardium. This study is based on the sequencing data to analyze the changes in gene expression of cardiomyocytes and macrophages after SARS-CoV-2 infection, and explore the potential effects of SARS-CoV-2 on the heart and immune system...

Translocator Protein 18 kDa (TSPO), previously named Peripheral Benzodiazepine Receptor, is a well-validated and widely used biomarker of neuroinflammation to assess diverse central nervous system (CNS) pathologies in preclinical and clinical studies. Many studies have shown that in animal models of human neurological and neurodegenerative disease and in the human condition, TSPO levels increase in the brain neuropil, and this increase is driven by infiltration of peripheral inflammatory cells and activation of glial cells...

BACKGROUND: Remimazolam is a novel ester-type benzodiazepine with ultrafast onset of sedation effect and fast recovery of consciousness. It has potential advantages in the sedation of sepsis-associated acute liver injury (SALI) patients. However, the effect and mechanism of remimazo lam on inflammation in the liver have not yet been elucidated. This study investigated the anti-inflammatory effects and mechanisms of remimazolam on SALI both in vivo and in vitro. METHODS: Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) plus galactosamine treated rat model and LPS-challenged RAW264...