ß-Lactams are the most widely used antibiotics, and ß-lactamases are the greatest source of resistance to them. Colorimetric tests are good, rapid, indicators of ß-lactamase production and its contingent resistance in Haemophilus, Moraxella and Neisseria spp. They can also be applied to Gram-negative bacilli but are less useful, since the usual question is not whether a ß-lactamase is produced ...

Beta-2 adrenoceptors in blood vessels are one of the active factors that play a role in regulation of tissue blood flow. in diabetic angiopathy, responsiveness of these receptors is decreased, while that is increased in inflammation. According to these opposite effects, the aim of this study was to investigate the vasodilatory response of knee joint blood vessels to salbutamol (Beta-2 adreno...

Beta-carotene (ß-carotene) is one of many carotenoids found in nature. In the human nutrition field, evidence suggests that higher blood levels of ß-carotene as well as other carotenoids such as alpha-carotene, lycopene, lutein, zeaxanthin, and ß-cryptoxanthin may be associated with lower risk of several chronic diseases. ß-carotene, a-carotene, and ß-cryptoxanthin have pro-vitamin A activity, ...

For the pharmacological treatment of frequency, urgency and/or urge incontinence due to bladder overactivity, anticholinergics have been used as first-choice drugs. However, these drugs can exert severe side effects (accommodation paralysis, constipation, tachycardia, dry mouth and blurred vision) and some patients are refractory to their actions. Thus there is a need for new drug therapies wit...

BACKGROUND Informations about the effects of intense exercise training on diabetes-induced myocardial dysfunctions are lacking. We have examined the effects of intense exercise training on the cardiac function of diabetic rats, especially focusing on the Langendorff β-adrenergic responsiveness and on the β-adrenoceptors protein expression. METHODS Control or Streptozotocin induced-diabetic ma...

Background ß-alanine has ergogenic potential based on its relationship with carnosine. Carnosine is rapidly degraded into ß-alanine and histidine as soon as it enters the blood. So there is no advantage to using direct carnosine supplementation. Previous studies have demonstrated that taking ß-alanine orally is effective at increasing intramuscular carnosine levels. The resistance training athl...

A new phenylethanoid glycoside acylated with syringic acid, namely acanmontanoside, was isolated from the aerial portions of Acanthus montanus (Nees). T. Anderson, along with decaffeoylverbascoside, verbascoside, isoverbascoside, leucosceptoside A, (2R)-2-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl-2H-1,4-benzoxazin-3(4H)-one (HBOA-Glc), (2R)-2-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl-4-hydroxy-2H-1,4-benzoxazin-3(4H)-one (DIBOA-Glc), (...

To assess the effects of oxyradicals on cardiac beta-adrenoceptors, G-proteins and adenylyl cyclase, rat heart membranes were incubated with xanthine (X) plus xanthine oxidase (XO) for different intervals. The basal as well as forskolin-, NaF-, 5'-guanylylimidodiphosphate and isoproterenol-stimulated adenylyl cyclase activities showed an increase at 10 min and a decrease at 30 min of incubation...

The present study was undertaken to investigate the effects of ß-alanine (a glycine agonist), on learning and memory in mice. ß-alanine (5, 10, 20 and 40 mg/kg i.p.) was administered for 6 successive days, to young (3 months old) and aged-mice (16 months old). The learning and memory parameters were assessed, using elevated plus-maze and passive-avoidance apparatus. The effect of ß-alanine (20 ...