The inflammatory response is a crucial aspect of the tissues’ responses to deleterious inflammogens. This complex response involves leukocytes cells such as macrophages, neutrophils, and lymphocytes, also known as inflammatory cells. In response to the inflammatory process, these cells release specialized substances which include vasoactive amines and peptides, eicosanoids, proinflammatory cytokines, and acute-phase proteins, which mediate the inflammatory process by preventing further tissue damage and ultimately resulting in healing and restoration of tissue function. This review discusses the role of the inflammatory cells as well as their by-products in the mediation of inflammatory process. A brief insight into the role of natural anti-inflammatory agents is also discussed. The significance of this study is to explore further and understand the potential mechanism of inflammatory processes to take full advantage of vast and advanced anti-inflammatory therapies. This review aimed to reemphasize the importance on the knowledge of inflammatory processes with the addition of newest and current issues pertaining to this phenomenon.

Epicatechin is a natural flavonoid found in green tea. It has been reported to possess an immense antioxidant effect which contributes to its therapeutic effect against a handful of ailments. In this review, we discuss its therapeutic role in the management of two of the most important human diseases; diabetes and cancer. The consumption of epicatechin has been shown to reduce blood glucose levels in diabetic patients, while is anticancer effect was attributed to its antioxidant properties, antiangiogenic and direct cytotoxicity to cancer cells. Although the exact mechanism of action of epicatechin is still being explored, there is no doubt that it is a promising candidate as an alternative. The significance of this review is to highlight the importance of the usage of natural products (in this case, epicatechin) as an alternative for the treatment of two potentially fatal diseases which is diabetes and cancer. The aim of this review is to educate the scientific community on the role of epicatechin in ameliorating the effects of diabetes and cancers on human while understanding the potential mechanisms of these aforementioned effects.

Lead acetate (LA) toxicity can occur either by ingestion or inhalation from contaminated surfaces or from the environment. Nigella sativa is a natural product with immense pharmacological properties. In this study, the effects of N. sativa pre-treatment on lead acetate induced hematological and biochemical changes were evaluated. A total of 20 male Sprague Dawley rats were divided into 4 groups with 5 rats each. Group 1 (NC) was the negative control, group 2 was the lead acetate control (PC) and was administered 10 mg/kg/per day of lead acetate (LA) per OS for 30 days, group 3 (T1) was administered 200 mg/kg/daily of Nigella sativa orally for a month and Group 4 (T2) was pre-treated with 200 mg/kg/daily of Nigella sativa orally for one month, followed by administration of 10 mg/kg/daily of lead acetate (LA) orally for another month. At the end of the experiment, whole blood and serum were collected to evaluate the complete blood profile and serum biochemistry. The haemogram showed lower (p < 0.05) level of hemoglobin, packed cell volume and prothrombin in the PC group, while total white blood cell count, band neutrophils, segmented neutrophils, lymphocytes and monocytes counts were higher (p < 0.05) in the PC group than the treatment groups. However, eosinophil count was higher in T2, while no changes were observed in RBC and MCV values. Both alanine and aspartate aminotransferase enzymes were higher in the PC as compared to other groups. Similarly, the levels of alkaline phosphatase, cholesterol, urea and creatinine were all higher (p < 0.05) in the PC group and comparable (p > 0.05) in the control, T1 and T2 groups. The level of SOD and GSH were lower (p < 0.05) in the PC and T2 groups. In summary, this study showed the prophylactic potential of N. sativa extract in modulating both hematological, biochemical and anti-oxidant enzymes alterations induced by sub-chronic lead acetate administration in rats.

The typical test for diagnosis of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 is a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique, but the chest CT scan might play a complementary role at the first detection of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia. Objectives: To determine the sensitivity of CT scan on patients with COVID-19 in Al-Najaf, Iraq, and to compare the accuracy of CT scan with that of RT-PCR technique. Material and Method: This is a prospective study. The patients suspicious of having COVID-19 infection and respiratory symptoms were registered. All patients were diagnosed by RT-PCR and chest CT. Diagnostic performance of CT was intended using RT-PCR as the reference standard in the centre of coronavirus investigation in Al-Najaf city, Iraq from March 2020 to September 2020. Results: The study population included 125 consecutive participants (males and females; mean age = 53 ± 17 years). Of the 125 participants, fever was observed in 93 (74.4%), cough was observed in 81 (64.8%), dyspnoea was observed in 47 (33%), and lymphocytopenia was observed in 89 (71.2%) subjects. The sensitivity and specificity of chest CT scan was 94% (95% confidence interval). Conclusion: The typical diagnosis of Coronavirus Disease 2019 pneumonia is by RT-PCR at the first stage of infection which can then be confirmed by chest CT.