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Hair loss, hair thinning, poorly growing hair and powerless or dull hair are common complaints in clinical dermatology. There is a need for products, which support the hair growing process and control some of the disturbances in the hair cycle dynamics. In the context of a randomised, placebo-controlled clinical trial efficacy of a fenugreek seeds containing food supplement against hair loss is evaluated. The results indicate a successful treatment of low to moderate hair loss in women and men. Additionally, positive effects on hair growth were demonstrated.

Many analytical methods are used to measure the antioxidant activity of substances yet little is known about the comparability of the test results between laboratories. After an initial evaluation of a broad range of methods conducted by one laboratory, the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay, the trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) assay, the lipid assay (or 2,2'-azobis(2-aminepropane) (ABAP) assay) and the thiobarbituric acid (TBA) assay were selected to be evaluated in the interlaboratory study.

Commercial Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10, ubiquinone) formulations are often of poor intestinal absorption. We investigated the bioavailability of DSM Nutritional Products Ltd. (Kaiseraugst, Switzerland) CoQ10 10% TG/P (all-Q), a new tablet-grade formulation, with CoQ10 Q-Gel Softsules based on the Bio-Solv technology (Tishcon Corp., Salisbury, MD; marketed by Epic4Health, Smithtown, NY) and Q-SorB (Nature's Bounty, Bohemia, NY). Twelve healthy male subjects participated in a randomised, three-period crossover bioequivalence study. Plasma CoQ10 was determined from pre-dose until +36 hours.

Dermatitis is a group of highly pruritic chronic inflammatory skin diseases which represents a major public-health problem worldwide. The prevalence of dermatitis has increased in recent years affecting up to 20% of the general population. Acute skin lesions are characterised by extensive degrees of intercellular edema of the epidermis (spongiosis) and a marked perivenular inflammatory cell infiltrate in the dermis. Keratinocytes within eczematous lesions exhibit a modified expression of proinflammatory cytokines, chemokines and cell-surface molecules. The pathophysiological puzzle of dermatitis is far from being elucidated completely, but skin infiltration of activated memory/effector T cells are thought to play the pivotal role in the pathogeneses. The aim of this study was the set-up of organotypic models mimicking the symptoms of eczematous dermatitis to provide a tool for therapeutic research in vitro.

Liver surgery usually involves ischemia and reperfusion (I/R) which results in oxidative stress and cell damage. The administration of antioxidants should diminish or prevent this damage. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the antioxidant vitamin E on I/R injury. We carried out a placebo-controlled double-blind study on 68 patients undergoing elective, tumour-related, partial liver resection. 47 patients were qualified for the per protocol population based evaluation. The patients were randomly assigned to two groups.