METHODS: This study evaluated Malaysian Gelam honey as a nutraceutical alternative to estrogen HRT (ERT) in alleviating VVA. A total of 24 female 8-weekold Sprague Dawley rats underwent bilateral oophorectomy. A minimum of 14 days elapsed from the time of surgery and administration of the first dose of Gelam honey to allow the female hormones to subside to a stable baseline and complete recovery from surgery. Vaginal tissues were harvested following a 2-week administration of Gelam honey, the harvested vagina tissue underwent immunohistochemistry (IHC) analysis for protein localization and qPCR for mRNA expression analysis.
RESULTS: Results indicated that Gelam honey administration had increased the localization of Aqp1, Aqp5, CFTR and Muc1 proteins in vaginal tissue compared to the menopause group. The effect of Gelam honey on the protein expressions is summarized as Aqp1>CFTR>Aqp5>Muc1.
DISCUSSION: Gene expression analysis reveals Gelam honey had no effect on Aqp1 and CFTR genes. Gelam honey had up-regulated Aqp5 gene expression. However, its expression was lower than in the ERT+Ovx group. Additionally, Gelam honey up-regulated Muc1 in the vagina, with an expression level higher than those observed either in the ERT+Ovx or SC groups. Gelam honey exhibits a weak estrogenic effect on the genes and proteins responsible for regulating water in the vaginal tissue (Aqp1, Aqp5 and CFTR). In contrast, Gelam honey exhibits a strong estrogenic ability in influencing gene and protein expression for the sialic acid Muc1. Muc1 is associated with mucous production at the vaginal epithelial layer. In conclusion, the protein and gene expression changes in the vagina by Gelam honey had reduced the occurrence of vaginal atrophy in surgically-induced menopause models.
Methods: A systematic review of the literature was conducted to identify relevant studies on honey used as an alternative treatment of gastric ulcer cause by NSAIDs. A comprehensive search was conducted in Medline, SCOPUS, and Ebscohost. The main criteria used were articles published in English and using NSAIDs-induced gastric ulcer in rat's model and those reporting the effectiveness of honey.
Results: Articles published between 2001 and 2014 were identified to be relevant in studies related to the inclusion criteria. The literature search found 30 potential and closely related articles in this review, but only 5 articles were taken which meet the criteria needed to be fulfilled.
Conclusions: All studies in this review reported the efficacy of honey for gastric ulcer based on its antioxidant and cytoprotective activities. Most of the studies conducted used different types of honey at various doses on rats. Future studies should be conducted to identify the appropriate dose for humans to achieve similar gastroprotective effects.