Browsing by Author "Soumik Goswami"

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Antiviral attributes of bee venom as a possible therapeutic approach against SARS-CoV-2 infection
(Newlands Press Ltd, 2023) Soumik Goswami; Jayita Pal Chowdhury
The unprecedented scale of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has driven considerable investigation into novel antiviral treatments since effective vaccination strategies cannot completely eradicate the virus. Apitherapy describes the medicinal use of bee venom, which may be an effective treatment against SARS-CoV-2 infection. Bee venom contains chemicals that are antimicrobial and stimulate the immune system to counteract viral load. The present review focuses on the use of bee venom as a possible treatment for COVID-19 and reviews studies on the pharmacodynamics of bee venom. © 2023 Future Medicine Ltd.
Melatonin as a possible antidote to UV radiation induced cutaneous damages and immune-suppression: An overview
(Elsevier B.V., 2015) Soumik Goswami; Chandana Haldar
The sun rays brings along the ultraviolet radiations (UVRs) which prove deleterious for living organisms. The UVR is a known mutagen and is the prime cause of skin carcinomas. UVR causes acute oxidative stress and this in turn deteriorates other physiological functions. Inflammatory conditions and elevation of pro-inflammatory molecules are also associated with UVR mediated cellular damages. The inflammatory conditions can secondarily trigger the generation of free radicals and this act cumulatively in further deterioration of tissue homeostasis. Photoimmunologists have also related UVR to the suppression of not only cutaneous but also systemic immunity by different mechanisms. Some researchers have proposed the use of various plant products as antioxidants against UVR induced oxidative imbalances but Melatonin is gaining rapid interest as a product that can be utilized to delineate the pathological effects of UVR since it is an established antioxidant. Besides the antioxidative nature, the capacity of melatonin to attenuate apoptosis and more importantly the efficacy of its metabolites to further aid in the detoxification of free radicals have made it a key player to be utilized against UVR mediated aggravated conditions. However, there is need for further extensive investigation to speculate melatonin as an antidote to UVR. Although too early to prescribe melatonin as a clinical remedy, the hormone can be integrated into dermal formulations or oral supplements to prevent the ever increasing incidences of skin cancers due to the prevalence of the UVR on the surface of the earth. The present review focuses and substantiates the work by different photo-biologists demonstrating the protective effects of melatonin and its metabolites against solar UVR - Melatonin as a possible antidote to UV radiation induced cutaneous damages and immune-suppression: an overview. J Photochem Photobiol B. © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
The oxidative damages caused by ultraviolet radiation type C (UVC) to a tropical rodent Funambulus pennanti: Role of melatonin
(Elsevier B.V., 2013) Soumik Goswami; Shweta Sharma; Chandana Haldar
Data suggests that UV radiation causes oxidative damage of the cells due to the release of inflammatory cytokines which in turn generates reactive oxygen species (ROS) that damages lipids, proteins and DNA. On the other hand, melatonin a potent antioxidant from the pineal gland under most of the conditions acts as a free radical scavenger. Our data suggests that melatonin pre-treatment (s.c. injections) significantly protected the diurnal squirrels from oxidative damages caused by UVC irradiation of 1528 mJ cm-2 that induced suppression of delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) responses. It also protected the rodents from UVC radiation induced increase in thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) levels in spleen accompanied with a significant decrease in Superoxide Dismutase (SOD) activity indicating the occurrence of superoxide anion mediated damages following UVC exposure. Melatonin administration reduced the radiation induced oxidative stress in the spleen tissue as analyzed by reduced lipid damages and higher SOD activity. Under in vivo (100 μg/100 g body wt.) and in vitro (250 pg/106 cells) conditions, melatonin pre-treatment prevented spleen tissues and splenocytes from radiation induced cell death. In conclusion we may suggest that melatonin could be one of the potent antioxidant and radio protector that may reduce UV radiation induced toxicity to the cells and hence may be clinically important. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.
UVB irradiation severely induces systemic tissue injury by augmenting oxidative load in a tropical rodent: Efficacy of melatonin as an antioxidant
(Elsevier, 2014) Soumik Goswami; Chandana Haldar
Tropical animals are regularly exposed to solar UV radiation. The generation and accumulation of free radicals as a result of UVB incidence causes tissue damage. In the present study we report that the irradiation of Funambulus pennanti by 1.5 J/cm2 of UVB caused significant oxidative damage to the spleen. The systemic immunity suffered collateral damage as depicted by results of total leukocyte count (TLC) while an increase in the thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and decline in the activities of enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD), Glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and Catalase (CAT) denoted oxidative tissue damage. Melatonin the indole-amine with known antioxidative properties when administered subcutaneously (s.c 100 μg/100 gm body weight), before the UVB irradiation recovered the damages caused by UVB radiation in the spleen. The action of melatonin was direct and might have involved its membrane receptor (MT1) as well as nuclear receptor (RORα) indicating the fact that the mode of action of melatonin in ameliorating UVB radiation induced free radical load may be receptor mediated. Our study hence reports for the first time that UVB radiation incurred oxidative damage to the spleen and suppressed the normal tissue functions. This UVB mitigated oxidative stress was recovered by the free radical scavenging and anti-apoptotic functions of melatonin when administered prior to UVB irradiation. © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.