%0 Journal Article
%T Amelioration of Sarcoptic Mange-Induced Oxidative Stress and Apoptosis in Dogs by Using Calendula officinalis Flower Extracts
%A Shanker K. Singh
%A Umesh Dimri
%J ISRN Oxidative Medicine
%D 2013
%R 10.1155/2013/657672
%X Twenty-four clinically Sarcoptes-infested dogs were randomly enrolled into three groups (groups A, B, and C), 8 dogs in each group. Group A was treated with ivermectin + Calendula officinalis flower extract (CFE). Group B was treated with ivermectin + N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) (standard positive controls), while group C (negative control) was treated with ivermectin alone. Another eight healthy dogs were used as healthy controls (group D). By day 28 after therapy, the dogs treated adjunctly with CFE as well as with N-acetyl cysteine revealed significant ( ) amelioration of the altered markers of oxidative stress towards normalcy. The dogs of these groups also revealed significant ( ) amelioration of apoptotic leukocytes towards normalcy, and values were comparable to those of the healthy controls. While by day 28 after therapy, ivermectin alone treated dogs could not achieve comparable values to those of the healthy controls. The dogs treated adjunctly with CFE and N-acetyl cysteine also revealed faster parasitological as well as clinical cure rate as compared to the ivermectin alone treated dogs. In conclusion, CFE has remarkable antioxidant and antiapoptotic potential and can constitute a potential adjunctive remedy with miticide for the therapeutic management of canine sarcoptic mange. 1. Introduction Sarcoptic mange is a highly contagious and pruritic acariosis of the skin affecting abroad host range including more than 100 mammalian species belonging to 27 families from 10 orders [1, 2] and afflicts 300 million people globally. In many animal species, the prevalence of sarcoptic mange is very high and an untreated animal often succumbs [3, 4]. In addition to its potential to cause huge economic loss due to reduced production and increased mortality in animals, [1, 5] it is an emerging/reemerging infectious disease that threatens human and animal health globally [6¨C8]. In developing countries, it is a significant public health problem because it is highly prevalent and complications are frequent [9]. Emerging resistance to the currently available therapeutic permethrin and ivermectin has recently been reported from regions where previously effective acaricides have been used extensively in socially disadvantaged communities and in some developing countries [10¨C12]. In addition, drug residue can build up during extensive and long-term use, which poses environmental hazards and can lead to increased drug resistance in the target species [10, 13]. This emphasizes the need to identify potential targets for chemotherapeutic and/or immunological
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/isrn.oxidative.medicine/2013/657672/