Effects of ginseng supplementation on selected markers of inflammation: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The present meta-analysis was performed to evaluate the efficacy of ginseng administration on serum level of inflammatory biomarkers. We performed a systematic search of all available randomized controlled trials (RCTs) conducted up to June 2018 in the following electronic databases: PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane, and Google Scholar. RCTs that investigated the effect ginseng supplementation on high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were included for final analysis. A total of seven RCTs were included in the meta-analysis. Results indicated significant reduction in IL-6 (mean difference [MD]: -0.265 pg/ml, 95% CI [-0.396, -0.135], p < .001) and TNF-α (MD: -2.471 pg/ml, 95% CI [-2.904, -2.039], p < .001) and no significant change in hs-CRP (MD: -0.125 mg/L, 95% CI [-0.597, 0.347], p = .604). Although there was publication bias across studies, trim and fill analysis showed that results from unpublished studies could not change the results for CRP. However, removing one study in sensitivity analysis did reveal a significant reduction in CRP. We conclude that ginseng supplementation significantly lowered IL-6 and TNF-α but did not significantly lower CRP. However, these findings were not robust, because they showed sensitivity for CRP and IL-6, and future long-term well-designed dose-escalating trials are required.

Mohammadi H ，Hadi A ，Kord-Varkaneh H ，Arab A ，Afshari M ，Ferguson AJR ，Ghaedi E ... -  《-》

Effects of ginseng on C-reactive protein level: A systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials.

The aim of this meta-analysis was to assess effects of ginseng supplementation on CRP/hs-CRP levels in clinical trial studies. A systematic literature search was carried out for clinical trials published in ISI web of Science, Scopus, PubMed and Cochrane Library databases from the beginning to 16th February 2018. Of 83 articles found in the first step of the systematic search, seven studies with nine arms included in this meta-analysis. Results of pooled random-effect size analysis of nine trials showed non-significant decreasing effects of ginseng supplementation on CRP level (WMD: -0.1 mg/l, 95% CI, -0.26, 0.1; P = 0.27) with significant heterogeneity shown within the studies. The subgroup analysis showed that ginseng supplementation could significantly reduce CRP level by 0.51 (95% CI: -0.68, -0.34; P < 0001, test for heterogeneity: P = 0.44, I2 = 0.0%) in patients with a baseline serum CRP level of greater than 3 mg/dl. Trial duration and dose of ginseng supplementation included no significant effects on CRP level in this meta-analysis. Results of the current meta-analysis study have shown that ginseng supplementation can decrease significantly serum CRP/hsCRP levels in patients with elevated serum level of this inflammatory marker.

Saboori S ，Falahi E ，Yousefi Rad E ，Asbaghi O ，Khosroshahi MZ ... -  《-》

Effect of Resveratrol Supplementation on Inflammatory Markers: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

The evidence has suggested that resveratrol has anti-inflammatory effect; however, the results are inconsistent and inconclusive. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of resveratrol supplementation on the levels of inflammatory markers through a systematic review and meta-analysis of available randomized controlled trials (RCTs). A search strategy was completed using Medline, ISI Web of Science, Directory of Open Access Journal, SID, ProQuest, Cochrane Library, Scopus, and EMBASE up to May 2017, to identify placebo-controlled RCTs that assessed resveratrol effects on circulating (serum and plasma) inflammatory markers (interleukin [IL]-6, tumor necrosis factor-α [TNF-α], and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [hs-CRP]) among adult participants aged 17 years and older in 17 RCTs with a total of 736 subjects. The evaluation of study quality was performed using the Jadad scale. Weighted mean difference (WMD) was calculated for evaluating the changes in the inflammatory markers using fixed-effects or random-effects models. We performed subgroup and sensitivity analyses to evaluate the heterogeneity of the studies. Seventeen RCTs, including 736 subjects, fulfilled the eligibility criteria and were selected for analyses. The results of meta-analysis found significant reductions in the level of TNF-α (WMD, -0.44; 95% CI, -0.71 to -0.164; P = 0.002; Q statistic = 21.60; I2 = 49.1%; P = 0.02) and hs-CRP (WMD, -0.27; 95% CI, -0.5 to -0.02; P = 0.033; Q statistic = 26.95; I2 = 51.8%; P = 0.013) after supplementation with resveratrol. Resveratrol supplementation had no significant effect on the level of IL-6 (WMD, -0.16; 95% CI, -0.53 to 0.20; P = 0.38; Q statistic = 36.0; I2 = 72.3%; P = 0.001). Statistically significant heterogeneity was observed for the type of sample in IL-6 and study duration in inflammatory markers IL-6, TNF-α, and hs-CRP. Available evidence from RCTs suggests that resveratrol supplementation significantly reduced TNF-α and hs-CRP levels. Significant improvement in inflammatory markers support resveratrol as an adjunct to pharmacologic management of metabolic diseases.

Koushki M ，Dashatan NA ，Meshkani R 《-》

Effects of Folic Acid Supplementation on Inflammatory Markers: A Grade-Assessed Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Asbaghi O ，Ashtary-Larky D ，Bagheri R ，Moosavian SP ，Nazarian B ，Afrisham R ，Kelishadi MR ，Wong A ，Dutheil F ，Suzuki K ，Alavi Naeini A ... -  《Nutrients》

Effects of saffron (Crocus sativus L.) supplementation on inflammatory biomarkers: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The effect of saffron supplementation on subclinical inflammation remains inconclusive. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to summarize available findings on the effect of saffron supplementation on inflammatory biomarkers (C-reactive protein [CRP], tumor necrosis factor-α [TNF-α], and interleukin-6 [IL-6]) in adults. We searched PubMed/Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases up to November 2019 using relevant keywords to identify eligible trials. All randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that examined the effect of oral saffron supplementation on plasma concentrations of CRP, TNF-α, and IL-6 were included. For each outcome, mean differences and SDs were pooled using a random-effects model. Overall, eight RCTs were included in this meta-analysis. The pooled results showed that saffron supplementation did not result in significant changes in serum CRP (weighted mean difference [WMD]: -0.43 mg/L; 95% confidence interval [CI]: -1.04 to 0.17; p = .16), serum TNF-α (WMD: -1.29 pg/mL; 95% CI: -4.13 to 1.55; p = .37), and IL-6 concentrations (WMD: 0.11 pg/mL; 95% CI: -0.79 to 1.00; p = .81). Subgroup analysis indicated a significant reduction in serum CRP levels in studies with baseline CRP of ≥3 mg/L, saffron dosage of ≤30 mg/day, and intervention duration of <12 weeks, as well as trials that used crocin. Similarly, saffron was found to decrease TNF-α in studies that recruited non-diabetic subjects, subjects with baseline levels of ≥15 pg/mL, and participants with <50 years old, as well as trials that administered saffron at the dosage of ≤30 mg/day. We also found a significant non-linear effect of saffron dosage on serum CRP concentrations (pnon-linearity = .03). The overall results indicated that saffron supplementation did not affect inflammatory cytokines. Further high-quality studies are needed to firmly establish the clinical efficacy of supplemental saffron on inflammatory biomarkers.

Asbaghi O ，Sadeghian M ，Sadeghi O ，Rigi S ，Tan SC ，Shokri A ，Mousavi SM ... -  《-》