The Inhibitory Effect of Wood Creosote on the Movement of Anisakis Larvae: An Implication for the Treatment of Acute Anisakiasis

<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> Anisakiasis is a common disease in countries such as Japan, where raw or undercooked marine fish are frequently consumed. The disease is caused by accidental ingestion of a live larva of <i>Anisakis</i> in raw or undercooked marine fish. In typical cases, it causes abrupt gastrointestinal symptoms, such as epigastric pain, nausea, and vomiting. According to a published report, the disease was alleviated by oral ingestion of an over-the-counter drug containing wood creosote. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> We performed an in vitro experiment to elucidate whether wood creosote can inhibit the motor activity of <i>Anisakis</i> larvae, using infrared locomotion tracking and agarose gel penetration techniques. <b><i>Results:</i></b> Our results clearly demonstrate that wood creosote inhibits the motor activity of <i>Anisakis</i> larvae. The concentration of wood creosote used in our experiment is similar to that found in stomach juice when a usual oral dose is taken of the medicine containing wood creosote. <b><i>Discussion/Conclusion:</i></b> Our results suggest the potential usefulness of the medicine containing wood creosote in the treatment of acute <i>Anisakis</i> infection of the gastrointestinal tract.

Mouse model of metformin-induced diarrhea

ObjectiveMetformin, an oral medication used for type 2 diabetes mellitus, is the most commonly prescribed drug with less economic burden of patients. Although metformin’s efficacy and safety have long been recognized, approximately 5% of the patients treated with this drug develop severe diarrhea as an adverse effect and have to abandon treatment. Because there is no animal model to study metformin-induced diarrhea, it is hard to develop methods to maintain quality of life of patients prescribed with metformin.Research design and methodsUsing mouse models, we tried to develop an evaluation system for metformin-induced diarrhea to improve diarrheal symptoms in patients with diabetes. Healthy (C57BL/6J) and diabetic obese (db/db) mice were subjected to a stepwise dose escalation of metformin (250 mg/kg/day (125 mg/kg twice daily oral dose)—1000 mg/kg/day (500 mg/kg twice daily oral dose)), and fecal moisture contents and their score were monitored. To evaluate anti-diarrheal medications, wood creosote (a traditional medicine) was tested. Several groups of enterobacteria in fresh feces were examined by using PCR.Results1000 mg/kg/day (four times maximal effective dose) of metformin significantly increased fecal moisture content. Although no symptoms of diarrhea were observed in healthy C57BL/6J mice, the same dose of metformin induced severe diarrhea in diabetic obese db/db mice. A reduction in PCR signals for the Firmicutes group was associated with metformin-induced diarrhea. Wood creosote reduced diarrhea (high water-content) without affecting metformin’s efficacy or enterobacterial flora levels.ConclusionsWe have created the first animal model of metformin-induced diarrhea using db/db mice, which will provide better quality of life for patients suffering from diarrhea caused by metformin.

Anti-Diarrheal Effects of Wood Creosote, Seirogan, in Japanese Patients

Wood creosote, Seirogan, is a non-prescription drug used to treat diarrhea. However, reports of its clinical use are rare. Here, we report the efficacy of wood creosote (3 capsules daily) in alleviating diarrheal symptoms in 148 patients from 10 clinics in Osaka, Japan. Wood creosote was classified to be remarkably effective, effective, partially effective, or not effective on the basis of the degree of alleviation of diarrheal symptoms. The anti-diarrheal efficacy of wood creosote soft capsules did not differ between males and females. Younger patients (21–30 years) showed greater improvement in diarrhea symptoms than elderly patients (>61 years) did. Wood creosote soft capsules were remarkably effective (44 patients), effective (71 patients), and partially effective (13 patients) in alleviating diarrhea symptoms due to a variety of causes. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the clinical effectiveness of wood creosote soft capsules in treating diarrhea.