avocado-soybean unsaponifiable extract (ASU)

We investigated the protective effects of avocado/soybean unsaponifiables (ASU) on the prefrontal cortex (PFC) after global brain ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury in rats.

Rats were randomly divided into three experimental groups as follows: Group I was control rats, Group II was ischemia rats, Group III was Isch + ASU rats. Brain ischemia was produced via four-vessel occlusion model. These processes followed by reperfusion for 30 min for both II and III groups. Rats were sacrificed and their brains were removed immediately. Malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured in left PFC, levels of TNF-α concentration were measured in the plasma. The number of apoptotic neurons was assayed in histological samples of the right PFC.

MDA and TNF-α levels as well as the number of apoptotic neurons were observed to have decreased significantly in Group III compared to Group II, while SOD activities have been found to have increased significantly in Group III in comparison to Group II, significantly.

We think that ASU might have an antioxidant and neuroprotective effects in brain I/R injured rats.

To evaluate the efficacy of preparations with avocado-soybean unsaponifiables (ASUs) in osteoarthritis (OA) patients using meta-analysis on randomized controlled trials (RCTs).

RCTs from systematic searches were included if they explicitly stated that hip and/or knee OA patients were randomized to either ASU or placebo. The co-primary outcome was reduction in pain and Lequesne index, leading to effect size (ES), calculated as the standardized mean difference. As secondary analysis, the number of responders to therapy was analyzed as odds ratios (ORs). Restricted maximum likelihood methods were applied for the meta-analyses, using mixed effects models.

Four trials--all supported by the manufacturer--were included, with 664 OA patients with either hip (41.4%) or knee (58.6%) OA allocated to either 300 mg ASU (336) or placebo (328). Average trial duration was 6 months (range: 3-12 months). Though based on heterogeneous results, the combined pain reduction favored ASU (I(2) = 83.5%, ES = 0.39 [95% confidence intervals: 0.01-0.76], P=0.04). Applying the Lequesne index also favored ASU (I(2) = 61.0%, ES = 0.45 [0.21-0.70], P = 0.0003). Secondarily, the number of responders following ASU compared to placebo (OR = 2.19, P = 0.007) corresponded to a number needed to treat of six (4-21) patients.

Based on the available evidence, patients may be recommended to give ASU a chance for e.g., 3 months. Meta-analysis data support better chances of success in patients with knee OA than in those with hip OA.