P. Pushpangadan

Antimicrobial screening of selected medicinal plants from India.

From the Indian traditional medicines 78 plants were selected on the basis of their use in the treatment of infectious diseases. Different concentrations of 80% ethanol extracts were tested, using the agar dilution method, against four bacteria: Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa and, using the agar-well diffusion method, against two fungi: Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger. In the lowest tested concentration of 1.6 mg/ml, 10% of the plant extracts were active; 44% in a concentration of 6.25 mg/ml and 90% of the plant extracts were active against at least two bacteria in a concentration of 25 mg/ml. Only 13% of the plant extracts were active against at least one fungus in a concentration of 50 mg/ml.

Effects of Artemisia pallens wall. on blood glucose levels in normal and alloxan-induced diabetic rats

Oral administration of the methanol extract of the aerial parts of Artemisia pallens Wall. (used in Indian folk medicine for the treatment of diabetes mellitus) led to significant blood glucose lowering effect in glucose-fed hyperglycaemic and alloxan-induced diabetic rats. This effect of the extract was dose dependent and significant at 100 mg/kg level in glucose-fed rats. In fasted normal rats, the extract caused a moderate hypoglycaemic effect at a higher dose (1000 mg/kg). The water extract (1000 mg/kg) was inactive.

In vitro screening of traditional medicines for anti-hypertensive effect based on inhibition of the angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE)

Traditional medicines reported to be used as anti-hypertensives or diuretics from different regions in the world (China, India and South America) have been investigated. The bioassay is based on inhibition of ACE, as measured from the enzymatic cleavage of the chromophore-fluorophore-labelled substrate dansyltriglycine into dansylglycine and diglycine. In total, 31 species have been investigated and the crude extracts from seven species inhibit the enzyme by more than 50%.

Aphrodisiac property of Trichopus zeylanicus extract in male mice.

Administration of Trichopus zeylanicus leaf (ethanol extract) to male mice stimulated their sexual behaviour as evidenced by an increase in number of mounts and mating performance. This activity of the ethanol extract was concentration dependent and destroyed by heat treatment at 100 degrees C for 15 min. Although oral administration of a single dose (200 mg/kg) was effective, daily administration of the extract for 6 days was found to be more effective. The pups fathered by the drug treated mice were found to be normal with reference to foetal growth, litter size and sex ratio. The water as well as n-hexane extracts of the plant leaf were inactive. The present study reveals for the first time the aphrodisiac activity of Trichopus zeylanicus, an endemic herb of India.

Amelioration effects against N-nitrosodiethylamine and CCl 4 - induced hepatocarcinogenesis in Swiss albino rats by whole plant extract of Achyranthes aspera

Objective: The prevalence of oxidative stress may be implicated in the etiology of many pathological conditions. Protective antioxidant action imparted by many plant extracts and plant products make them a promising therapeutic drug for free-radical-induced pathologies. In this study, we assessed the antioxidant potential and suppressive effects of Achyranthes aspera by evaluating the hepatic diagnostic markers on chemical-induced hepatocarcinogenesis. Materials and Methods: The in vivo model of hepatocarcinogenesis was studied in Swiss albino rats. Experimental rats were divided into five groups: control, positive control (NDEA and CCl4), A. aspera treated (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg b.w.). At 20 weeks after the administration of NDEA and CCl4, treated rats received A. aspera extract (AAE) at a dose of 100, 200, and 400 mg/kg once daily route. At the end of 24 weeks, the liver and relative liver weight and body weight were estimated. Lipid peroxidation (LPO), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione-S-transferase (GST), and reduced glutathione (GSH) were assayed. The hepatic diagnostic markers namely serum glutamic oxaloacetic transminase (AST), serum glutamic pyruvate transminase (ALT), serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP), gamma glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT), and bilirubin (BL) were also assayed, and the histopathological studies were investigated in control, positive control, and experimental groups. Results: The extract did not show acute toxicity and the per se effect of the extract showed decrease in LPO, demonstrating antioxidant potential and furthermore no change in the hepatic diagnosis markers was observed. Administration of AAE suppressed hepatic diagnostic and oxidative stress markers as revealed by decrease in NDEA and CCl4 -induced elevated levels of SGPT, SGOT, SALP, GGT, bilirubin, and LPO. There was also a significant elevation in the levels of SOD, CAT, GPx, GST, and GSH as observed after AAE treatment. The liver and relative liver weight were decreased after treatment with AAE in comparison to positive control group. The architecture of hepatic tissue was normalized upon treatment with extract at different dose graded at 100, 200, and 400 mg/kg. b.w. in comparison to positive control group. Conclusion: These results suggest that A. aspera significantly alleviate hepatic diagnostic and oxidative stress markers which signify its protective effect against NDEA and CCl4-induced two-stage hepatocarcinogenesis.

Inhibition of antigen-induced degranulation of sensitized mast cells by Trichopus zeylanicus in mice and rats

Treatment of mice with Trichopus zeylanicus leaf resulted in inhibition of antigen-induced degranulation of sensitized peritoneal mast cells. Further, it reduced the ratio of mast cells in the peritoneal exudate cells. The plant drug treatment did not protect mice from E. coli-induced abdominal sepsis. Studies in rats using mesenteric mast cells confirmed the above mast cell-stabilizing property of T. zeylanicus. This activity was found in the butanol fraction of methanol extract of T. zeylanicus leaf. The treatment with this fraction also reduced the number of rat mesenteric mast cells. However, the in vitro treatment of the mast cells with the butanol fraction did not inhibit antigen-induced degranulation of the mast cells.

Extraction of high-molecular-weight DNA from dry root tissue ofBerberis lycium suitable for RAPD

A simple protocol for DNA isolation from dry roots ofBerberis lycium is described. Four-year-old dry roots are used, and the isolated DNA is suitable for analysis by means of restriction enzyme digestion and random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD). The method involves a modified CTAB procedure using 1% PVP to remove polysaccharides and purification using low-melting-temperature agarose. DNA is amplified by means of PCR using 10-mer random primers from Operon Biotechnologies, Inc. (USA), and DNA samples are digested withTaq I,Hind III andEcoR I and examined on agarose gels. The RAPD reaction is performed according to the 1990 protocol by Williams et al.

Antidiabetic activity of Croton klozchianus in rats and direct stimulation of insulin secretion in-vitro

Croton klozchianus is a relatively uninvestigated species with no pharmacological or phytochemical reports available, although it has been used clinically by Ayurvedic physicians to treat diabetes. We have investigated this use by studying the insulin secretion and antidiabetic activity of C. klozchianus. Treatment of diabetic rats with aerial parts of C. klozchianus extract (CK, 100 and 300 mg kg−1 body weight) for three weeks showed significant reduction in blood glucose (45.8% after 14 days for 300 mg kg−1). C. klozchianus extract caused a significant concentration‐dependent increase in insulin secretion (8‐fold at 2 mg mL−1 for cells challenged with 20 mm glucose) from MIN6 cells grown as monolayers and as pseudoislets, indicating that the antidiabetic activity may have been as a result of increased insulin secretion. It also had a role on the lipid profile of the rats by causing reduction in cholesterol and triglycerides and increasing high density lipoprotein significantly. The results obtained gave some scientific support to the traditional use of the plant as a treatment for diabetes.

Pharmacognostical Evaluation of Cassia angustifolia. Seeds

Abstract Cassia angustifolia. Vahl (Leguminosae), commonly known as “sanaai,” is employed in various indigenous systems of medicine against several diseases, and almost every part of the plant has diverse medicinal properties. The seeds are used as an anthelmintic, digestive, and to treat piles, skin diseases, and abdominal troubles. According to Ayurveda, it has the property of reducing “kapha” and “Vata.” The current communication provides a detailed account of the pharmacognostic investigation carried out on the seeds of C. angustifolia.. The study includes macro- and microscopical details, SEM studies, fluorescence study of powder, physicochemical studies, and HPTLC fingerprinting. The seed is characterized by a finely ridged seed coat and palisade-like malpighian cells, discontinuous transparent linea lucida in the upper half of the malpighian layer, hilum simple and oblong. The study revealed that the seed samples procured from different places have similar morphological and physicochemical values. These observations are supported by TLC profiles. It was noted that the percentage of active principles (sennoside A and B) varied significantly in samples procured from different parts of the country.

Antihepatotoxic Activity of Spilanthes ciliata

Abstract The ethanol extract of the whole plant of Spilanthes ciliata was screened for its hepatoprotective effects in Wistar rats. A significant hepatoprotective effect was obtained against paracetamol-induced hepatic damage as evident from decreased levels of serum enzymes and an almost normal histological architecture of the liver, following treatment with the plant extract prior to paracetamol overdose-induced liver damage. The extract was also effective in increasing the choleretic activity of anaesthetized normal rats. The extract shortened hexobarbitone-induced sleeping time in mice, which was increased by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) treatment, besides showing significant antilipid peroxidant effects in vitro.