Shahadat Hossan

Activity of Pericampylus glaucus and periglaucine A in vitro against nasopharangeal carcinoma and anti-inflammatory activity.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Pericampylus glaucus is a climbing plant found across Asia and used in traditional medicine to treat a number of conditions including splenomegaly, fever, cough, laryngitis, pulmonary disease, asthma, headache, hair loss, snake bite, boar bite, factures, boils, tumours, tetanus, rheumatic pain, itches and eclampsia. AIM OF THE STUDY To test extracts of P. glaucus in a number of bioassays and determine the legitimacy of its traditional use. MATERIALS AND METHODS The stems, leaves, roots and fruits of P. glaucus were collected and extracted sequentially with hexane, chloroform and ethanol, respectively. The anti-inflammatory activity was assessed by testing the ability of the extracts to inhibit heat induced protein denaturation, stabilise human red blood cells under hypotonic stress and by testing the inhibitory activity of the extracts against cyclooxygenases 1 and 2. Cytotoxicity was tested using the human lung epithelial cell line MRC-5 and nasopharangeal carcinoma cell line HK1 in the MTT assay. RESULTS Many of the samples showed an ability to prevent heat induced protein denaturation, as well as prevent lysis of red blood cells. Most of the extracts demonstrated inhibitory activity towards both of the COX enzymes. The ethanol extracts tended to demonstrate greater toxicity than other extracts, with some of the other extracts significantly enhancing growth and metabolism of the cells. CONCLUSION The benefit of P. glaucus for the treatment of diseases related to inflammation and cancer was supported by the in vitro assays adopted in this study.

Anti-infective activities of 11 plants species used in traditional medicine in Malaysia

Treatment of drug resistant protozoa, bacteria, and viruses requires new drugs with alternative chemotypes. Such compounds could be found from Southeast Asian medicinal plants. The present study examines the cytotoxic, antileishmanial, and antiplasmodial effects of 11 ethnopharmacologically important plant species in Malaysia. Chloroform extracts were tested for their toxicity against MRC-5 cells and Leishmania donovani by MTT, and chloroquine-resistant Plasmodium falciparum K1 strain by Histidine-Rich Protein II ELISA assays. None of the extract tested was cytotoxic to MRC-5 cells. Extracts of Uvaria grandiflora, Chilocarpus costatus, Tabernaemontana peduncularis, and Leuconotis eugenifolius had good activities against L. donovani with IC50 < 50 μg/mL. Extracts of U. grandiflora, C. costatus, T. peduncularis, L. eugenifolius, A. subulatum, and C. aeruginosa had good activities against P. falciparum K1 with IC50 < 10 μg/mL. Pinoresinol isolated from C. costatus was inactive against L. donovani and P. falciparum. C. costatus extract and pinoresinol increased the sensitivity of Staphylococcus epidermidis to cefotaxime. Pinoresinol demonstrated moderate activity against influenza virus (IC50 = 30.4 ± 11 μg/mL) and was active against Coxsackie virus B3 (IC50 = 7.1 ± 3.0 μg/mL). β-Amyrin from L. eugenifolius inhibited L. donovani with IC50 value of 15.4 ± 0.01 μM. Furanodienone from C. aeruginosa inhibited L. donovani and P. falciparum K1 with IC50 value of 39.5 ± 0.2 and 17.0 ± 0.05 μM, respectively. Furanodienone also inhibited the replication of influenza and Coxsackie virus B3 with IC50 value of 4.0 ± 0.5 and 7.2 ± 1.4 μg/mL (Ribavirin: IC50: 15.6 ± 2.0 μg/mL), respectively. Our study provides evidence that medicinal plants in Malaysia have potentials as a source of chemotypes for the development of anti-infective leads.

Ayurvedic Influences and Novel Combination of Phytotherapy and Zootherapy by a Folk Medicinal Practitioner of Domar Upazila in Nilphamari District, Bangladesh

Background: Bangladesh is possibly unique in that many different traditional medicinal systems are present like Ayurveda, Unani, homeopathy, and folk medicine. The objective of the present study was to document the novel therapeutic practices of a folk medicinal practitioner (FMP) in Nilphamari district, who used a combination of phytotherapy and zootherapy practices, and whose formulations further included his own modifications of standard Ayurvedic formulations. Methods and findings: Interviews of the FMP regarding his ethnomedicinal practices were carried out with the help of a semi-structured questionnaire and the guided field-walk method from August 2016 till February 2017. The FMP used a total of 44 plants distributed into 29 families in his formulations. The total number of formulations used was 25 for treatment of a diverse group of ailments like respiratory tract disorders, eye disorders, filariasis, diabetes, weakening of immune system, erectile dysfunction, hypertension, tuberculosis, heart disorders, puerperal fever, and jaundice. The FMP also used parts from seven animals (fish, insect, bird – all are classified as animal) alone or in conjunction with plants in his treatment. Conclusions: The FMP used a number of plants in his treatment, the ethnomedicinal uses of which plants being hitherto not reported from Bangladesh. The combination of phytotherapy and zootherapy is unique as well as modifications of Ayurvedic formulations, and if scientifically validated, may prove useful for treatment of a number of diseases. Overall, the FMP’s treatment methods merit further scientific attention especially towards development of an effective method to treat diabetes, hypertension, and filariasis.