Assessment of Gastroprotective Potential of Delonix regia (Boj Ex Hook) Raf against Ethanol and Cold Restrain Stress-Induced Ulcer in Rats

Purpose: To assess the gastroprotective potential of the stem bark ethanol extract of Delonix regia (EDR) on ethanol and cold restrain stress-induced ulcer in experimental rats.Methods: EDR (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg doses, orally) was evaluated on ethanol and cold restrain stress-induced ulcer in experimental rats. In ethanol induced ulcer model, ulcer index, percent protection, reduced glutathione (GSH), malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), myeloperoxidase (MPO), cytokines and nitric oxide (NO) levels in stomach tissue were evaluated. In the cold restrain stress model, ulcer index, percent protection, and GSH levels were evaluated. 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay of EDR was also performed.Results: EDR caused a significant (p < 0.05-0.001) decreased ulcer index in ethanol (61.33-76.00%) and cold restrain stress (47.34-84.28 %) models. The EDR caused a significant (p < 0.05 - 0.001) increase in SOD (0.20 - 0.27 U/mg protein, CAT (200 - 270 μmole H2O2/mg of protein/minute), GSH (1.63 - 1.17 μg/mg protein) and reduction in nitric oxide (NO) level, pro-inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α and IL-6) levels and inhibition in neutrophil accumulation (p < 0.001) in ethanol-induced model. EDR exhibited significant antioxidant activity with IC50 value of 45.23 ± 3.23 μg/ml.Conclusion: The results suggest that EDR has gastroprotective effect in the two ulcer models and this may be due to its antioxidant effect.Keywords: Delonix regia, Fabaceae, Ethanol-induced ulcer, Cold restrain stress-induced ulcer, Gastroprotective, Pro-inflammatory cytokine

Traditional Phytotherapy used in the Treatment of Malaria by Rural People of Bhopal, District of Madhya Pradesh, India

Malaria is caused by Plasmodium and transmitted through female Anopheles mosquito. The disease is common in rural areas. Although a number of synthetic medicines have been used for the treatment of malaria, but they have adverse effects and their high cost is beyond the reach of common people. It is, therefore, worthwhile to look towards antimalarial herbal drugs. Herbal drugs are cheaper, easily available and with no fear of any side effects. The present paper enumerates the herbs used in malaria by the rural people of Bhopal district of Madhya Pradesh, India

High Prevalence of Associated Birth Defects in Congenital Hypothyroidism

Aim. To identify dysmorphic features and cardiac, skeletal, and urogenital anomalies in patients with congenital hypothyroidism. Patients and Methods. Seventeen children with congenital primary hypothyroidism were recruited. Cause for congenital hypothyroidism was established using ultrasound of thyroid and 99mTc radionuclide thyroid scintigraphy. Malformations were identified by clinical examination, echocardiography, X-ray of lumbar spine, and ultrasonography of abdomen. Results. Ten (59%) patients (6 males and 4 females) had congenital malformations. Two had more than one congenital malformation (both spina bifida and ostium secundum atrial septal defect). Five (29%) had cardiac malformations, of whom three had only osteum secundum atrial septal defect (ASD), one had only patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), and one patient had both ASD and PDA. Seven patients (41%) had neural tube defects in the form of spina bifida occulta. Conclusion. Our study indicates the need for routine echocardiography in all patients with congenital hypothyroidism

Small Watershed Hydrology Summary Proceedings of a Workshop on The Role of Small Watershed Hydrology in Rainfed griculture 22-24 November 1988

ICRISAT hosted a workshop on "The Role of Small Watershed Hydrology in Rainfed Agriculture" from 22-24 November 1988 at ICRISAT Center. Some 30 participants from research institutions in India and one from Thailand joined ICRI - SAT scientists in their deliberations. The workshop aimed at exploring linkages for collaborative research by reviewing past experience, and as a basis for a new research agenda. As the scientists represented wide experience on watershed hydrology, the discussions achieved a general perspective through exchanges of information and ideas. Presented in this volume are the welcome address, the recommendations of the workshop, and abstracts of the papers. The Indian Society of Dryland Agriculture is planning a special issue of its journal to incorporate many of the papers presented at the workshop. While man cannot control weather, he can cushion the impact of adverse weather conditions—manifested in drought and floods—on rainfed agriculture by learning to plan and manage his land and water resources more efficiently. ICRISAT hopes that this volume and the one proposed by the Indian Society of Dryland Agriculture will help us move forward

Erosion of Trust in the Medical Profession in India : Time for Doctors to Act

In India, over the last decade, a series of stewardship failures in the health system, particularly in the medical profession, have led to a massive erosion of trust in these institutions. In many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), the situation is similar and has reached crisis proportions; this crisis requires urgent attention. This paper draws on the insights from the recent developments in India, to argue that a purely control-based regulatory response to this crisis in the medical profession, as is being currently envisaged by the Parliament and the Supreme Court of India, runs the risk of undermining the trusting interpersonal relations between doctors and their patients. A more balanced approach which takes into account the differences between system and interpersonal forms of trust and distrust is warranted. Such an approach should on one hand strongly regulate the institutions mandated with the stewardship and qualities of care functions, and simultaneously on the other hand, initiate measures to nurture the trusting interpersonal relations between doctors and patients. The paper concludes by calling for doctors, and those mandated with the stewardship of the profession, to individually and collectively, critically self-reflect upon the state of their profession, its priorities and its future direction

Coexistence of Haldane gap excitations and long range antiferromagnetic order in mixed-spin nickelates R_2 Ba Ni O_5

The spin dynamics of the S=1 Ni-chains in mixed-spin antiferromagnets Pr_2 Ba Ni O_5 and Nd_x Y_2-x Ba Ni O_5 is described in terms of a simple Ginzburg-Landau Lagrangian coupled to the sublattice of rare-earth ions. Within this framework we obtain a theoretical explanation for the experimentally observed coexistence of Haldane gap excitations and long-range magnetic order, as well as for the increase of the Haldane gap energy below the Neel point. We also predict that the degeneracy of the Haldane triplet is lifted in the magnetically ordered phase. The theoretical results are consistent with the available experimental data.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, submitted to PRL An alternative derivation of main results and new references adde

Neutron diffraction study of stripe order in La(2)NiO(4+d) with d=2/15

We report a detailed neutron scattering study of the ordering of spins and holes in oxygen-doped La(2)NiO(4.133). The single-crystal sample exhibits the same oxygen-interstitial order but better defined charge-stripe order than that studied previously in crystals with d = 0.125. In particular, charge order is observed up to a temperature at least twice that of the magnetic transition, T_m = 110.5 K. On cooling through T_m, the wave vector \epsilon, equal to half the charge-stripe density within an NiO(2) layer, jumps discontinuously from 1/3 to 0.2944. It continues to decrease with further cooling, showing several lock-in transitions on the way down to low temperature. To explain the observed lock-ins, a model is proposed in which each charge stripe is centered on either a row of Ni or a row of O ions. The model is shown to be consistent with the l-dependence of the magnetic peak intensities and with the relative intensities of the higher-order magnetic satellites. Analysis of the latter also provides evidence that the magnetic domain walls (charge stripes) are relatively narrow. In combination with a recent study of magnetic-field-induced effects, we find that the charge stripes are all O-centered at T>T_m, with a shift towards Ni centering at T<T_m. Inferences concerning the competing interactions responsible for the the temperature dependence of \epsilon and the localization of charge within the stripes are discussed.Comment: ReVTeX, 17 2-col pages, 10 eps figs. embedded with psfig, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Effects of substituting rare-earth ion R by non-magnetic impurities in R2BaNiO5R_2BaNiO_5 - theory and numerical DMRG results

In this paper we study the effect of substituting R (rare-earth ion) by non-magnetic ions in the spin-1 chain material $R_2BaNiO_5$. Using a strong-coupling expansion and numerical density matrix renormalization group calculations, we show that spin-wave bound states are formed at the impurity site. Experimental consequences of the bound states are pointed out.Comment: 5 pages, 4 postscript figure

Spin and charge ordering in self-doped Mott insulators

We have investigated possible spin and charge ordered states in 3d transition-metal oxides with small or negative charge-transfer energy, which can be regarded as self-doped Mott insulators, using Hartree-Fock calculations on d-p-type lattice models. It was found that an antiferromagnetic state with charge ordering in oxygen 2p orbitals is favored for relatively large charge-transfer energy and may be relevant for PrNiO$_3$ and NdNiO$_3$. On the other hand, an antiferromagnetic state with charge ordering in transition-metal 3$d$ orbitals tends to be stable for highly negative charge-transfer energy and can be stabilized by the breathing-type lattice distortion; this is probably realized in YNiO$_3$.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Antiferromagnetic spin ladders effectively coupled by one-dimensional electron liquids

We study a model of the stripe state in strongly correlated systems consisting of an array of antiferromagnetic spin ladders, each with $n_{leg}$ legs, coupled to each other through the spin-exchange interaction to charged stripes in between each pair of ladders. The charged stripes are assumed to be Luttinger liquids in a spin-gap regime (Luther-Emery). An effective interaction for a pair of neighboring ladders is calculated by integrating out the gapped spin degree of freedom in the charged stripe. The low energy effective theory of each ladder is the usual nonlinear $\sigma$-model with additional cross couplings of neighboring ladders. These interactions are found to favor either in-phase or anti-phase short range spin orderings depending on whether the charge stripe is site-centered or bond-centered as well as on its filling factor and other physical parameters of the charged stripe.Comment: 4 pages with 1 figure, revised introduction and discussion section