Combination of system biology to probe the anti-viral activity of andrographolide and its derivative against COVID-19

The present study aimed to investigate the binding affinity of andrographolide and its derivative i.e., 14-deoxy-11,12-didehydroandrographolide with targets related to COVID-19 and their probable role in regulating multiple pathways in COVID-19 infection. SMILES of both compounds were retrieved from the PubChem database and predicted for probably regulated proteins. The predicted proteins were queried in STRING to evaluate the protein-protein interaction, and modulated pathways were identified concerning the KEGG database. Drug-likeness and ADMET profile of each compound was evaluated using MolSoft and admetSAR 2.0, respectively. Molecular docking was carried using Autodock 4.0. Andrographolide and its derivative were predicted to have a high binding affinity with papain-like protease, coronavirus main proteinase, and spike protein. Molecular dynamics simulation studies were performed for each complex which suggested the strong binding affinities of both compounds with targets. Network pharmacology analysis revealed that both compounds modulated the immune system by regulating chemokine signaling, Rap1 signaling, cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction, MAPK signaling, NF-kappa B signaling, RAS signaling, p53 signaling, HIF-1 signaling, and natural killer cell-mediated cytotoxicity. The study suggests strong interaction of andrographolide and 14-deoxy-11,12-didehydroandrographolide against COVID-19 associated target proteins and exhibited different immunoregulatory pathways. This journal i

Oral toxicity of elephant foot yam (Amorphophallus paeoniifolius) tuber in mice

Context: Amorphophallus paeoniifolius tuber is an important constituent of Ayurvedic system of medicine. The tuber of this plant has high medicinal value and is consumed as a food. It is associated with acridity (itchy sensation in mouth and throat) upon oral consumption and presence of high oxalates raphides. Aims: To evaluate the acute and subacute oral toxicity studies of methanolic (APME) and aqueous (APAE) extracts of Amorphophallus paeoniifolius tuber in Swiss albino mice according to OECD guidelines. Methods: In acute oral toxicity study, the mice were orally administered a single dose of APME or APAE (2000 mg/kg) and clinical signs and mortality were observed for 14 days. In subacute (repeated dose) oral toxicity study, the mice were administered once daily, orally with APME or APAE (1000 mg/kg) up to 28 days. The parameters assessed were behavior, clinical signs, body weight, feed and water consumption, urinary, biochemical, hematological and major organ weights and histology. Results: In acute toxicity study, there was no treatment related mortality and morbidity in any of the group. In subacute toxicity study, there were no significant changes in behavior, body weight, feed and water consumption, urinary, biochemical, hematological and organ weight and histological parameters compared to vehicle treated group. There was no treatment related mortality or morbidity. Conclusions: Administration of methanolic and aqueous extracts of Amorphophallus paeoniifolius tuber, individually in acute and 28 days repeated dose in mice, did not exhibit any toxicity or adverse effect at the doses used

Antidiabetic activity of Chandraprabha vati – A classical Ayurvedic formulation

Background: Chandraprabha vati is a classical Ayurvedic formulation, markedly used for mitigation of Prameha, which correlates in many ways with obesity, metabolic syndrome and diabetes mellitus. Objective: The present study was aimed to investigate effect of Chandraprabha vati in experimentally-induced hyperglycemia and lipid profile alterations. Materials and methods: Antidiabetic effect of Chandraprabha vati was studied in fifty five Wistar rats. Graded doses of Chandraprabha vati (50, 100 and 200 mg/kg) were administered orally for 7 days to normal and alloxan-hyperglycemic rats (65 mg/kg, intravenously), and to glucose loaded normal rats for oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). Fasting plasma glucose levels were assessed on different time intervals along with plasma cholesterol and triglycerides. Metformin (500 mg/kg, orally) was used as standard drug. Results: Chandraprabha vati did not cause any significant reduction in plasma glucose levels of normal rats (p > 0.05) but normalized the impaired glucose tolerance at 60 and 120 min (p < 0.05–p < 0.001) in OGTT when compared to vehicle control. In alloxan-hyperglycemic rats, administration of Chandraprabha vati (200 mg/kg) significantly reduced plasma glucose at 3 h, 12 h, 3rd day and 7th day (p < 0.01–p < 0.001) along with reduction in cholesterol and triglycerides levels (p < 0.01–p < 0.001) when compared to diabetic control group. The effects were comparable with metformin. Conclusions: Chandraprabha vati exhibited anti-hyperglycemic effect and attenuated alterations in lipid profile. The results support the use of Chandraprabha vati for correction of Prameha in clinical practice

Hepatoprotective and antioxidant activity of Bombax ceiba flowers against carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatotoxicity in rats

Aim: The flowers of Bombax ceiba are traditionally used as home remedy in the treatment of jaundice and spleen enlargement. The present work investigated the effect of aqueous extract of flowers of Bombax ceiba (BCAE) on experimentally induced hepatotoxicity in rats to substantiate its traditional use as hepatoprotective agent.Methods: Hepatotoxicity was induced in rats by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) treatment; at the same time vehicle or BCAE (250 or 500 mg/kg) or silymarin (25 mg/kg) were administered daily orally for seven days. Hepatotoxicity was assessed by estimating the activities of marker enzymes and by histological studies. The antioxidant effect of BCAE was assessed by measuring amount of antioxidant phytochemicals (total phenolics and flavonoids), and DPPH free radical scavenging assay of the extract.Results: BCAE treatment significantly prevented the CCl4-induced elevations in levels of glutamate oxaloacatate transaminase, glutamic pyruvic transaminase, alkaline phosphatase, bilirubin, and triglycerides, and decreased the total protein levels. Treatment with BCAE attenuated the CCl4-induced cytotoxic damage to liver. BCAE exhibited presence of antioxidant phytochemicals and showed scavanging action on DPPH radicals. The hepatoprotective effect of BCAE was comparable to that of the standard antioxidant hepatoprotective agent, silymarin. These findings indicated that BCAE showed hepatoprotective effect against CCl4-induced hepatotoxicity and exhibited in vitro antioxidant effects.Conclusion: Bombax ceiba flowers exhibited hepatoprotective effect which may be attributed to antioxidant potential. This study also validated their traditional medicinal use in liver disorders

Validation and quality assessment of <i>Rasamanikya</i>- A classical herbomineral preparation

871-874This study presents validation and quality assessment of Rasamanikya, a light, micro fine powder, prepared by processing Patra Haratala, in which powder of Shodhita Haratala (Orpiment- As2S3), sandwiched between two Abhraka (white mica) sheets, is heated for a while to obtain a specific pharmaceutical preparation. Analysis of Rasamanikya was performed through qualitative and quantitative analyses, besides some physico-chemical analysis and other tests such as IR spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, EDAX and X-ray diffraction (XRD) to ensure the quality of drug