Enhancement of seed germination in stored seeds using different pre-sowing treatments in Bauhinia purpurea L.

Bauhinia purpurea L. is one of the important avenue tree species used in garden, road side plantations and other places. Fresh seed produce good germination upto 75 to 100 per cent. Seeds of this species stored for five months produced less germination (38.00 %) and it could be due to seed dormancy. Hence, the present study was carried out to evaluate different seed treatments to enhance seed germination in stored seeds of B. purpurea. Treatment like soaking seeds in hot water for 2 min to 5 min followed by overnight soaking in normal water resultedin highest germination of about 59.00 per cent over control (40.00%). Significant variation for germination parameters such as mean daily germination, germination rate index and germination value as well as early seedling vigour was recorded among different pre-sowing treatments in stored seeds

Antimicrobial and Antioxidant activity of Anaphalis lawii (Hook.f.) Gamble

The present study was undertaken to investigate antimicrobial and  antioxidant activities of leaf and flower extracts of Anaphalis lawii (Hook.f.) Gamble (Compositae). The powdered leaves and flowers were extracted with methanol in soxhlet extraction assembly. The antimicrobial activity of leaf extract (LE) and flower extract (FE) were determined against a panel of 9 bacteria and 2 fungi by Agar well diffusion method. Antioxidant activity of LE and FE was screened by DPPH free radical scavenging, Ferric reducing and Metal chelating activity. Total phenolic content and flavonoid content of extracts was determined by Folin-Ciocalteu method and Aluminium  chloride colorimetric estimation method respectively. Both LE and FE  caused inhibition of test bacteria and fungi in a concentration dependent manner. Gram positive bacteria were more susceptible to LE and FE when compared to Gram negative bacteria. On comparing with Candida albicans,susceptibility to extracts were found higher in Cryptococcus neoformans. The LE and FE dose dependently scavenged DPPH free radical with IC50 value of 6.01 and 5.20ìg/ml respectively. An increase in the absorbance of reaction mixture with increase in concentrations of extracts showed  reducing potential of LE and FE in ferric reducing assay. In metal chelating assay, both LE and FE caused chelation of ferrous ion with IC50 value of 180.98 and 152.89ìg/ml respectively. The phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of flavonoids, saponins and tannins in both the extracts. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents were high in FE than LE. Overall, FE showed potent antioxidant and antimicrobial activity when compared with LE and it could be related to the high phenolic and flavonoid content in FE. Further studies on isolation of active principles from extracts and testing their bioactivities are to be carried out

Patterns of accumulation of camptothecin, an anti-cancer alkaloid in Nothapodytes nimmoniana Graham., in the Western Ghats, India: Implications for identifying high-yielding sources of the alkaloid

Camptothecin, a monoterpene indole alkaloid, is regarded as one of the most promising anticancer drugs of the twenty-first century. Among the various plant sources, the highest yields of the alkaloid are reported from Nothapodytes nimmoniana (Icacinaceae), a small tree distributed in the Indian subcontinent. Because of the enormous demand for the chemical worldwide, there has been an indiscriminate extraction of the trees from many parts of India, especially from the Western Ghats, a mega-diversity forest range along the western coast of India. Recently the tree has been assigned a vulnerable status. In an effort to conserve the remaining populations of the species and to identify high-yielding sources of the alkaloid, attempts are being initiated in chemically profiling the species. As a first step in this direction, we have attempted to establish the general patterns of accumulation of camptothecin in N. nimmoniana across individuals, plant parts, plant size and sex of plants, in the Western Ghats. Individual trees with as high as 100 per cent greater camptothecin content than hitherto reported have been found. The study indicates the potentiality of further screening populations of N. nimmoniana to identify high-yielding sources that can be used for developing in vitro production systems or for establishing high-yielding clonal populations

Concentrations of putrescine & polyamines during the development of rat placenta

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Localization of maltase and amylase in the human prostate

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Assay of androgenicity of steroids using maltase activity of dorsal prostate of the rat as an index

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Maltase activity in the male accessory reproductive organs of various mammalian species

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Maltase activity in the accessory reproductive organs of rats & mice

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