Heavy metal accumulation in Trichogaster fasciata (Bloch & Schneider) from the river Ganges and its tributaries: A health concern for fish-consuming populations

176-183Accumulation of metal in fish flesh is increasing because of heavy metal pollution in rivers of India, which poses significant threat to the consumers’ health. Here, we studied the concentrations of heavy metals [cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn)] in the muscle tissues of Banded or Striped gourami, Trichogaster fasciata Bloch & Schneider collected from the river Ganges and its tributaries in order to assess the risk the consumers are put to. The order of metal accumulation (Zn>Pb>Cu>Cr>Cd) was found to be the same in both the fish muscle and the water samples. Significant values of correlation of coefficient (R = 0.9184-0.9612) of length-weight relationship and mean condition factor ranging between 1.876-2.420 g/cm3 of different populations of the fish were recorded. All metal concentration was negatively correlated with the fish size and condition factor except Zn in Ghaghara and Yamuna (P <0.05) and Pb in the Ganges (P <0.05) and Yamuna (P <0.001). Estimated daily intakes by the fish-eating inhabitants were lower than the maximum tolerable daily intake value except for that of Zn. The target hazard quotient and health index showed that intake of these heavy metals was quite safe by the fish consuming local populations including both the male and females. This study could be used as an essential piece of information for the management purposes of river Ganga to prevent heavy metal pollution and risk associated with it

Heavy metal accumulation in Trichogaster fasciata (Bloch &amp; Schneider) from the river Ganges and its tributaries: A health concern for fish-consuming populations

Accumulation of metal in fish flesh is increasing because of heavy metal pollution in rivers of India, which poses significant threat to the consumers’ health. Here, we studied the concentrations of heavy metals [cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn)] in the muscle tissues of Banded or Striped gourami, Trichogaster fasciata Bloch &amp; Schneider collected from the river Ganges and its tributaries in order to assess the risk the consumers are put to. The order of metal accumulation (Zn&gt;Pb&gt;Cu&gt;Cr&gt;Cd) was found to be the same in both the fish muscle and the water samples. Significant values of correlation of coefficient (R = 0.9184-0.9612) of length-weight relationship and mean condition factor ranging between 1.876-2.420 g/cm3 of different populations of the fish were recorded. All metal concentration was negatively correlated with the fish size and condition factor except Zn in Ghaghara and Yamuna (P &lt;0.05) and Pb in the Ganges (P &lt;0.05) and Yamuna (P &lt;0.001). Estimated daily intakes by the fish-eating inhabitants were lower than the maximum tolerable daily intake value except for that of Zn. The target hazard quotient and health index showed that intake of these heavy metals was quite safe by the fish consuming local populations including both the male and females. This study could be used as an essential piece of information for the management purposes of river Ganga to prevent heavy metal pollution and risk associated with it

The Spread of Misinformation on Social Media: an Insightful Countermeasure to Restrict

The term misinformation on social media has got significant attention in public sermons over the last few decades. This research article explores the growing tendency of misinformation on social media, how it influences people and prescribes insightful measures to counter the spreading of misinformation on social media. Systematic Literature Review (SLR) was employed on the three databases; Google Scholar; Scopus, Web of Science, following keywords; "misinformation", "disinformation", and "social media". A total of 34 articles were finally found suitable for the study. This study confirmed that self-motive and election campaigns are the major causes of misinformation on social media. This study manifested that machines can detect fake news to some extent but cannot be relied upon solely. Human intervention is equally important in identifying misinformation. Moreover, an efficient conceptual model has been proposed to counter the misinformation spread on social medi

Comparative evaluation of extract of <i>Bacopa monnieri</i> and <i>Mucuna pruriens</i> as neuroprotectant in MPTP model of Parkinson’s disease

758-766Parkinson’s disease (PD) results primarily from the death of dopaminergic neurons in substantia nigra. Treatment of PD has been shifted recently towards herbal medicines.Bacopa monnieri (L.) Wettst. (BM) and Mucuna pruriens (L.) DC (MP) are traditional herbal plants known to have neuroprotective effects due to the presence of bacosides in whole plant extract of Bacopa monnieri (BME) and L-DOPA in MP seed extract (MPE). In this study, the comparative effect of BME and MPE in Parkinsonian mice induced by chronic exposure to 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) was evaluated. Twenty four Swiss albino mice (35-45 g) were grouped into Control, MPTP, MPTP+BME and MPTP+MPE (6 mice in each). Experimental mice were given 40 mg/kg body wt. BME, 48 mg/kg body wt. MPE treatment was given orally for one month with prior use of 15 mg/kg body wt. of MPTP for 2 wk. After the treatment period, behavioral study was performed and assessment of neuroprotective effect was done via neurochemical analysis, Immunohistochemical parameters studied included functional viability of dopaminergic neurons in substantia nigra by Tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) using monoclonal antibody against TH and apoptotic study through caspase-3 and m-RNA expression of neurogenic gene in substantia nigra region of brain. Treatment with BME or MPE for one month significantly decreased the elevated levels of oxidative stress found in Parkinsonian mice. In behavioral tests, comparative analysis of BME and MPE showed a significant increase in spontaneous locomotor activity and grip strength test. Moreover, it was found that the use of BME considerably improved the tyrosine hydroxylase activity, caspase-3 and expression of neurogenic gene in the substantia nigra region of the brain. The results suggest that BME may provide a better platform for future drug discoveries and novel treatment strategies for PD as compared to MPE

Antidiabetic potential of Musa paradisiaca in Streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats

Abstract Aim: Over the last few decades the role of medicinal plants as a primary tool in the preservation of health and management of diseases is realized with great concern. This is mainly due to the use of synthetic drug molecules that produce harmful side effects, which are comparatively minimal in drugs of plant origin. The Antidiabetic activity of the flowers has been reported in the literature, but not studied systematically all parts of the M. paradisiacal (Linn.). Therefore, we have selected this plant to study all other parts of this in detail for its antidiabetic potential. Methods: The ethanolic extracts of leaves, fruit peels, stems and roots were prepared at room temperature and the extracts showing antidiabetic activity were fractionated into 4 fractions by maceration method (hexane, chloroform, n-butanol solubles an n-butanol insoluble fractions). Results: The ethanolic extracts and the hexane and chloroform fractions of leaves and fruit peels showed promising antidiabetic activity in STZ-s model. Further the isolated compounds from the active fractions did not show the antidiabetic activity. Conclusion: Further work on active molecules from this plant is required to get a lead molecule for the development of a new and potent antidiabetic drug

Anticancer, antioxidant potential and profiling of polyphenolic compounds of Wrightia tinctoria Roxb. (R.Br.) bark

Wrightia tinctoria Roxb. (R.Br.) is an Ayurvedic remedy, ethnomedically used in the treatment of various ailments. The present work was carried out to evaluate the anticancer and antioxidant activity as well as total phenolic and phytochemical contents of W. tinctoria bark methanolic extract (WTBM) by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-diode array detector. Antiproliferative activity of WTBM was evaluated against MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cancer cells by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay, colony formation, and Hoechst staining. In addition, the antioxidant potential was determined by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity and 2,2- azino-bis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) radical cation decolorization assay. Total phenolic content was assessed by Folin-Ciocalteu method. The results demonstrated that WTBM exhibited significant antiproliferative effect against MDA-MB-231 (IC 50 = 88.9 ± 1.27 μg/ml) and MCF-7 (IC 50 = 45.71 ± 7.74 μg/ml) cancer cells in time- and dose-dependent manner. WTBM significantly suppresses colony formation and induces apoptosis in both MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cells as evident by morphological assessment, clonogenic assay, and Hoechst staining. The total phenolic content of WTBM was found to be 30.3 gallic acid equivalent mg/g dry weight of bark extract while IC 50 value for DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activity was 72.2 ± 2.8 μg/ml and 45.16 ± 1.95 μg/ml, respectively. HPLC analysis showed the presence of gallic acid, rutin, and quercetin in WTBM. These findings demonstrated that WTBM significantly inhibited proliferation of breast cancer cells and induced apoptosis, suggesting the potential chemopreventive activity of W. tinctoria bark

Identification of Anticancer and Antioxidant phytoconstituents from chloroform fraction of <i>Solanum nigrum</i> L. berries using GC-MS/MS analysis

774-782Solanum nigrum is a traditional Indian plant acclaimed for its medicinal properties since antiquity. Among all plant parts fruit berries have shown to be most pharmacologically active part. In the present investigation, we tried to characterize the bioactive principles of chloroform fraction of S. nigrum (CFSn) fruit berries using GC-MS analysis. We could identify 29 compounds belonging to different chemical classes viz. alkaloids, flavonoids, carbohydrates, glycosides, phytosterols, proteins, phenolic compounds, and saponins. More specifically, we found two novel phenolic compounds, benzoiisovanillin and syringic acid (4-hydroxy-3, 5-dimethoxybenzoic acid), which may be responsible for its pharmacological properties. Our phytochemical investigation of CFSn was well supported by its total phenolic content and antioxidant activity which we evaluated subsequently. Further, we investigated the anticancer activity against breast cancer cell lines (MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7) as well. Our in vitro results indicated that CFSn exhibited significant antiproliferative activity against both these cell lines and due induction of cancer cell death through apoptosis. Our study emphasizes the need for isolation and characterization of specific bioactive compounds of CFSn and determination of their mechanism of action responsible for its anticancer activity in breast cancer cells