Evaluating the Durability Properties of Self Compacting Concrete made with Recycled Concrete Aggregates

This paper reports the durability properties of Self Compacting Concrete (SCC) made with Recycled Concrete Aggregates (RCA) as partial/full replacement of Natural Coarse Aggregates (NCA). The effect of RCA on fresh properties of SCCs was measured using slump flow test, V-funnel test, L-box test and J-ring test. Whereas the durability properties like such as initial surface absorption, water permeability, capillary suction and rapid chloride penetrability were investigated to study the effect of varying content of RCA on SCC. The compressive strength of different SCC mixes was also determined for reference. The results indicate that increasing the content of RCA in SCC leads to deterioration in durability related properties of SCC. The compressive strength has also been found to decrease with increasing RCA content.  It has been seen that the reduction in the performance has been marginal up to 50% replacement level of RCA, but 100% replacement of RCA has been found to significantly affect the durability related properties and compressive strength

Natural compounds as safe therapeutic options for ulcerative colitis

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease of unknown etiology. Several conventional treatments for UC such as corticosteroids, immunosuppressive agents, tumor necrosis factor antagonist, integrin blockers, and interleukin antagonist, and salicylates are available but are associated with the various limitations and side-effects. None of the above treatments helps to achieve the ultimate goal of the therapy, i.e., maintenance of remission in the long-term. Natural remedies for the treatment of UC show comparatively less side effects as compared to conventional approaches, and affordable. The current review presents details on the role of herbal drugs in the treatment and cure of UC. Google, PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus portals have been searched for potentially relevant literature to get the latest developments and updated information related to use of natural drugs in the treatment of UC. Natural products have been used over centuries to treat UC. Some of the essential herbal constituents exhibiting antiulcerogenic activity include gymnemic acid (Gymnema sylvestre), shagoal (Zingiber officinale), catechin (Camellia sinensis), curcumin (Curcuma longa), arctigenin (Arctium lappa), and boswellic acid (Boswellia serrata). Although many plant-derived products have been recommended for UC, further research to understand the exact molecular mechanism is still warranted to establish their usefulness clinically

Application of Liposomes in Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis: Quo Vadis

The most common treatments for rheumatoid arthritis include nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), corticosteroids, disease modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), and some biological agents. However, none of the treatments available is able to achieve the ultimate goal of treatment, that is, drug-free remission. This limitation has shifted the focus of treatment to delivery strategies with an ability to deliver the drugs into the synovial cavity in the proper dosage while mitigating side effects to other tissues. A number of approaches like microemulsions, microspheres, liposomes, microballoons, cocrystals, nanoemulsions, dendrimers, microsponges, and so forth, have been used for intrasynovial delivery of these drugs. Amongst these, liposomes have proven to be very effective for retaining the drug in the synovial cavity by virtue of their size and chemical composition. The fast clearance of intra-synovially administered drugs can be overcome by use of liposomes leading to increased uptake of drugs by the target synovial cells, which in turn reduces the exposure of nontarget sites and eliminates most of the undesirable effects associated with therapy. This review focuses on the use of liposomes in treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and summarizes data relating to the liposome formulations of various drugs. It also discusses emerging trends of this promising technology

DESIGN AND PERFORMANCE VERIFICATION OF NEWLY DEVELOPED DISPOSABLE STATIC DIFFUSION CELL FOR DRUG DIFFUSION/PERMEABILITY STUDIES

Objectives: The present study describes a disposable static diffusion cell for in vitro diffusion studies to achieve better results as compared to well existing Franz diffusion cell (FDC) in terms of the absence of bubbles, variable receptor compartment, ease of handling, and faster results.Materials and Methods: The cell consists of a cup-shaped donor compartment made of semi permeable that could be either cellophane membrane or, animal skin fitted to a rigid frame, which is supported on a plastic plate that contains a hole for the sample withdrawal. The receptor compartment is a separate unit, and it could be any container up to 500ml volume capacity. The most preferred receptor compartment is glass beaker. In the present study, goatskin was used as semi-permeable membrane and verification of its performance was carried out through diffusion studies using gel formulations of one each of the four-selected biopharmaceutical classification system (BCS) class drugs. Metronidazole, diclofenac sodium, fluconazole, and sulfadiazine were used as model drugs for BCS Class I, II, III, and IV, respectively.Results: The newly developed diffusion cell (NDDC) was found to provide faster and more reproducible results as compared to FDC. At the time interval of 24 h, the cell was found to exhibit a higher diffusion of metronidazole, diclofenac sodium, fluconazole, and sulfadiazine by 0.65, 0.65, 0.32, and 0.81 folds, respectively. The faster release obtained with NDDC was attributed to a larger surface area of skin as compared to that in FDC.Conclusion: It was concluded that better reproducibility of results could be achieved with NDDC

Lycopene: total-scale literature landscape analysis of a valuable nutraceutical with numerous potential applications in the promotion of human and animal health

Lycopene intake from tomatoes and other food sources has multiple potential health benefits. This report aimed to evaluate the current research literature on lycopene concerning human and animal health. The electronic Web of Science Core Collection database was searched with (lycopene*) AND (health* OR illness* OR disease* OR medic* OR pharma* OR drug* OR therap*). The resulted 3972 papers were analyzed with the aid of bibliometric software. Besides the United States, the lycopene papers received global contributions, particularly from China, Italy, India, and Spain. Examples of frequently mentioned chemicals/chemical classes were carotenoid, beta carotene, alpha carotene, beta cryptoxanthin, and alpha tocopherol. Examples of frequently mentioned medical conditions were prostate cancer, cardiovascular disease, and obesity. Published scientific articles reveal the diverse potential of lycopene in prompting human and animal health, and the knowledge on the bioactivities of this phytoche(undefined)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The International Natural Product Sciences Taskforce (INPST) and the power of Twitter networking exemplified through #INPST hashtag analysis

Background: The development of digital technologies and the evolution of open innovation approaches have enabled the creation of diverse virtual organizations and enterprises coordinating their activities primarily online. The open innovation platform titled "International Natural Product Sciences Taskforce" (INPST) was established in 2018, to bring together in collaborative environment individuals and organizations interested in natural product scientific research, and to empower their interactions by using digital communication tools. Methods: In this work, we present a general overview of INPST activities and showcase the specific use of Twitter as a powerful networking tool that was used to host a one-week "2021 INPST Twitter Networking Event" (spanning from 31st May 2021 to 6th June 2021) based on the application of the Twitter hashtag #INPST. Results and Conclusion: The use of this hashtag during the networking event period was analyzed with Symplur Signals (https://www.symplur.com/), revealing a total of 6,036 tweets, shared by 686 users, which generated a total of 65,004,773 impressions (views of the respective tweets). This networking event's achieved high visibility and participation rate showcases a convincing example of how this social media platform can be used as a highly effective tool to host virtual Twitter-based international biomedical research events

INDIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS USEFUL IN TREATMENT OF GOUT: A REVIEW FOR CURRENT STATUS AND FUTURE PROSPECTIVE

  Objective: The objective of this review is to collect and document information on the Indian medicinal plants with anti-gout potential.Methods: Bibliographic investigation was carried out by consulting worldwide scientific databases, analyzing Ayurvedic text books and research journals. The search terms were gout,†uric acid,†hyperuricemia,†xanthine oxidase (XO) inhibitor and uricosuric.†Herbal keywords included herbal medicine,†medicinal plant,†natural products,†phytomedicine†and phytotherapy.â€Result and Conclusion: Medicinal plants have been used to treat various ailments since ancient times; hence, ethnobotanical investigations play an important role in pharmacological studies. In India, traditional medicines are being practiced for the treatment of gout and other rheumatic disorders from ancient time. This review provides a comprehensive summary of 130 Indian plants which have been mentioned in ancient literature or used traditionally for the treatment of gout. Out of these, 41 plants have been reported to possess XO inhibitory activity. Further, isolated phytoconstituents having promising XO inhibitor activity are also included in this review. Although a variety of medicinal plants with anti-gout potential have been found in the literature, there is limited information on evaluation of anti-gout activity of isolated phytoconstituents. The current review contains a detailed discussion of the potential of medicinal plants for treatment of gout. Â

Sub-chronic safety evaluation of aqueous extract of Alangium salvifolium (L.f.) Wangerin leaves in rats

Conventionally, the juice and extract of Alangium salvifolium leaves have been used for the treatment of diabetes, wound healing, dog bite, and as a poultice in rheumatism. To carry out the sub-chronic toxicity and thereafter safety evaluation of A. salvifolium leaves. The aqueous extract of A. salvifolium leaves was administered orally at the doses of 200, 400, and 800 mg/kg/day for 90 days. All the animals were observed daily for general behavior, changes in body weight, food, and water consumption. At the end of the treatment period, biochemical and hematological parameters were analyzed; and the animals were sacrificed for histopathological examination of heart, lungs, liver, and kidney. The general behavior and water intake were normal in all the rats. The increase in body weight was observed in female rats of all the groups while body weight was decreased in high dose group animals of both sexes. Hematological parameters were not disturbed by the continuous use of extract. A significant decrease in glucose level was observed in intermediate- and high-dose group animals while urea and creatinine level were significantly high in animals of high-dose group. Although histopathological examination of most of the organs exhibited no structural changes, some tubal damage in kidneys was observed in high-dose group animals. The high dose of extract has shown mild signs of toxicity on kidney function test, but no toxic response was observed on hematological and liver biochemical parameters. The extract also exhibited hypoglycemic potential

SYNTHESIS AND ANTIMICROBIAL EVALUATION OF QUINAZOLINONE PEPTIDE DERIVATIVES

  Objective: The increased microbial resistance against commercially available drugs initiated the development of novel and safe antimicrobial agents in last few decades. In this view, a series of amino acid/dipeptide derivatives of quinazolin-3(4H)-one was synthesized and was evaluated for their antimicrobial potential.Method: Synthesis of amino acid/peptide derivatives were carried out by coupling 5-(2-(2-chlorophenyl)-4-oxoquinazolin-3(4H)-yl)-2-hydroxy benzoic acid with amino acid/dipeptide methyl esters in the presence of dicyclohexylcarbodiimide and N-methylmorpholine. The chemical structures of synthesized compounds were characterized by 1H nuclear magnetic resonance and infrared spectroscopy and were screened for antibacterial activity by disc diffusion method.Results: All the synthesized derivatives exhibited moderate to significant antibacterial activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The potency of compound 5d was comparable to standard drug ciprofloxacin in all the strains of bacteria used. The compound 5a was found to be more active against Streptococcus pyogenes and Staphylococcus aureus while compound 5c against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. Conclusion: Peptide derivatives of quinazolinone are promising antimicrobial agent and can be used for the synthesis of other novel compounds