PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING AND EVALUATION OF ANTIDIARRHOEAL ACTIVITY OF BUNIUM BULBOCASTANUM SEEDS EXTRACT IN EXPERIMENTAL WISTAR RATS

Objective: The main objective of this study was to evaluate the antidiarrheal activity of Bunim bulbocastanum seeds extracts, to exploit the medicinal use of plant in the traditional system of medicine scientifically. Methods: The adult Wistar albino rats were divided in four groups, i.e. Group M1 (control group) receiving normal saline, group M2 (test group 1) receiving the 250 mg/kg Bunium bulbocastanum extract, group M2 (test group 2) receiving the 500 mg/kg Bunium bulbocastanum extract and group M4 (reference) receiving 3 mg/kg P. O Loperamide. Each group of mice with a bodyweight of 1 ml/100 g received castor oil. Mice were sacrificed and the distance traveled by the charcoal meal and the total length of the intestine was then measured. The peristaltic index and percentage of inhibition were calculated by using the formula. Results: It was found that in the castor oil-induced intestinal transit method extract produced a significant (p<0.0001) dose-dependent reduction in the distance traveled by charcoal meal comparable to the control peak effect was at the dose of 500 mg/kg (PI=12.06±3.38). Likewise, in the diarrheal dropping test, Bunium bulbocastanum extract causes a significant (p<0.05) dose-dependent reduction in the number of wet feces i.e. the mean wet of feces was decreased from 2.3±0.44 gm to 1.28±0.36 gm i.e. significantly different from that elicited by control (0.80±0.17 gm) (p=0.0081). However, there were no significant differences in inhibition at a dose of 250 mg/kg of extract. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that the crude methanol extract from B. bulbocastanum seeds possesses significant antidiarrheal property and the presence of various secondary metabolites. This justified the antidiarrheal use of plant in the traditional system of medicine

Need to take precedence for off seasonal vegetable farming? Issues in context of Nepal

Vegetable farming beyond the regular cropping calendar when supply is low and prices are high increases consumers range of choices and enhance profit. Nepal offers favourable potential for off-season vegetable production. However, inadequate approach to market and seasonal fluctuation of available vegetable creates difficulties in commercialization of off-season production. The current paper describes about what opportunities and importance do off-season farming has in Nepal and the constraints it has to encounter with. The cheap availability of labour, increasing interest of the government, and climatic suitability provide an opportunity for the farmers to make profitable income due to high prices during the off-season period which reduces the risk of failure of the farm, marketing risk, and maintains market equilibrium. Nevertheless, this cultivation system faces challenges of high post-harvest loss, poor implementation of policies, hijacked subsidies, inadequate irrigation facilities, and high pest infestation on-farm side and scarcity of cold storage, high transact cost, unmanaged collection, and market centers on the market side. Commercialization of off-Season vegetable production can create a better environment for income improvement and maintain market equilibrium

Three lateral divergent pinning for displaced supracondylar humerus fractures in children

Introductions: Cross or two lateral pinnings are the most commonly doneprocedures for displaced supracondylar humerus fractures in children. Acrossed pin is biomechanically stable than lateral pins, but associated withrisk of iatrogenic ulnar nerve injury. Recent studies have shown stable fixationwith three lateral pin construct. The purpose of this study was to evaluate theefficacy of three lateral divergent pinning for displaced supracondylar humerusfractures.Methods: Thirty five children with Gartland types III were treated betweenNovember 2012 and November 2013. Closed reduction and three lateraldivergent pinning was done with image intensifier guidance. Patients werefollowed up for minimum 6 months. Radiological assessment was done to seeunion, proper pin placement and loss of reduction. Clinically, patients wereassessed by using Flynn criteria.Results: There were 24 (68.6%) male and 11 (31.4%) female children between2 to 13 years of age with displaced supracondylar fractures, left side 26 (74.3%) and right nine (25.7%) cases. All were successfully managed with closed reduction and three lateral divergent pins within 2-6 days of injury. One radial and one median nerve palsies sustained at injury recovered spontaneously. No iatrogenic nerve injuries occurred. A comparison of perioperative and final radiographs revealed no loss of reduction. Twenty-seven excellent, five good, two fair and one poor results on Flynn’s grading. One patient had a superficial pin-tract infection.Conclusions: Closed reduction with three lateral divergent pins is safe for stablefixation of displaced supracondylar humeral fractures in children.Keywords: children, humerus, percutaneous pinning, supracondylar fractur

Evaluation of Phytochemical, Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activities of Selected Medicinal Plants

Medicinal plants are important reservoirs of bioactive compounds that need to be explored systematically. Because of their chemical diversity, natural products provide limitless possibilities for new drug discovery. This study aimed to investigate the biochemical properties of crude extracts from fifteen Nepalese medicinal plants. The total phenolic contents (TPC), total flavonoid contents (TFC), and antioxidant activity were evaluated through a colorimetric approach while the antibacterial activities were studied through the measurement of the zone of inhibition (ZoI) by agar well diffusion method along with minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) by broth dilution method. The methanolic extracts of Acacia catechu and Eupoterium adenophorum showed the highest TPC (55.21 ± 11.09 mg GAE/gm) and TFC (10.23 ± 1.07 mg QE/gm) among the studied plant extracts. Acacia catechu showed effective antioxidant properties with an IC50 value of 1.3 μg/mL, followed by extracts of Myrica esculenta, Syzygium cumini, and Mangifera indica. Morus australis exhibited antibacterial activity against Klebsiella pneumoniae (ZoI: 25mm, MIC: 0.012 mg/mL), Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923 (ZoI: 22 mm, MIC: 0.012 mg/mL), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ZoI; 20 mm, MIC: 0.05 mg/mL), and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (ZoI: 19 mm, MIC: 0.19 mg/mL). Morus australis extract showed a broad-spectrum antibacterial activity, followed by Eclipta prostrata, and Hypericum cordifolium. Future study is recommended to explore secondary metabolites of those medicinal plants to uncover further clinical efficacy

Staff-Student Exchange between MMIHS and Bournemouth University (UK)

We would like to dedicate this article to Dr. Anneyce Knight who died during the initial drafting of this article, Dr. Knight very sadly passed away from breast cancer in late 2021. The paper reports on a staff-student exchange grant between Nepal and the United Kingdom (UK), or to be more precise, between Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences (MMIHS) and Bournemouth University (BU). The grant was awarded by the British Council, National Agency for European Commission Erasmus+ Key Action 107 programme as part of their 2020 call for Learning Mobility of Individuals - International Credit Mobility. We were awarded the funds under the section ‘Higher education student and staff mobility between Programme and Partner Countries’

Patient and Public Engagement in Health Research: Learning from UK Ideas

One of the new ideas in health and social care research in the UK is around involving patients and the general public in all aspects of research. This paper led by seven MSc students from Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences in Nepal. They attended Bournemouth University modules as part of the Erasmus+ exchange programme in 2022 and worked with two UK-based academics. The authors outline the thinking behind this process, and offer an example. They address its importance in improving the quality of the research as well as adding value to its societal relevanc

Conventional Brain MRI in Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

Carbon monoxide poisoning is a common fatal condition which can have acute or chronic presentation with varying severity. It commonly involves globus pallidus and putamen but can involve other parts of brain. Conventional MRI using T1 weighted,T2 weighted and FLAIR sequences are helpful in determining the extent of damage to the brain. However, appropriate clinical and laboratory findings should supplement findings on imaging. Keywords: brain; carbon monoxide; MRI; poisoning

Probiotic Potentiality of Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated from “Theki Dahi” around Various Places of Pokhara Valley

This research is undertaken to study the probiotic potential of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from theki dahi of Pokhara valley. A total of 48 samples were collected, pooled together, and examined. From characterization, three types of Lactobacilli (Lb A, LbB, and LbC), two types of Leuconostoc (Leu A and LeuB), two types of Bifidobacterium (Bif A and Bif B), one Streptococcus and three types of Lactococci (Lc A, LcB, and LcC) were identified. Also, the probiotic strain of Lactobacillus casei sub sp. Shirota was isolated from the yakult sample. All were then subjected to further examination.In terms of acid resistance, all were found to be resistant to low pH 2 and 4 for 2 h. Similarly, all were resistant to bile salt (0.3% and 0.4% w/v) and able to hydrolyze it. With regards to antibiotic resistance, all were sensitive to penicillin G, ampicillin, and amoxicillin but only Lactobacilli and Bifidobacterium showed resistance to ciprofloxacin. Also, the isolates adhered to hexane. This study implies that theki dahi comprises various LAB with probiotic properties. Majorly, Lb A and Bif A demonstrated similar probiotic properties to control organism. Thus, they can be considered as potential probiotic candidates in theki dahi. Keywords: Theki dahi, probiotic potentiality, LAB, isolation, identification, characterization DOI: 10.7176/JNSR/14-4-04 Publication date: February 28th 202