Investigation of biological activities of Xeromphis uliginosa (Retz.) root extracts in Swiss-albino mice model, an extinctive medicinal plant of Bangladesh

Xeromphis. uliginosa (Retz.) is an extinctive Bangladeshi medicinal plant that is locally used for the treatments of pain, diabetes, diarrhea, depressant, and other diseases. The present study was conducted to evaluate the peripheral analgesic activity (PAA), central analgesic activity (CAA), central nervous system antidepressant activity (CNS-AD), antidiarrheal activity (ADA), and hypoglycaemic activity (HGA) of methanolic root extract of X. uliginosa (MREXU) in a mice model. The acetic acid-induced writhing inhibition and tail flick method were applied to determine the PAA and CAA of MREXU. The CNS-AD was measured using the phenobarbitone sodium-mediated sleeping method whereas, the castor oil-induced antidiarrheal method was used to determine the ADA of the crude extracts. To determine the HGA of MREXU crude extract, the tail tipping technique was conducted in a mice model. The MREXU displayed potential PAA and CAA in mice models. The MREXU 200 and 400 mg/kg significantly inhibit the number of writings along with diclofenac sodium. On the other hand, MREXU both doses significantly inhibit thermal stimulus after 60 and 90 minutes respectively. In the CNS-AD study, crude extract of 200 and 400 mg/kg significantly increase the onset of sleep by decreasing the duration of sleep. Similarly, the dose of 200 mg/kg significantly reduced diarrheal faeces for the whole 4 hours of experiments. The heartiest outcome of MREXU was displayed in the HGA assay. Both doses of MREXU significantly reduced the blood sugar level for the entire 3 hours of the experiments. In this study, it is revealed that the root of MREXU has extremely significant blood sugar-reducing activity, potential CNS-AD and mild to moderate nociceptive activity in the mice mode

Exploring therapeutic potential of Woodfordia fruticosa (L.) Kurz leaf and bark focusing on antioxidant, antithrombotic, antimicrobial, anti‐inflammatory, analgesic, and antidiarrheal properties

Abstract Background and Aims The study aimed to evaluate the pharmacological properties of methanolic extracts of leaves and barks of Woodfordia fruticosa (L.) Kurz (family: Lythraceae) focusing on antioxidant, thrombolytic, anti‐inflammatory, antibacterial, analgesic, and antidiarrheal effects. Methods 1,1‐Diphenyl‐2‐picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assay, clot lysis, disc diffusion, and membrane stabilizing methods were employed to assess in vitro antioxidant, thrombolytic, antibacterial, and anti‐inflammatory properties of the leaf and bark methanolic extracts (ME) of W. fruticosa and different organic solvents, that is, petroleum ether (PE), dichloromethane (DCM), chloroform (CL), and aqueous (AQ) fractions. In addition, in vivo central and peripheral analgesic and antidiarrheal activities of both crude extracts were evaluated at two doses (200 and 400 mg/kg of body weight [bw]). Results All the extracts and fractions showed promising antioxidant properties by scavenging DDPH free radicals with IC50 of 6.11–20.79 μg/mL. AQ fraction (41.24%) of leaves and ME (44.90%) of bark exerted notable in vitro thrombolytic activity. The CL fraction of leaves and AQ fraction of the bark showed 43.16% and 45.37% inhibition of RBC hemolysis, respectively, compared to the inhibition of RBC hemolysis by aspirin in a hypotonic‐induced membrane stabilizing assay. Besides, both extracts were observed to provide significant (p < 0.001) central and peripheral analgesic responses at both doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg bw. Furthermore, both doses of bark extract (p < 0.001) and the 400 mg/kg bw of leaf extract (p < 0.05) were observed to possess statistically significant antidiarrheal activity. Additionally, in an in vivo acute toxicity investigation, both extracts had a median lethal dose (LD50) greater than 5000 mg/kg bw, indicating their safety level. Conclusion The current study proves the ethnomedicinal uses of W. fruticosa; however, further studies are required for phytochemical screening to isolate the responsible bioactive compounds and discover the lead molecules from the plant species

Approaches of dengue control: vaccine strategies and future aspects

Dengue, caused by the dengue virus (DENV), affects millions of people worldwide every year. This virus has two distinct life cycles, one in the human and another in the mosquito, and both cycles are crucial to be controlled. To control the vector of DENV, the mosquito Aedes aegypti, scientists employed many techniques, which were later proved ineffective and harmful in many ways. Consequently, the attention shifted to the development of a vaccine; researchers have targeted the E protein, a surface protein of the virus and the NS1 protein, an extracellular protein. There are several types of vaccines developed so far, such as live attenuated vaccines, recombinant subunit vaccines, inactivated virus vaccines, viral vectored vaccines, DNA vaccines, and mRNA vaccines. Along with these, scientists are exploring new strategies of developing improved version of the vaccine by employing recombinant DNA plasmid against NS1 and also aiming to prevent the infection by blocking the DENV life cycle inside the mosquitoes. Here, we discussed the aspects of research in the field of vaccines until now and identified some prospects for future vaccine developments