Anti-venom Activity of Medicinal Plants – A Mini Review

Extracts from plants have been used among traditional healers, especially in tropical areas where there are plentiful sources, as therapy for snakebite for a long time. Several medicinal plants, which appear in old drug recipes or which have been passed on by oral tradition, are believed to be snakebite antidotes. In modern science, there have been many attempts to study these plants to clarify their effectiveness

Share ICT Training (E-Education Component)

A team of UNIMAS members went to Tanah Datar, West Sumatera, Indonesia from 21 – 23December 2014 to conduct the final workshop for the ICT training (e-Education component). The UNIMAS team members included Associate Prof. Dr Fitri Suraya Mohamad, Prof. Dr Alvin Yeo Wee, Syaryfah Fazidawaty binti Wan Busrah, Adam Francis and Jaya Laxshmi

Note on Pharmacological Activities of Melissa officinalis L.

Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) is a perennial herb in the mint family Lamiaceae, native to southern Europe and the Mediterranean region. Lemon Balm is used medicinally as a herbal tea, or in extract form. It is claimed to have antibacterial, antiviral properties (it is effective against herpes simplex), and it is also used as a mild sedative or calming agent. At least one study has found it to be effective at reducing stress, although the study\u27s authors call for further research. Its antibacterial properties have also been demonstrated scientifically, although they are markedly weaker than those from a number of other plants studied

Note on Pharmacological Activities of Calendula officinalis L.

Calendula officinalis, known as Pot Marigold or English Marigold, is a plant in the Calendula genus. Calendula officinalis is used for the treatment of skin disorders and pain, and as a bactericide, antiseptic and anti-inflammatory. The petals and pollen contain triterpenoid esters (an antiinflammatory) and the carotenoids flavoxanthin and auroxanthin (antioxidants, and the source of the yellow-orange coloration). The leaves and stems contain other carotenoids, mostly lutein (80%) and zeaxanthin (5%), and beta-carotene. Plant extracts are also widely used by cosmetics, presumably due to presence of compounds such as saponins, resins and essential oils

Functional Foods Enriched with Marine Microalga Nannochloropsis oculata as a Source of ω-3 Fatty Acids

Sve je veća potražnja za funkcionalnom hranom obogaćenom ω-3 masnim kiselinama, zbog njezinog pozitivnog učinka na zdravlje, kao npr. smanjenje rizika od srčanih bolesti, dijabetesa tipa II, artritisa, očnih bolesti, itd. Svrha je ovoga rada bila razviti funkcionalne proizvode, i to kekse i tjesteninu, obogaćene ω-3 masnim kiselinama. Za to je upotrijebljena mikroalga Nannochloropsis oculata, koja osim velike hranjive vrijednosti ima relativno visoku stopu rasta, velik udjel lipida, te je otporna na miješanje i kontaminaciju. Procijenjen je utjecaj dodatka biomase mikroalge N. oculata na boju, čvrstoću, sastav masnih kiselina i senzorska svojstva keksa i tjestenine. Vrijednosti su boje bile stabilne i nakon dva mjeseca skladištenja, a čvrstoća se povećavala s povećanjem udjela biomase mikroalge. Udjel je ω-3 polinezasićenih masnih kiselina, tzv. PUFA (eikosapentaenoične (EPA) i dokosaheksaenoične (DHA) kiseline) bio 98 mg u 100 g keksa, te 63 mg u 100 g tjestenine, obogaćenih s 1 % biomase mikroalge N. oculata. Senzorska je analiza potvrdila prihatljivost keksa i tjestenine obogaćenih s 2 ili 3 % biomase mikroalge. Istraživanje je potvrdilo da keksi i tjestenina obogaćeni biomasom mikroalge Nannochloropsis oculata mogu biti dobar izvor ω-3 masnih kiselina.The demand for functional food incorporated with ω-3 fatty acids is increasing over the years due to their added health benefits, such as reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases, type II diabetes, ocular diseases, arthritis, etc. This study mainly aims to develop functional cookies and pasta enriched with ω-3 fatty acids. Nannochloropsis oculata was used because of its relatively high growth rate, high lipid content, resistance to mixing and contamination together with high nutritional values. The effect of the incorporation of Nannochloropsis oculata biomass on colour, firmness, fatty acid profile and sensory characteristics of cookies and pasta were evaluated. The colour values were found to be stable for two months of storage and the firmness increased with the addition of microalgal biomass. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) levels (eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids) of 98 mg per 100 g and 63 mg per 100 g were observed in cookies and pasta, respectively, enriched with 1 % of Nannochloropsis oculata biomass. Sensory evaluation showed that the addition of up to 2 and 3 % of microalgal biomass was positively evaluated and accepted for cookies and pasta, respectively. This study confirms that the cookies and pasta enriched with Nannochloropsis oculata biomass might be used as a potential source of ω-3 fatty acids

In vitro Studies of Chicken Egg Yolk Antibodies Generated against Salmonella pullorum

Abstract: The present investigation is focused to generate chicken Egg yolk antibodies against Salmonella pullorum and their in-vitro characterization. Pullorum disease is leading cause of morbidity and mortality in poultry and highly responsible for significant economic loss. Mortality in such outbreaks may approach 90% if untreated. Treatment primarily is a salvage operation and does not prevent from becoming a carrier. Therefore, the prevention of this disease in breeder level through vaccination is more convenient for the control of vertical transmission. One of the recent researches has revealed that the combination of IBDV vaccine and chicken IgY generated against IBDV was superior in preventing IBDV infection in Broiler chickens rather than using them alone. Based on this recent finding, the chicken egg yolk antibody (IgY) raised against Salmonella pullorum. IgY antibodies were purified by (Polson et al., 1980) method and Water dilution method followed by DEAE cellulose ion exchange column chromatography. The total IgY concentration was relatively constant, average IgY concentration was 6.62 mg/mL during the immunization period. Titre of IgY antibodies was 1:10000 on 120 th day after first immunization determined by ELISA. The agglutination was observed in both Rapid Slide Agglutination and Micro-titre plate (up to 1:2048 dilutions). It indicated the presence of IgY against S. pullorum. Present study concluded that the generated IgY was specific against S. pullorum whole cell antigen and it could effectively bind with that. The raised antibodies could be used for the passive immunotherapy to protect the young chicks from horizontal transmission of Pullorum disease by improving the immunological strength against infectious disease

Isolation, Characterization and Quantity Determination of Aristolochic Acids, Toxic Compounds in Aristolochia bracteolata L.

Background Aristolochic Acids (AAs) are major components of plants in Aristolochia and have been found to be nephrotoxic, carcinogenic and mutagenic. Herein reported are the isolation, identification and quantity determination methods of Aristolochic Acid-I (AA-I) and Aristolochic Acid-II (AA-II) toxic compounds of Aristolochia bracteolata indigenous to Central Sudan and medicinally used in diverse biological functions including analgesic and diuretic effects, treatment of tumors, malaria and/or fevers. Methods and results AAs mixture was extracted with methanol from the defatted material of Aristolochia bracteolata whole plant at room temperature and was isolated from the aqueous methanol extract by chloroform. Moreover, Silica-gel column chromatography and Preparative Thin Layer Chromatography (PTLC) using chloroform/methanol gradient mixtures were used to isolate AAs mixtures as a yellow crystalline solid. A preliminary detection of AAs was made by Thin Layer Chromatography (silica-gel, chloroform: methanol (6:1)). The Rf value of the acids mixture was 0.43-0.46. The presence of AAs in plant sample was confirmed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography/Ultraviolet (HPLC/UV) analysis using 1% acetic acid and methanol (40:60) as mobile phase and maximum absorption wave length of 250 nm. Quantitative determination of AA-II (49.03 g/kg) and AA-I (12.98 g/kg) was also achieved by HPLC/UV. Recommendation It is recommended that the use of Aristolochia bracteolata as a medicinal plant should be extremely limited or strictly prohibited. The chromatograms obtained in this study can serve as fingerprints to identify AAs in plant samples

DNA Vaccine-Generated Duck Polyclonal Antibodies as a Postexposure Prophylactic to Prevent Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS)

Andes virus (ANDV) is the predominant cause of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) in South America and the only hantavirus known to be transmitted person-to-person. There are no vaccines, prophylactics, or therapeutics to prevent or treat this highly pathogenic disease (case-fatality 35–40%). Infection of Syrian hamsters with ANDV results in a disease that closely mimics human HPS in incubation time, symptoms of respiratory distress, and disease pathology. Here, we evaluated the feasibility of two postexposure prophylaxis strategies in the ANDV/hamster lethal disease model. First, we evaluated a natural product, human polyclonal antibody, obtained as fresh frozen plasma (FFP) from a HPS survivor. Second, we used DNA vaccine technology to manufacture a polyclonal immunoglobulin-based product that could be purified from the eggs of vaccinated ducks (Anas platyrhynchos). The natural “despeciation" of the duck IgY (i.e., Fc removed) results in an immunoglobulin predicted to be minimally reactogenic in humans. Administration of ≥5,000 neutralizing antibody units (NAU)/kg of FFP-protected hamsters from lethal disease when given up to 8 days after intranasal ANDV challenge. IgY/IgYΔFc antibodies purified from the eggs of DNA-vaccinated ducks effectively neutralized ANDV in vitro as measured by plaque reduction neutralization tests (PRNT). Administration of 12,000 NAU/kg of duck egg-derived IgY/IgYΔFc protected hamsters when administered up to 8 days after intranasal challenge and 5 days after intramuscular challenge. These experiments demonstrate that convalescent FFP shows promise as a postexposure HPS prophylactic. Moreover, these data demonstrate the feasibility of using DNA vaccine technology coupled with the duck/egg system to manufacture a product that could supplement or replace FFP. The DNA vaccine-duck/egg system can be scaled as needed and obviates the necessity of using limited blood products obtained from a small number of HPS survivors. This is the first report demonstrating the in vivo efficacy of any antiviral product produced using DNA vaccine-duck/egg system