Mygale lasiodora: A multicentric observational homoeopathic clinical verification study

Context: Clinical verification is an ongoing research program of the Council that verified many rare homoeopathic drugs. Aims: To clinically verify the symptomatology of Mygale lasiodora by ascertaining the symptoms improved during verification. Settings and Design: In this multicenter observational study, 166 patients were enrolled after matching with the available drug symptomatology and specified eligibility criteria. The medicine was prescribed in 6C, 30C, 200C, and 1M potencies, as per homoeopathic principles. Statistical Analysis Used: Data were presented in terms of descriptive statistics. Results: One sixty-six cases were analyzed; male/female: 105/61; mean age 29.13 years. There were “clinical successes” in 104 cases and failures in 62, judged subjectively by the physicians. A minimum of two prescriptions was considered for pick-listing each symptom as a rule of thumb. The number of symptoms verified was as follows: proving symptoms (n = 18), symptoms from other literature (n = 16), and new observations (n = 47). The data were presented as mean, standard deviations, N (%), and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Conclusions: Total 34 available symptoms were verified, and 47 new symptoms were identified. Cautious interpretation is necessary. Further replication on larger sample and estimation of likelihood ratio, in general, practice settings in prospective Bayesian approach is necessary before inclusion of the symptoms in homoeopathic literature

Symptom prevalence in a cohort of 147 patients improved with the homoeopathic medicine Ocimum canum: A multicenter, open, observational, clinical verification study

Context: Clinical verification is an ongoing research program of the Council that verified many rare homoeopathic drugs. Aims: To clinically verify the "symptomatology" of Ocimum canum by ascertaining the prevalence of symptoms. Materials and Methods: The study was a multicenter, open, observational trial. A total of 214 patients were enrolled after matching with the available symptom compendium and eligibility criteria in seven units/institutes of the Council. The medicine was prescribed in 6C, 30C, 200C and 1M potencies as per the need of each patient, following homoeopathic principles and protocol developed by the Council. The collected data were presented in terms of descriptive statistics. Prevalence of the symptoms in the responding and nonresponding population was compared using Chi-square or Fisher′s exact test. Results: A total of 173 complete cases were analyzed; male/female: 76/97; mean age: 31.09 years. There were "clinical successes" in 147 cases (85.0%) and failures in 26 (15.0%), judged subjectively by the physicians. A minimum of two prescriptions was considered for pick-listing each symptom as per protocol. The number of symptoms verified was proving symptoms (n = 10), symptoms from other literature (n = 12), and new observations (n = 42). Conclusions: A total of 22 symptoms were verified, and 42 new clinical symptoms were identified. The newly observed general symptoms and polar symptoms may be worth consideration and evaluation. Further replication and estimation of likelihood ratio in general practice settings are crucial for confirmatory inclusion of the symptoms in homoeopathic literature

Chemical Profiling and Therapeutic Evaluation of Standardized Hydroalcoholic Extracts of <i>Terminalia chebula</i> Fruits Collected from Different Locations in Manipur against Colorectal Cancer

Terminalia chebula Retz. (Fam. Combretaceae), locally called Manahei, is a well-known medicinal plant that grows wildly in Manipur, a Northeastern state of India. It is used as a mild laxative, an anti-inflammatory agent, and a remedy for piles, colds, and ulcers by ethnic communities of the state. The hydroalcoholic extract obtained from four fruit samples of T. chebula collected from different locations in Manipur were analyzed using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and high-performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC) for their chemical constituents and evaluated for their anticancer activity against the colon cancer cell HCT 116. GC-MS analysis results indicated significant variation in the composition and percentage of major compounds present in the extracts. 1,2,3-Benzenetriol was the most abundant chemical constituent present in all four extracts of T. chebula, ranging from 20.95 to 43.56%. 2-Cyclopenten-1-one, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, and catechol were commonly present in all extracts. Two marker compounds, gallic acid and ellagic acid, were also quantified usingHPTLC in all four extracts of T. chebula. The highest content of gallic acid (22.44 ± 0.056 µg/mg of dried extract) was observed in TCH, and that of ellagic acidwas found in TYH (11.265 ± 0.089 µg/mg of dried extract). The IC50 value of TYH for the DPPH and ABTS assays (12.16 ± 0.42 and 7.80 ± 0.23 µg/mL) was found to be even lower than that of Trolox (18 ± 0.44 and 10.15 ± 0.24 µg/mL), indicating its strong antioxidant properties among the four extracts of T. chebula. The MTT assay determined the effect of T. chebula extracts on the viability of HCT 116 cells. TYH showed the highest activity with anIC50 value of 52.42 ± 0.87 µg/mL, while the lowest activity was observed in TCH (172.05 ± 2.0 µg/mL). The LDH assay confirmed the cytotoxic effect of TYH in HCT 116 cells. TYH was also found to induce caspase-dependent apoptosis in HCT 116 cells after 48 h of treatment. Our study provides insight into the diversity of T. chebula in Manipur and its potential activity against colon cancer

A multicenter, observational, homoeopathic clinical verification study of Cynodon dactylon revealing symptom prevalence in a cohort of 340 patients

Context: Clinical verification is an ongoing research program of the Council that verified many rare homoeopathic drugs. Aim: This study was carried out to clinically verify the "symptomatology" of Cynodon dactylon and to ascertain the prevalence of symptoms in the "improved" and "not improved" groups. Materials and Methods: The study was a multicenter, open, observational study. A total of 462 patients were enrolled after matching with the available symptom, compendium of the drug, and eligibility criteria in seven units/institutes of the Council. The medicine was prescribed in 6C, 30C, 200C and 1M potencies as per the need of each patient, following homoeopathic principles and the protocol developed by the Council. The collected data were presented in terms of descriptive statistics. Prevalence of the symptoms in the responding and nonresponding population was compared using Chi-square test or Fisher′s exact test, as appropriate. Results: A total of 340 complete cases were analyzed; male/female was 204/136; mean age was 29.7 years. There were "clinical successes" in 274 (80.6%) cases and "failures" in 66 (19.4%), judged subjectively by the physicians. A minimum of two prescriptions was considered for pick-listing each symptom as per protocol. The number of symptoms verified was as follows: proving symptoms (n = 43), symptoms from other literature (n = 10), and new clinical observations (n = 57). Conclusions: A total of 53 recorded symptoms were verified and 57 new clinical symptoms were identified. Further replication and estimation of likelihood ratio in general practice settings are crucial for confirmatory inclusion of the symptoms in homoeopathic literature

<i>Paris polyphylla</i> Sm. Induces Reactive Oxygen Species and Caspase 3-Mediated Apoptosis in Colorectal Cancer Cells In Vitro and Potentiates the Therapeutic Significance of Fluorouracil and Cisplatin

Paris polyphylla Sm. (Melanthiaceae) is an essential, vulnerable herb with a wide range of traditional applications ranging from fever to cancer in various communities. The use of P. polyphylla in India is limited to traditional healers. Here, we demonstrated that P. polyphylla extract (PPE) has good phenol, flavonoid, saponin, and steroidal saponin content and anti-oxidant activity with IC50 35.12 ± 6.1 μg/mL in DPPH and 19.69 ± 6.7 μg/mL in ABTS. Furthermore, PPE induces cytotoxicity in HCT-116 with IC50 8.72 ± 0.71 μg/mL without significant cytotoxicity inthe normal human colon epithelial cell line, CCD 841 CoN. PPE inhibits the metastatic property and induces apoptosis in HCT-116, as measured by Annexin V/PI, by increasing the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and caspase 3 activation. PPE acts synergistically with 5FU and cisplatin in HCT-116 and potentiates their therapeutic significance. Steroidal saponins with anticancer activities were detected in PPE by HR-LCMS. The present study demonstrated that PPE induces apoptosis by increasing ROS and activating caspase 3, which was attributed to steroidal saponins. PPE can be used as a potential natural remedy for colon cancer

Assessing the therapeutic usefulness of Ricinus communis: A multicentric observational clinical verification study

Introduction: Clinical verification is an ongoing research programme of the Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy, under which many symptoms of Indian and rarely used drugs in Homoeopathy have been clinically verified. Objectives: To clinically verify the symptomatology of Ricinus communis as observed during its proving conducted by Council and also to ascertain the clinical symptoms relieved in the process of verification. Materials and Methods: Two hundred and twenty-five patients from all age-groups and both sexes were enrolled from the outpatient departments (OPDs) of the institutes and units of the Council following the exclusion and inclusion criteria as per protocol and obtaining written consent. The presenting signs and symptoms were recorded in a predefined case recording proforma and if Ricinus communis was found very closely similar to the symptoms of the patient, the patients were enrolled in the study. The medicine was prescribed in different potencies as per the need of the case and in accordance with homoeopathic principles. The progress was noted in a follow-up sheet to determine the effects of the medicine, in relieving the symptoms of the patient. Result: Forty eight out of fifty three symptoms obtained from proving of Ricinus communis could be clinically verified. The characteristic indications were left-sided affinity, aggravation from sun, amelioration in open air, dryness of mucous membrane of gastrointestinal tract, dissatisfaction leading to irritability and anger. The usefulness of the medicine was mostly marked in relieving headache, coryza, aphthae, gastritis, diarrhoea, constipation and acne. All the verified symptoms indicated the scope of its therapeutic action. Conclusion: Ricinus communis can be considered as an important medicine for the management of acne, aphthae, backache, colic, constipation, coryza, cough, diarrhoea, dyspepsia, fever, gastritis, headache and irritability

Prevalence and prognostic factor in patients with good therapeutic response in a cohort of 172 patients with the homoeopathic medicine Aranea diadema: A multicentre, open-label, observational study

Aim: To assess the prevalence and prognostic factor of Aranea diadema in a population responding well to Aranea diadema. Material and Methods: It was an open label, multicentric observational study wherein patients having minimum two known symptoms matching with the pathogenesis of Aranea diadema were prescribed the remedy in 6C, 30C, 200C, and 1M potencies. The collected data were presented in terms of descriptive statistics. Results: A total of 6806 cases were enrolled. Out of which a total of 172 cases were analysed, and demographic analysis shows male/female: 109/63; mean age 28.3 years. There were “clinical successes” in 115 cases (67.0%) and no response in 57 (33.1%) cases. The number of symptoms found prevalent in responders included proving (n = 13) and literature (n = 8). Symptoms coming from provings guide homoeopathic practitioners in prescribing their medicines, but should also be confirmed in patients responding well to these medicines. Significantly higher prevalence was observed among responders in respect of six tentatively confirmed symptoms (prevalence): Forgetfulness (0.11), white coated tongue (0.21), epistaxis (0.10), thirstlessness (0.13), seminal emissions (0. 23), and fever (0.12). Conclusion: This study was conducted to assess the prevalence of symptoms in a population responding well to Aranea diadema and to compare this with the prevalence of these symptoms in other populations. If a symptom has a higher prevalence in a population responding well to Aranea it indicates the increase of likelihood of a curative action of Aranea when that symptom is present. Our “test”is not meant to diagnose an illness but to increase the accuracy of prescribing Aranea diadema

Exploring the predictive value of specific symptom as prognostic factor: Assessment of group-confined likelihood ratio for symptom ‘Headache’ in 20 lesser-known drugs

Aim: Assessment of group-confined likelihood ratio (GCLR) for the symptom ‘Headache’ from among 20 lesser-known remedies clinically verified by the Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy during the period 2012–2018. Materials and Methods: Analysis of data of the clinical verification study, which was a multicentric, open-label, observational clinical study conducted at 13 study sites of the council. The 50 medicines that completed the drug proving programme of the council were clinically verified in ascending potencies of 6C, 30C and 200C. Of these, 20 lesser-known medicines allowed analysis of the prevalence and LR of the symptom ‘Headache'. These 20 medicines were ordered according to the prevalence of headache, and LR >1 gave an indication what medicines were more related to headache than others. Results: The symptom ‘Headache’ was recorded in a part of the population: 4582 patients where 20 lesser-known medicines were prescribed. Of these medicines, 8 have a GCLR >1, indicating that the symptom headache could indicate these medicines out of the assessed group of 20. Only 5 had statistically significant confidence interval: Allium sativum, Formicum acidum, Gymnema sylvestre, Avena sativa and Persea americana. Among these, two medicines, Allium sativum and Formicum acidum, have significantly higher GCLR. Conclusion: Of 20 lesser-known homeopathic medicines, two could be considered for the further evaluation of the relationship with headache. These findings should be confirmed in properly organised prognostic factor research in a larger population, not restricted to specific medicines, that enables proper comparison