Phytochemical screening and antimicrobial activity of Picrorrhiza kurroa, an Indian traditional plant used to treat chronic diarrhea

Phytochemical screening of the rhizomes of Picrorrhiza kurroa Benth revealed the presence of some bioactive components, which have been linked to antimicrobial properties. Various chemical tests and TLC studies showed the presence of glycosides, sterols and phenolic compounds when tested on different extracts of P. kurroa rhizomes. The major chemical constituents found in this plant were iridoid glycosides and cucurbitacins (triterpenoids) present in the methanolic extract. The effects of methanolic and aqueous extracts on some pathogenic bacterial and fungal strains viz.: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Micrococcus luteus, Escherichia coli and Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, respectively, showed that the plant part can be used to treat infections caused by these bacteria and fungi. The aqueous and methanolic extracts showed antibacterial activity but the significant antimicrobial activity was shown by methanolic extract only, against P. aeruginosa and S. aureus; while moderate activity against E. coli, B. subtilis and M. luteus. The effectiveness of the crude extract confirmed its use in traditional medicine to treat skin, urinary tract, diarrheal infections and gastrointestinal infections. The aqueous extract was less effective against the microbial strains and no activity against fungal strains. The MICs of the methanolic extract against the test bacteria were high and correlate with sensitivity test results. The effectiveness of the extracts was less than the conventional antibiotic, ciprofloxacin. Further the HPTLC studies were performed to estimate the content of iridoids and it was found to be 3.66 ± 0.11 and 4.44 ± 0.02 for picroside I and kutkoside, respectively

Development and optimization of fast dissolving oro-dispersible films of granisetron HCl using Box–Behnken statistical design

The aim was to develop and optimize fast dissolving oro-dispersible films of granisetron hydrochloride (GH) by two-factor, three-level Box–Behnken design as the two independent variables such as X1 (polymer) and X2 (plasticizer) were selected on the basis of the preliminary studies carried out before the experimental design is being implemented. A second-order polynomial equation to construct contour plots for the prediction of responses of the dependent variables such as drug release (Y1), Disintegration time (Y2), and Y3 (Tensile strength) was studied. The Response surface plots were drawn, statistical validity of the polynomials was established to find the compositions of optimized formulation which was evaluated using the Franz-type diffusion cell. The designs establish the role of the derived polynomial equation and contour plots in predicting the values of dependent variables for the preparation and optimization