Development of spectrophotometric fingerprinting method for Talisadi Churna

Selective and efficient analytical methods are required not only for quality assurance but also for authentication of herbal formulations. A simple, rapid and validated fingerprint method has developed for estimation of piperine in ‘Talisadi churna’, a well known herbal formulation in India. The estimation was carried out in two laboratory batches and three marketed formulation by an ultraviolet spectrophotometric method at 342.8 nm. Keywords: Talisadi churna, PiperinEast and Central African Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences Vol. 12 (2009) 52-5

TLC densitometric fingerprint development and validation of 6-gingerol as marker in poly-herbal ayurvedic formulations

The poly herbal formulations containing ginger are widely used for different medicinal properties. The present paper deals with the development of densitometric method for fingerprint of ginger mainly using 6-gingerol in the form of densitogram following charring of the chromatographic as internal standard that could be useful for marker-based quality assurance of the poly herbal products containing Zingiber officinale. The fast rapid and reproducible method was developed. The accuracy of method was validated by analysis of spiked blank and standard addition samples and precision by performing replicate analyses on a single day and on different days. Recoveries from spiked blank and standard addition sample were 98.03-99.47 %. Repeatability for sample, each of which was analyzed six times on a single plate, was 0.001903 % relative standard deviation. The intra and inter precision was 0.001242 and 0.010676 % relative standard deviation for a sample analyzed in duplicate once per plate on same day and the different days over a seven-day period. The content of 6-Gingerol was found to be 0.698 ± 0.000577, 0.689 ± 0.002, 0.687 ± 0.001528 mg/g in lab formulations. The method was shown to be simple, precise and accurate suitable for routine analysis of 6-Gingerol at different levels from raw material to finished formulations.Colegio de Farmacéuticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aire

TLC densitometric fingerprint development and validation of 6-gingerol as marker in poly-herbal ayurvedic formulations

The poly herbal formulations containing ginger are widely used for different medicinal properties. The present paper deals with the development of densitometric method for fingerprint of ginger mainly using 6-gingerol in the form of densitogram following charring of the chromatographic as internal standard that could be useful for marker-based quality assurance of the poly herbal products containing Zingiber officinale. The fast rapid and reproducible method was developed. The accuracy of method was validated by analysis of spiked blank and standard addition samples and precision by performing replicate analyses on a single day and on different days. Recoveries from spiked blank and standard addition sample were 98.03-99.47 %. Repeatability for sample, each of which was analyzed six times on a single plate, was 0.001903 % relative standard deviation. The intra and inter precision was 0.001242 and 0.010676 % relative standard deviation for a sample analyzed in duplicate once per plate on same day and the different days over a seven-day period. The content of 6-Gingerol was found to be 0.698 ± 0.000577, 0.689 ± 0.002, 0.687 ± 0.001528 mg/g in lab formulations. The method was shown to be simple, precise and accurate suitable for routine analysis of 6-Gingerol at different levels from raw material to finished formulations.Colegio de Farmacéuticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aire

Overexpression of the type 1 adenylyl cyclase in the forebrain leads to deficits of behavioral inhibition

The type 1 adenylyl cyclase (AC1) is an activity-dependent, calcium-stimulated adenylyl cyclase expressed in the nervous system that is implicated in memory formation. We examined the locomotor activity, and impulsive and social behaviors of AC1+ mice, a transgenic mouse strain overexpressing AC1 in the forebrain. Here we report that AC1+ mice exhibit hyperactive behaviors and demonstrate increased impulsivity and reduced sociability. In contrast, AC1 and AC8 double knock-out mice are hypoactive, and exhibit increased sociability and reduced impulsivity. Interestingly, the hyperactivity of AC1+ mice can be corrected by valproate, a mood-stabilizing drug. These data indicate that increased expression of AC1 in the forebrain leads to deficits in behavioral inhibition

Antiplatelet Resistance—Does it Exist and How to Measure it?

Aspirin and clopidogrel are the most commonly used antiplatelet agents in patients with coronary artery disease. The existence of resistance to these agents has been a controversial issue and new drugs are being developed to overcome this problem. Laboratory tests, which can identify resistance and correlate this with clinical outcome, are being studied in order to identify patients at risk of future thrombotic events. We discuss the evidence for the existence of antiplatelet resistance—both in the laboratory and in the clinical setting. So far, platelet aggregometry has been considered the gold standard test, but is very operator dependant, time consuming, and has shown little correlation with other available tests of antiplatelet resistance. We discuss the available tests of platelet function, their limitations, and evidence for their use. A simple, rapid, near-patient test, which is affordable and useful in the clinical (not just laboratory) setting, could allow risk stratification of patients and individualization of antiplatelet medication to improve outcome

Genetic repression of the antioxidant enzymes reduces the lifespan in Drosophila melanogaster

Aging is a biological process associated with gradual loss of function caused by cellular and molecular damages ultimately leading to mortality. Free radicals are implicated in oxidative damage which affects the longevity of organisms. Natural cellular defenses involving antioxidant enzymes delay or prevent oxidative damage and, therefore, influence the aging process and longevity has been shown in many species including Drosophila. We and others have shown that oxidative resistance is an important mechanism in the aging process in Drosophila. Therefore, we hypothesized that repressing endogenous antioxidant defenses shortens longevity in Drosophila. To study the influence of natural defense mechanisms against oxidative stress in aging, we have investigated the effect of genetic repression of the antioxidant enzymes, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT), on longevity in Drosophila using transgenic RNAi flies and in vivo inhibition of the enzymes with chemical inhibitors. RNAi lines of Drosophila viz., UAS-sod1-IR and UAS-cat-IR, are driven ubiquitously using Act5C-Gal4 and Tubulin-Gal4 to achieve the suppression of SOD1 and CAT activities, respectively. We show that genetic repression of SOD1 and CAT by RNAi in transgenic flies led to drastically reduced longevity (SOD1, 77%; CAT, 83%), presenting the evidence for the role of endogenous antioxidant defenses in lifespan extension in Drosophila. Further, our study shows that the enzyme inhibitors, diethyldithiocarbamate and 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole, although lower the enzyme activities in vivo in flies, but did not affect longevity, which could be attributed to the factors such as bioavailability and metabolism of the inhibitors and adaptive mechanisms involving de novo synthesis of the enzymes. Our study of genetic repression using transgenic RNAi provides experimental evidence that extended longevity is associated with endogenous antioxidant defenses and aging is correlated with oxidative stress resistance

Highly Selective, Electrically Conductive Monolayer of Nanoparticles on Live Bacteria

Using specific peptide−bacteria affinity, a monolayer of 30 nm Au particle is selectively deposited on live bacteria surface to produce electrically conducting bridges spanning over 12 μm. The conductivity of the monolayer network is further improved by over 10-fold by “electric-field annealing”. The annealing process is explained by a percolation model

Differential Ballistic Response of Aramid-Glass Fibre Laminates to Soft and Hard Shots .

Ballistic perfonnance of all-glass, all-aramid and aramid-glass fibre-reinforced phenolic resincomposite laminates has been evaluated against 0.30 in. calibre soft ball and hard armour piercing (AP) bullets. It is observed that mass effective ness of glass fibre phenolic composites against impacts by APbullets can be improved by aramid fibre'reinforcement in the back of laminate. The perfonnance of a ramid phenolic composites against ball ammunition can be improved by hybridisation with glass fibre reinforcement at the front