ANTIHYPERGLYCAEMIC AND ANTINOCICEPTIVE ACTIVITY EVALUATION OF METHANOLIC EXTRACT OF WHOLE PLANT OF AMARANTHUS TRICOLOUR L. (AMARANTHACEAE)

Amaranthus tricolor whole plants are used by folk medicinal practitioners of Bangladesh for treatment of pain, anaemia, dysentery, skin diseases, diabetes, and as a blood purifier. Thus far, no scientific studies have evaluated the antihyperglycaemic and antinociceptive effects of the plant. The present study was carried out to evaluate the possible glucose tolerance efficacy of methanolic extracts of A. tricolour whole plants using glucose-induced hyperglycaemic mice, and antinociceptive effects with acetic acid-induced gastric pain models in mice. In antihyperglycaemic activity tests, the extract at different doses was administered one hour prior to glucose administration and blood glucose level was measured after two hours of glucose administration (p.o.) using glucose oxidase method. The statistical data indicated the significant oral hypoglycaemic activity on glucose-loaded mice at all doses of the extracts tested. Maximum antihyperglycaemic activity was shown at 400 mg extract per kg body weight, which was comparable to that of a standard drug, glibenclamide (10 mg/kg body weight). In antinociceptive activity tests, the extract also demonstrated a dose-dependent significant reduction in the number of writhings induced in mice through intraperitoneal administration of acetic acid. Maximum antinociceptive activity was observed at a dose of 400 mg extract per kg body weight, which compared favourably with that of a standard antinociceptive drug, aspirin, when administered at a dose of 200 mg per kg body weight. The results validate the folk medicinal use of the plant for reduction of blood sugar in diabetic patients as well as the folk medicinal use for alleviation of pain. The results suggest that this plant may possess further potential for scientific studies leading to possible discovery of efficacious antihyperglycaemic and antinociceptive components

Lead Polluted Hotspot: Environmental Implication of Unplanned Industrial Development

In Rayer Bazaar, different industries like tannery, plastic, textile, battery recycling industry etc. are increasing rapidly without considering the environmental issues and deterioration. Since chromium (Cr) pollution of this area has been widely investigated due to the presence of tannery industries, this study was focused on examining other environmental factors. Field visits and analytical results of semi-quantitative and quantitative analysis as well as three dimensional excitation emission matrix spectroscopy (3DEEM) of water, soil and vegetative tissues indicated that, the area is highly polluted in term of different environmental parameters and metal content. The extremely high lead (Pb) content of the soil (1171.7 mg/kg in summer, 2157.1 mg/kg in winter) and blackish materials of vegetative tissues (6585.6 mg/kg in summer, 1974.1 mg/kg in winter) indicates excessive lead deposition of this area that makes it a lead polluted hotspot. One of the possible sources of the extremely high lead concentration is adjacent battery recycling industry and/or other industries surrounding this area. So it is urgent to take necessary steps to find out immediate options for possible mitigation

Antihyperglycemic and antinociceptive effects of a commercially produced beta-glucan from Saccharomyces cerevisiae in Swiss albino mice

effects of a commercially produced beta-glucan from Saccharomyces cerevisiae in Swiss albino mice ABSTRACT Beta-glucans are sugars that are found in the cell walls of bacteria, fungi, yeasts, algae, lichens, and plants, such as oats and barley. They are polysaccharides of D-glucose monomers linked by beta-glycosidic bonds. Their major use is as a nutraceutical and it has been claimed that these compounds can act as effective immune modulators through boosting the immune system. The most active forms of beta-glucans are those comprising D-glucose units with (1,3) links and with side-chains of D-glucose attached at the (1,6) position. In dietary studies with diabetic rodent models, these compounds have been observed to lower the absorption of glucose and so lead to decreasing blood sugar levels. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the antihyperglycemic and antinociceptive effects of a commercially available beta-glucan produced from yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). In oral glucose tolerance tests with glucose-loaded Swiss albino mice, beta-glucan, administered orally at doses of 30, 60, 120 and 240 mg per kg body weight, inhibited increases in blood sugar levels significantly and dose-dependently. The percent inhibitions at the afore-mentioned four doses were, respectively, 33.5, 35.0, 35.7, and 38.7. In comparison, a standard anti-hyperglycemic drug, glibenclamide, when administered at a dose of 10 mg per kg body weight inhibited increases in blood sugar levels by 40.0%. As such, the results obtained with the commercial beta-glucan were comparable to that of glibenclamide, at least at the highest dose tested. In antinociceptive activity tests with acetic acid-induced gastric pain model in Swiss albino mice, beta-glucan at the afore-mentioned four doses also significantly and dose-dependently attenuated the number of writhings in mice induced by intraperitoneal administration of acetic acid. The percent inhibitions in the number of gastric writhings at the above four doses were, respectively, 36.6, 40.0, 43.4, and 60.0. A standard antinociceptive drug, aspirin, when administered at doses of 200 and 400 mg per kg body weight, reduced the number of writhings by 40.0 and 63.4%, respectively. Thus, the result obtained with beta-glucan at the highest dose was comparable to that of aspirin at the highest dose tested. Together, the results suggest that the commercial beta-glucan used in the present study can be used for both reducing blood sugar in high blood sugar level individuals as well as to alleviate pain

Utilization of Banana (Musa sapientum) Peel for Removal of Pb2+ from Aqueous Solution

Biosorption is a convenient process for heavy metal remediation. In this study, banana peel was experimented to eliminate lead (Pb2+) from an aqueous solution following batch experiments. The functional groups of banana peel were identified by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The adsorption mechanism was studied by the Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherm model and determined the separation factor from the Langmuir adsorption isotherm. The adsorption of Pb2+ on dried banana peel had been studied at different adsorbent doses, pH, initial concentration of Pb, contact time, temperature, and agitation speed. After adsorption, Pb2+ was measured using atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS). Maximum adsorption had taken place at pH 5 for adsorbent dose 45 g L-1. The optimum contact time and agitation speed was 30 minutes and 150 rpm, respectively for the initial Pb concentration of 100 ppm at 25°C. Both, Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherm models shows the best fitting (r2 = 0.9978 and 0.9595) for Pb2+ adsorption. The maximum Pb2+ adsorption capacity was 2.1 mg g-1. The findings indicate that the banana peel waste could be a potential adsorbent for heavy metal removal. Moreover, the waste management problem could be solved in an eco-friendly manner by utilizing it for the eradication of Pb2+ from wastewater

Performance enhancement of cold thermal energy storage system using nanofluid phase change materials: A review

Cold thermal energy storage (CTES) plays a vital role in many industrial applications such as central air-conditioning in the large buildings, high powered electronic cooling applications, waste heat recovery, food processing, and restoring the electrical power imbalance between daytime need and night-time abundance. In addition, CTES system incorporating phase change materials (PCM) is proved as a viable option for achieving high energy efficiency by many systems. Due to the significance of this issue, many studies have been conducted on the applications of PCM in CTES system. The main aim of this article is to provide a comprehensive review, which summarizes recent research progress on PCM-CTES and an overview of numerical and experimental studies on the heat transfer performance of different base fluid of PCMs. This article also discusses several factors affecting the thermal conductivity of PCMs, such as nanoparticle enhanced PCMs, shape of encapsulated PCM materials, solid volume fraction and particle size. Observation and findings from past studies are discussed in detail. Recommendations based on research results, advantages and drawbacks of PCM-CTES are made for future research directions