Development and standardisation of Laghu Sudarshan Churna – An Ayurvedic polyherbal formulation

106-112Laghu Sudarshan Churna, LSC is an Ayurvedic polyherbal formulation employed for different types of jvaras (fevers). The present study was undertaken to prepare its standardised formulation and to standardise the finished product using quality control procedures mentioned in Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India (API). For this, four batches of the finished products were prepared on a laboratory scale and performed the pharmacognostical parameters (macroscopic, microscopic and powder drug analysis); thin layer chromatography; quantitative physicochemical evaluation including loss on drying, total ash, acid-insoluble ash, alcohol & water soluble extractive values, and pH; & measuring the level of aflatoxins, microbial load, heavy metals and pesticide residues of the finished product. This study is the foremost effort to develop the standardised formulation along with the evaluation parameters for LSC. Thus, obtained results would be beneficial and will act as the reference for the standardisation of LSC

AYUSH-64 as an adjunct to standard care in asymptomatic, mild, and moderate COVID-19: A systematic review and meta-analysis

The study was planned to systematically review the available evidence from randomized controlled trials on the efficacy and safety of AYUSH-64 in managing COVID-19. Electronic databases such as PubMed, Ayush Research Portal, DHARA, Cochrane CENTRAL, etc. were searched from December 2019 to October 2021, and updated in February 2022. The risk of bias was assessed through the RoB2 tool. Meta-analysis was done with the Review Manager 5.4 tool. The quality of cumulative evidence was evaluated through the GRADE approach. This study includes five RCTs with 420 participants. The risk of bias was assessed as low for most of the studies. The results demonstrated that AYUSH-64 administration as an adjunct to standard care was significantly better compared to standard care alone for asymptomatic, mild, and moderate COVID-19 in terms of clinical recovery (OR= 2.35; 95% CI= 1.33 to 4.16; p=0.003), and mean time to clinical recovery (SMD= -0.67; 95% CI= -1.16 to -0.18; p=0.007). There was no statistically significant difference between groups in SARS-CoV-2 clearance assessed by RT-PCR assay (OR= 1.21; 95% CI= 0.51 to 2.88; p=0.66). The overall incidence of adverse events showed no significant difference between groups (p=0.65). The quality of evidence was assessed as moderate for clinical recovery and low for SARS-CoV-2 clearance. Meta-analysis of five RCTs demonstrated that AYUSH-64 as an adjunct to standard care hastens clinical recovery and is safe in asymptomatic, mild, and moderate COVID-19. However, more robust RCTs would be required to generalize the results of this systematic review

Establishment of the mechanism of purification and levigation of green chemistry-assisted biocomposites of red ochre (Gairika): synthesis, characterization, and antibacterial, prebiotic, antioxidant, and antacid activities of the traditional Ayurvedic medicine Laghu Sutashekhara Rasa

Gairika (red ochre) has a long history of influencing human civilization. Gairika is a rich source of nutrients used for reproductive and brain health. Gairika is mentioned as an antacid drug in Indian Ayurvedic medicine under Laghu Sutashekhara Rasa (LSR). However, a detailed study on LSR has not been reported to date. In the present study, LSR was prepared, and a pharmaceutical SOP (standardization procedure) was reported to obtain batch-to-batch reproducibility. LSR was characterized using FTIR, XRD, SEM-EDX, and TGA analyses. LSR was tested in vitro for its antacid activity. Advanced instrumentation revealed that LSR formation produced symmetrical particles (5–8 µm) with kaolin, kaolinite, quartz, goethite, and hematite, along with the phytoconstituents of Goghrita (clarified cow’s butter), Shunthi, and Nagawalli, as confirmed by GC-MS/MS analysis. The FTIR study revealed the formation of a chelating complex of goethite and hematite along with their phytoconstituents. XRD analysis confirmed the presence of kaolin, kaolinite, quartz, goethite, and hematite. Using in vitro antacid experiments, LSR and Shunthi demonstrated significant antacid activity as compared to antacid drugs and standards in the market, such as CaCO3. The DPPH assay revealed IC50 values of 12.16 ± 1.23 mg/mL, which is 0.0029 of Trolox-equivalent antioxidant activity. The inhibition (18 ± 4 mm) against pathogens (S. aureus, E. coli, P. aeruginosa, and B. subtilis) and the prominent growth of gut microbiota-supported strains (S. boulardii, L. paracasei, and L. plantarum) observed on LSR formulation were indicative of LSR application as a prebiotic. Here, the mechanism of purification and levigation mentioned in the classical literature of LSR was established. Overall, purification of Gairika with cow ghee and levigation with Nagawalli may enhance the solubility, bioavailability, and shelf-life of LSR through hydration and co-crystallization mechanisms. This is the first comprehensive report on the pharmaceutical validation of LSR and its characterization. The results of the present study could contribute to the development and reliable reproduction of LSR and the utility of environmental red ochre as a medicine in combination with Shunthi (Zingiber officinale Roxb.), as prescribed under Indian Ayurvedic medicine

Ethnobotanical and dietary uses of Bamboo unveiled by the tribes and local inhabitants of Chittoor district, West Godavari and East Godavari districts of Andhra Pradesh

Aim and Objective: To unveil and document the folklore claims and dietary recipes of Bambusa bambos and Dendrocalamus strictus. Materials and methods: The study was intended to examine the 101 tribal individuals like traditional healers, tribal doctors and elder people in the field trips on their regular utilization of different species of Bamboo. Results: The study explored 13 contemporary folklore claims on B. bambos and D. strictus species solicited from various tribal pockets of Chittoor District, Andhra Pradesh and dietary recipes from the tribes of West Godavari  and East Godavari  districts, Andhra Pradesh. Conclusion: With this study, it can be concluded that various parts of Bambusa bambos and Dendrocalamus strictus are practiced as conventional drugs to treat different ailments by local tribes and conventional healers from Chittoor district, Andhra Pradesh. Besides this, the young shoots of Bambusa bambos are a fabulous dietary hotspot for several minerals. This recipe of Bamboo shoots has been in permanence among the tribes of West Godavari and East Godavari  districts for the past several generations. Ayurveda has also validated this fact owing to its therapeutic properties. By all its nutritive potential, it can be determined that it is not only good to the taste receptors but also healthy

Justicia adhatoda L. vasicin and vasicinone as bioactive phytochemical compounds: Isolation, characterization, and computational studies

Justicia adhatoda L. has wide applications in traditional and modern medicine. Its major potency is due to the presence of two alkaloids viz. Vasicine and Vasicinone. In industry, the demand for both marker compounds as well as quality Justicia adhatoda L. material is very high. The isolation of bioactive phytochemical compounds for the development of an in-house phytochemical reference standard library to verify quality control is of prime demand for an analytical chemist. For these reasons, the objective of the present study was to isolate two members of the alkaloids Vasicine and Vasicinone marker compounds from Justicia adhatoda L. Extraction was carried out by using a cold percolation method in a successive manner by increasing the order of polarity of the solvents from petroleum-ether to ethanol. Isolation was achieved for the above said two maker compounds by using separation, purification though column chromatography on silica-gel using mobile phase chloroform, and ethanol. Characterization of the isolated compounds was carried out by UV–VIS, IR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR and mass spectroscopy techniques. The isolated and purified solid compounds were confirmed as Vasicine and Vasicinone by comparison and co-relating with observed spectroscopy data and literature data. The compounds had a good to high amount of yield (0.4 % to 0.63 %) with high purity (98–100 %) through HPL. Lastly, frontier molecular orbital analysis (HOMO and LUMO), and global descriptive parameters (such as chemical potential, electronegativity, hardness, softness, etc.) were analyzed using computational approaches. Results revealed a good correlation with experimental data except for a few alternations in 1H NMR data

Development and standardisation of Laghu Sudarshan Churna – An Ayurvedic polyherbal formulation

Laghu Sudarshan Churna, LSC is an Ayurvedic polyherbal formulation employed for different types of jvaras (fevers). The present study was undertaken to prepare its standardised formulation and to standardise the finished product using quality control procedures mentioned in Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India (API). For this, four batches of the finished products were prepared on a laboratory scale and performed the pharmacognostical parameters (macroscopic, microscopic and powder drug analysis); thin layer chromatography; quantitative physicochemical evaluation including loss on drying, total ash, acid-insoluble ash, alcohol & water soluble extractive values, and pH; & measuring the level of aflatoxins, microbial load, heavy metals and pesticide residues of the finished product. This study is the foremost effort to develop the standardised formulation along with the evaluation parameters for LSC. Thus, obtained results would be beneficial and will act as the reference for the standardisation of LSC

In-silico evaluation of Oroxylum indicum vent compounds in the plausible treatment and prevention of nasopharyngeal cancer

Background: Shyonaka (Oroxylum indicum Vent) is widely used in Ayurveda and in ethnomedical practice for the treatment of inflammation, pain, diarrhea, non-healing ulcers, and cancer. Owing to the high prevalence of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection in Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients, simultaneous targeting of proteins involved in both EBV replication and NPC proliferation might help to manage the disease effectively. Objectives: This study is designed to identify potential dual targeting inhibitors from Oroxylum indicum having the potential to inhibit both EBV and NPC. This study also attempted quantitative analysis of Shyonaka Bark Decoction (SBD) to confirm the presence of Baicalein and Chrysin which are predominant marker compounds of Shyonaka. Methodology: The HPLC analysis of stem bark and root bark of Oroxylum indicum was done to estimate the presence of marker compounds Baicalein and Chrysalin. The in-silico analysis included ADMET analysis followed by molecular docking of known compounds from Oroxylum indicum (retrieved from IMPPAT database) onto the target proteins of EBV (BHRF1, NEC1, dUTPase, Uracil DNA glycosylase) and NPC (COX-2, EGFR, and MDM2) using DOCK6 tool. Further validations were done using the molecular dynamics simulations of top screened molecules onto the selected target proteins using AMBER20 package and their corresponding MMGBSA binding free-energy values were calculated. Results: The molecular docking revealed that the key molecules from the plant, scutellarein 7-rutinoside (S7R), scutellarin (SCU) and 6-hydroxyluteolin, Baicalein and 5,7-Dihydroxy-2-phenyl-6-[3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-(hydroxymethyl)oxan-2-yl]oxychromen-4-one (57D) are effectively intervening with the target proteins of EBV, one of the key causative factors of NPC and the NPC specific targets which have the potential to reduce tumor size and other consequences of NPC. The molecular dynamics simulations of S7R, Baicalein and 57D, Baicalein with MDM-2 protein and dUTPase protein, respectively, showed stable interactions between them which were further assessed by the binding energy calculations. Conclusion: Overall, the in-silico evaluation of these phytochemicals with target proteins indicates their potential to inhibit both EBV and NPC which needs further in-vitro and in-vivo validations