FORMULATION AND PHARMACOKINETIC DETERMINATION OF GALLIC ACID IN EMBLICA OFFICINALIS

Objective: The present work was to formulate oral herbal tablets of Emblica officinalis extract and also with pure gallic acid, further to determine the dosage frequency through pharmacokinetic profiles obtained for the same.Methods: The Emblica officinalis fruits were suitably extracted and the concentration of gallic acid in Emblica officinalis extract was estimated by HPTLC (High-Performance Thin Layer Chromatography) with a comparison to pure form. Tablets were prepared with extract and synthetic form through direct compression technique by varying the process and formulation parameters. The formulated tablets were administered to rabbit models and their pharmacokinetic profile was studied after withdrawing blood samples through HPLC (High-Performance Liquid Chromatography).Results: The concentration of gallic acid in Emblica officinalis was found to be 8.21%. The pre and post compression parameters evaluated for the formulated batches found to be within the pharmacopoeial limits. The in vivo pharmacokinetic studies conducted in rabbit models showed that there were no significant differences with p-value between the pharmacokinetic data obtained for pure and extract gallic acid tablets. The Cmax was found to be 4.59±0.95 µg/ml in the extract form which was little low when compared to the pure form of 6.38±1.08 µg/ml. The t1/2 in the extract form was 6.0±0.33 h, whereas it was 4.92±0.36 h in the pure form of gallic acid.Conclusion: The Emblica officinalis extract tablet showed average t1/2 of 6 h, so about every 6 h one tablet compared to 4 h of t1/2 for pure gallic acid tablet can be the dosing frequency for the rabbit.Â

Intrinsic Functional Connectivity of the Brain in Adults with a Single Cerebral Hemisphere

A reliable set of functional brain networks is found in healthy people and thought to underlie our cognition, emotion, and behavior. Here, we investigated these networks by quantifying intrinsic functional connectivity in six individuals who had undergone surgical removal of one hemisphere. Hemispherectomy subjects and healthy controls were scanned with identical parameters on the same scanner and compared to a large normative sample (n = 1,482). Surprisingly, hemispherectomy subjects and controls all showed strong and equivalent intrahemispheric connectivity between brain regions typically assigned to the same functional network. Connectivity between parts of different networks, however, was markedly increased for almost all hemispherectomy participants and across all networks. These results support the hypothesis of a shared set of functional networks that underlie cognition and suggest that between-network interactions may characterize functional reorganization in hemispherectomy

Influence of coastal upwelling on the fishery of small pelagics off Kerala, south-west coast of India

In order to evaluate the impact of the interannual changes of upwelling on the small pelagics, the average chlorophyll a concentrations were compared with the fishery. The catch of small pelagics, especially that of the oilsardine increased from 1, 554 t in 1994 to 2,50, 469 t in 2007 in the Malabar upwelling zone off Kerala, India. The coastal upwelling index (CUI) during south-west monsoon increased by nearly 50% during the period 1998 to 2007. This substantial increase in coastal upwelling index elevated chlorophyll a concentration during monsoon which resulted in an increase of over 200% in annual average chlorophyll a concentration. The increasing coastal upwelling index and chlorophyll a during monsoon sustained an increasing catch of oilsardine during postmonsoon season. The responses of lesser sardine and Indian mackerel, which are midlevel carnivores, were different. The population increases of the oilsardine appear to replace decreases in the lesser sardines and Indian mackerel during the postmonsoon season

Rotula aquatica. Lour-A Review on Medicinal uses Phytochemistry and Pharmacological actions

Rotula aquatic Lour is an important medicinal herb in Ayurvedic system of medicine. The plant occurs as a small branched shrub that grows characteristically among rocks and trailing over pebbles in stream beds, belonging to the family Boraginaceae and widely distributed throughout India. It is commonly called as Pasanabheda in Ayurveda. As only few studies are done on this plant, the comprehensive review presenting here will summarize regarding its Phytochemical and Pharmacological activities with the help of available and update information. Various studies indicated the antiurolithiatic, hypoglycemic, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and anthelmintic properties of Rotula aquatica. Although the information are very encouraging and revealed some of the constituents of the plant like polyphenols and tannins as important therapeutically agents. The herb should be studied more extensively to confirm these results and reveal other potential therapeutic effects. Various traditional claims of the plant are still remain to be validated scientifically. Clinical trials for the reported preclinical studies should be performed urgently to further validate the claims on human

Nutrigenomics: future for sustenance

Nutrigenomics deals with the effect of foods and food constituents on gene expression. It is a new concept in disease prevention and cure. Nutrigenomics conveys how nutrients influence our body to express genes, whereas nutrigenetics refers to how our body responds to nutrients. The various bioactive food components can alter the gene expression mechanisms. But our actual knowledge is so insufficient that the only use of such information may help to satisfy our imagination. If science could arrive at some more precise facts, that would have vast applications in medicine

CMFRI Marine Fisheries Policy Series No-6; Non-Detriment Findings (NDF) for the export of Shark and Ray species listed in Appendix II of the CITES and harvested from Indian waters

This document entitled “Guidance on National Plan of Action for Sharks in India” is intended as a guidance to the NPOA-Sharks, and seeks to (1) present an overview of the current status of India’s shark fishery, (2) assess the current management measures and their effectiveness, (3) identify the knowledge gaps that need to be addressed in NPOA-Sharks and (4) suggest a theme-based action plan for NPOA-Sharks

Stem cell therapy in animal models of central nervous system (CNS) diseases: therapeutic role, challenges and perspectives

ABSTRACT Many human diseases relating to central nervous system (CNS) are mimicked in animal models to evaluate the efficacy of stem cell therapy. The therapeutic role of stem cells in animal models of CNS diseases include replacement of diseased or degenerated neuron, oligodendrocytes or astrocytes with healthy ones, secretion of neurotrophic factors and delivery of therapeutics/genes. Scaffolds can be utilized for delivering stem cells in brain. Sustained delivery of stem cells, lineage specific differentiation, and enhanced neuronal network integration are the hallmarks of scaffold mediated stem cell delivery in CNS diseases. This review discusses the therapeutic role, challenges and future perspectives of stem cell therapy in animal models of CNS diseases

Stock structure analysis of Indian mackerel Rastrelliger kanagurta (Cuvier, 1817) from south-east and south-west coasts of India using truss network system

A total of 200 specimens of Indian mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta) were collected from Kochi in the south-west coast and Chennai in the south-east coast and they were subjected to truss analysis. A truss network was constructed by interconnecting 10 landmarks to form a total of 21 truss distance variables extracted from the landmarks. The transformed truss measurements were subjected to factor analysis which revealed that there is no separation of the stocks along south-east and south-west coasts. Thus the present study has indicated that the population of Indian mackerel from south-east and south-west coasts remains the same

Wave forecasting and monitoring during very severe cyclone Phailin in the Bay of Bengal

Wave fields, both measured and forecast during the very severe cyclone Phailin, are discussed in this communication. Waves having maximum height of 13.54 m were recorded at Gopalpur, the landfall point of the cyclone. The forecast and observed significant wave heights matched well at Gopalpur with correlation coefficient of 0.98, RMS error of 0.35 m and scatter index of 14%. Forecasts were also validated in the open ocean and found to be reliable (scatter index < 15%). The study also revealed the presence of Southern Ocean swells with a peak period of 20-22 sec hitting Gopalpur coast along with the cyclone-generated waves

Stock structure analysis of oil sardine Sardinella longiceps (Valenciennes, 1847) from southeast and southwest coasts of India

A total of 200 specimens of oil sardine Sardinella longiceps collected from Kochi in the southwest coast and Chennai in the southeast coast were subjected to truss analysis. A truss network was constructed by interconnecting 10 landmarks to form a total of 21 truss distance variables extracted from the landmarks. The transformed truss measurements were subjected to factor analysis which revealed that there is no separation of the stocks along southeast and southwest coasts. The marginal differences in shape and form are attributed to the ecological differences in the habitats which is evident from differences in length weight relationships and feeding intensity of the population along these two coasts