Anticonvulsant Activity of Carissa carandas Linn. Root Extract in Experimental Mice

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to investigate anticonvulsant effect of the ethanolic extract of the roots of Carissa carandas (ERCC) on electrically and chemically induced seizures.Methods: The ethanolic extract of the roots of C. carandas (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg, i.p.) was studied for its anticonvulsant effect on maximal electroshock-induced seizures and pentylenetetrazole-, picrotoxin-, bicuculline- and N-methyl-dl-aspartic acid-induced seizures inmice. The latency of tonic convulsions and the number of animals protected from tonic convulsions were noted.Results: ERCC (100-400 mg/kg) significantly reduced the duration of seizures induced by maximal electroshock (MES). However, only 200 and 400mg/kg of the extract conferred protection (25 and 50%, respectively) on the mice. The same doses also protected animals from pentylenetetrazole-induced tonic seizures and significantly delayed the onset of tonic seizures produced by picrotoxin and N-methyl-dl-aspartic acid. The extract had no effect on bicuculline-induced seizures.Conclusion: The data suggest that the ethanolic root extract of C. carandas may produce its anticonvulsant effects via non-specific mechanisms since it reduced the duration of seizures produced by maximal electroshock as well as delayed the latency of seizures produced by pentylenetetrazole and picrotoxin

Prostaglandin I2 Signaling Drives Th17 Differentiation and Exacerbates Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis

BACKGROUND: Prostaglandin I(2) (PGI(2)), a lipid mediator currently used in treatment of human disease, is a critical regulator of adaptive immune responses. Although PGI(2) signaling suppressed Th1 and Th2 immune responses, the role of PGI(2) in Th17 differentiation is not known. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In mouse CD4(+)CD62L(+) naïve T cell culture, the PGI(2) analogs iloprost and cicaprost increased IL-17A and IL-22 protein production and Th17 differentiation in vitro. This effect was augmented by IL-23 and was dependent on PGI(2) receptor IP signaling. In mouse bone marrow-derived CD11c(+) dendritic cells (BMDCs), PGI(2) analogs increased the ratio of IL-23/IL-12, which is correlated with increased ability of BMDCs to stimulate naïve T cells for IL-17A production. Moreover, IP knockout mice had delayed onset of a Th17-associated neurological disease, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), and reduced infiltration of IL-17A-expressing mononuclear cells in the spinal cords compared to wild type mice. These results suggest that PGI(2) promotes in vivo Th17 responses. CONCLUSION: The preferential stimulation of Th17 differentiation by IP signaling may have important clinical implications as PGI(2) and its analogs are commonly used to treat human pulmonary hypertension

DC & transient circuit simulation methodologies for organic electronics

This work establishes a novel circuit simulation methodology for organic thin film transistors (OTFTs). Because of a lack of well developed physical models for OTFTs and due to the limitations of conventional parameter extraction techniques, the approaches presented in this work come in handy for circuit designers. The first approach uses a Look-up Table (LUT) model, which is implemented in a general purpose public-domain circuit simulator SEQUEL (Solver for circuit EQuations with User-defined Elements). In the second approach, circuit simulation is performed using equivalent SPICE parameters, which are extracted using a global optimization technique namely particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm. A good match has been observed between LUT simulations and SPICE based circuit simulations for both DC and transient cases