Antioxidant activity of tuberosin isolated from Pueraria tuberose Linn

Antioxidant activity of Pueraria tuberose DC, (PT) Leguminosae (Fabaceae) has already been reported by us and here an active compound has been isolated and its action on expression of iNOS protein has been explored by using LPS induced changes in attached rat peritoneal macrophage cell culture. The pure compound was isolated by column chromatography and its structure was characterized by spectral studies, which was identified as tuberosin (5 hydroxy 3,4,7,3',4' pentamethoxy flavone). Its antioxidant capacity was determined and compared with alcoholic extract as EC50 value for scavenging potential towards pre-generated monocation ABTS* radical, superoxide radicals, hydroxyl radicals, metal chelation property and on lipid peroxidation. Further, rat peritoneal macrophages were isolated, cultured and the attached macrophages were exposed to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) with different concentrations of tuberosin (pretreatment for 30 min). After 17 h the released NO content, in culture supernatant, was indirectly estimated as accumulated nitrite by Griess reagent. To understand the mechanism of action, the extent of expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase genes, the iNOS protein was assessed in macrophage lysate by using its antibody on western blot analysis. Tuberosin significantly scavenged all the species of FRs, described above and it also inhibited the LPS induced release of NO and amount of iNOS protein in macrophages. All the changes were significant and concentration dependent. Thus it could be suggested that tuberosin, is one of the active principles of Pueraria tuberose, which directly scavenges various species of Free radicals (FRs) and also inhibits LPS induced inflammatory changes in macrophages

Radiation Induced Gastrointestinal Damage and Protection: Nigella Sativa Seed Extract and Thymoquinone

Ionising radiation therapy is a common treatment for different types of cancers. The side effects associated with radiation includes destruction of normal cells, especially the dividing cells. The cells in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and bone marrow are the primary targets. The GI damage is reflected by early histological changes, functional alterations and symptoms of nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. This has been designated as the radiation syndrome. Many synthetic drugs have been used to treat GI disorders but a definite cure has not been discovered so far and these available medications also cause several side effects. The herbal extracts are being tested for long time as preventive food supplement/drug in this disease. The radio protective effects of Nigella sativa (black cumin, (Ranunculacea) is already reported but its mechanism of action is not well established. Here in this review this aspect has been explored with special reference to various in vitro and in vivo models

BHUx: A Patent Polyherbal Formulation to Prevent Atherosclerosis

Ayurvedic medicine is a time-tested system of medicine which has been in clinical use for centuries in India. Being a time-tested system, it has an edge over other existing systems of health management, especially for dealing with chronic disorders such as coronary artery disease, which is of a complex multi-etiological nature. Recently, we have shown that BHUx, a patented polyherbal formulation consisting of the aqueous fraction of five medicinal plants of the ayurvedic system, has significant anti-inflammatory properties through inhibition of cyclooxygenase-2 and lipoxygenase-15. Here we have investigated its effect on diet-induced atherosclerosis in albino rabbits. BHUx was given orally for 3 months to rabbits pre-treated with an atherogenic diet for 3 months. After 6 months, the dorsal aorta was processed for histological studies for calcium and collagen content. The results demonstrated a remarkable reduction in intimal thickening in the treated animals. In addition, there was less calcification at the intima–medial interface and increased intensity of collagen cap on the surface along with an increase in survival, compared with the sham control. We suggest that BHUx is a potent, multi-factorial formulation against atherosclerosis

Antioxidant Capacity and Radical Scavenging Effect of Polyphenol Rich Mallotus philippenensis

Mallotus philippinensis is an important source of molecules with strong antioxidant activity widely used medicinal plant. Previous studies have highlighted their anticestodal, antibacterial, wound healing activities, and so forth. So, present investigation was designed to evaluate the total antioxidant activity and radical scavenging effect of 50% ethanol fruit glandular hair extract (MPE) and its role on Human Erythrocytes. MPE was tested for phytochemical test followed by its HPLC analysis. Standard antioxidant assays like DPPH, ABTS, hydroxyl, superoxide radical, nitric oxide, and lipid peroxidation assay were determined along with total phenolic and flavonoids content. Results showed that MPE contains the presence of various phytochemicals, with high total phenolic and flavonoid content. HPLC analysis showed the presence of rottlerin, a polyphenolic compound in a very rich quantity. MPE exhibits significant strong scavenging activity on DPPH and ABTS assay. Reducing power showed dose dependent increase in concentration absorption compared to standard, Quercetin. Superoxide, hydroxyl radical, lipid peroxidation, nitric oxide assay showed a comparable scavenging activity compared to its standard. Our finding further provides evidence that Mallotus fruit extract is a potential natural source of antioxidants which have a protective role on human Erythrocytes exhibiting minimum hemolytic activity and this justified its uses in folklore medicines

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Insulin secreting and α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of hexane extract of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Annona squamosa</i> Linn. in streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetic rats

623-629The hexane extract of A. squamosa<span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic"> <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold; mso-bidi-font-style:italic" lang="EN-GB">(ASHE) in 100 and 400 mg/kg body weight dose raised the insulin level when compared with Glimepiride (1 mg/kg) and also inhibited α-glucosidase activity when compared with Acarbose (10 mg/kg) in streptozotocin induced diabetic rats. <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold">The ASHE significantly reduced peak blood glucose (Gp30) and area under curve (AUC) in diabetic rats in oral glucose (OGTT) and oral sucrose (OSTT) tolerance test, but there was more reduction of Gp30 value than AUC in OSTT. Thus, it can be suggested that the ASHE, has hypoglycemic role at 2 levels, i.e. it acts as secretagogue and also inhibits the intestinal enzymes, responsible for glucose metabolism. </span

Role of alcoholic extract of shoot of <i>Hypericum perforatum </i>Linn on lipid peroxidation and various species of free radicals in rats

567-571The alcoholic extract of the shoot of H. perforatum shows strong antioxidant property. It possesses the iron chelation property with more affinity to the ferrous form. It has scavenging property for both superoxide and for hydroxyl radicals but the response is more towards the superoxide radicals. Thus in addition to the anti-depressant property it has strong antioxidant property also

Oily fraction of <i style="">Semecarpus anacardium</i> Linn nuts involves protein kinase C activation for its pro-inflammatory response

1204-1209The oily fraction (non polar fraction-NPF) of S. anacardium (SA) significantly increased the expression of protein kinase C-δ (PKC-δ) in macrophages in concentration dependent manner, which was similar to phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) response. Further, H-7 (1-(5-isoquinolinesulphonyl)-2-methylpiperazine), an inhibitor of PKC significantly inhibited this NPF mediated response in a concentration dependent manner. In the post treatment kinetics, H-7 showed this inhibition only up to 6 min post NPF/PMA addition, but in similar condition, quercetin, a flavone with reported antioxidant property, showed this inhibition only up to 2 min. The results clearly suggest that oily fraction of SA nuts enhances the expression of PKC protein, which may be responsible for its reported pro-inflammatory property

<span style="font-size: 21.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Effect of <i><span style="font-size:21.5pt;mso-bidi-font-size:14.5pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Semecarpus anacardium </span></i><span style="font-size:21.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">nuts on lipid peroxidation </span></span>

798-801<span style="font-size: 16.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:9.0pt;font-family:" times="" new="" roman","serif""="">Alcoholic extract of pericarp showed significant protection against FeSO4 induced lipid peroxidation, as compared with whole native nut and seeds. Mechanism of action may be through metal chelation or activation of endogenous antioxidant enzymes, because the ex tract did not show hydroxyl and super oxide anion scavenging property. Further <span style="font-size:15.5pt; mso-bidi-font-size:8.5pt;font-family:" times="" new="" roman","serif""="">in vitro experiments against FeSO4 ,it did not maintain the level of reduced glutathione. </span