Pharmaceutical Biology

Celastrus paniculatus Wild. (Celasteraceae) (CP) is a well-known Ayurvedic 'Medhya Rasayana' (nervine tonic), used extensively as a neuro-protective and memory enhancer, and in different central nervous system disorders. To evaluate the effect of CP against 3-nitropropionic acid (3-NP) induced Huntington's disease (HD) like symptoms in Wistar male rats. The ethanol extract of CP seeds (CPEE), prepared by maceration, was standardized on the basis of linoleic acid content (6.42%) using thin layer chromatography densitometric analysis. Protective effect of CPEE (100 and 200 mg/kg) and its various fractions, viz., petroleum ether (40 mg/kg), ethyl acetate (2.5 mg/kg), n-butanol (7 mg/kg) and aqueous (18 mg/kg), administered orally for 20 days, against 3-NP (10 mg/kg, i.p. for 14 days) was assessed by their effect on body weight, locomotor activity, grip strength, gait pattern and cognitive dysfunction and biochemical parameters for oxidative damage in the striatum and cortex...

Asystasia gangetica (Linn) T. Anderson [family Acanthaceae] is used commonly in the sub-tropics and tropics for the management of inflammatory and algesic conditions. The study was done to evaluate the analgesic and inflammatory activity of the aqueous stem and leaf extract of Asystasia gangetica. The analgesic effect of the aqueous stem and leaf extract of Asystasia gangetica (25, 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg) was evaluated in rats and mice using the acetic acid induced writhing, cold water tail flick and hot plate models. Its anti-inflammatory effect was evaluated using carrageenan induced rat paw oedema and xylene induced mouse ear oedema models. The aqueous stem and leaf extract of Asystasia gangetica (25-200 mg/kg) significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the number of writhes in the acetic acid induced writhing test. At 100 mg/kg, it produced an increase in pain threshold comparable to that produced by morphine (10 mg/kg) in the tail flick test and peak analgesia at 200 mg/kg in the hot p...

The present study describes the volatile profile and antimicrobial activity of Thymus vulgaris (thymol chemotype), Thymus zygis subsp. gracilis (thymol and two linalool chemotypes) and Thymus hyemalis Lange (thymol, thymol/linalool and carvacrol chemotypes) essential oils extracted from seven plants cultivated in Murcia (Spain). Antimicrobial activities of the oils were evaluated for control of growth and survival of 10 pathogenic microorganisms.Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis allowed for the identification of between 42 and 51 compounds as main volatile constituents of each essential oil analyzed. Results presented here may suggest that the essential oils from T. hyemalis (thymol) followed by T. hyemalis (carvacrol), T. zygis (thymol) and T. vulgaris possesses antimicrobial properties, and are a potential source of antimicrobial ingredients for the food industry.

An ethnobotanical study was conducted from October 2005 to June 2006 to investigate the uses of medicinal plants by people in Zegie Peninsula, northwestern Ethiopia. Information was gathered from 200 people: 70 female and 130 males, using semistructured questionnaire. Of which, six were male local healers. The informants, except the healers, were selected randomly and no appointment was made prior to the visits. Informant consensus factor (ICF) for category of aliments and the fidelity level (FL) of the medicinal plants were determined. Sixty-seven medicinal plants used as a cure for 52 aliments were documented. They are distributed across 42 families and 64 genera. The most frequently utilized plant part was the underground part (root/rhizome/bulb) (42%). The largest number of remedies was used to treat gastrointestinal disorder and parasites infections (22.8%) followed by external injuries and parasites infections (22.1%). The administration routes are oral (51.4%), external (38.6%), nasal (7.9%), and ear (2.1%). The medicinal plants that were presumed to be effective in treating a certain category of disease, such as 'mich' and febrile diseases (0.80) had higher ICF values. This probably indicates a high incidence of these types of diseases in the region, possibly due to the poor socio-economic and sanitary conditions of this people. The medicinal plants that are widely used by the local people or used as a remedy for a specific aliment have higher FL values (Carissa spinarum, Clausena anisata, Acokanthera schimperi, Calpurnia aurea, Ficus thonningii, and Cyphostemma junceum) than those that are less popular or used to treat more than one type of aliments (Plumbago zeylanicum, Dorstenia barnimiana).

The present paper describes the chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oils of Gentiana asclepiadea L., collected in Serbia. The essential oils were obtained from the underground part (root and rhizome) and aerial part (stem, leaves and flowers) of the plant by hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC and GC-MS. The major compounds in the oil from the underground

Terminalia is used in folk medicine for the treatment of various diseases. The objective of this study is to investigate the hepatonephro protective activity of a polyphenol-rich fraction (TMEF) obtained from Terminalia muelleri Benth. (Combretaceae) against CCl4-induced toxicity in mice. TMEF was administered (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg/d) for 5 d. CCl4 was administered at the end of the experiment. Hepatic and renal biomarkers were measured in the serum. Glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and malondialdehyde (MDA) were estimated in the liver and kidney tissues. The active constituents of TMEF were identified by HPLC-PDA-ESI/MS/MS. TMEF is rich in ellagitannins, galloyl esters, phenolic acids, and flavone-C-glucosides. TMEF pretreatment significantly (p < 0.001) inhibited the CCl4-induced increase in ALT (17, 43, and 53%), AST (20, 46, and 58%), ALP (20, 48, and 56%), LDH (21, 47, and 58%), hepatic MDA (23, 49, and 54%), renal MDA (22, 35, and 52%), creatinine (48, 66, ...

Ostericum koreanum (Maxim.) Kitagawa (Apiaceae) roots are traditionally used as an analgesic and antiulcer agent. However, the antiulcer potential of isoimperatorin isolated from O. koreanum has not yet been explored. To evaluate the antiulcer activity of isoimperatorin isolated from the roots of O. koreanum. Isoimperatorin was isolated as cubic crystals by repeated column chromatography of the ethyl acetate fraction and structure was verified with (1)H NMR, (13)C NMR and high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS-FAB). The crystals obtained were analyzed with the single crystal X-ray method. The MTT assay was used to determine its cytotoxicity against chondrocytes at different concentrations (0.0-737.74 μM, 24 h). The in vivo antiulcer activity of isoimperatorin (40 mg/kg) was determined against ethanol-, indomethacin- and pyloric ligation-induced ulcers in Sprague-Dawley rats. Furthermore, the effect of isoimperatorin (0.0-737.74 μM, 24 h) on the expression of type II collagen in cho...