Traditional use of medicinal plants for anti-ringworm therapy in some parts of Kamrup District of Assam,a North Eastern State of India

ObjectiveTo survey traditional use of medicinal plants for anti-ringworm therapy from December 2007 to January 2009 in some parts of Kamrup district of Assam, a North Eastern State of India.MethodsBased on a standard questionnaire, local inhabitants were interviewed for their knowledge of medicinal plants used against ringworm. Each entry includes the botanical and prevalent local name(s), part(s) used, and mode of use against the diseases.ResultsThis report deals with 46 plant species belonging to 30 different families used as herbal remedies for the treatment of Dermatophytosis.ConclusionsThe study reveals several medicinal plants used by the local people for the treatment of cutaneous infections caused by dermatophytes. Such study may lead to the discovery of new antifungal agents from natural sources.     

Ethno-botanical survey of plants used in the traditional treatment of malaria in Sei Kepayang,Asahan of North Sumatera

ObjectiveTo investigate and collect information from traditional health healer/tribal communities on the use of medicinal plants for treatment of malaria in Sei Kepayang, Asahan District of North Sumatera.MethodsThe ethno-botanical study was conducted in Sei Kepayang, Asahan District of North Sumatera in January-March 2013 through questionnaire and personal interviews, and their responses were documented.ResultsThe present study enumerated 16 ethno-medicinal plant species belonging to 13 families used by the tribal communities and medicinal healers in Sei Kepayang, Asahan District of North Sumatera in treatment of malaria. Some of the recipes, methods of preparation and administration were also documented.ConclusionsFrom the interviews conducted, 16 plant spesies belonging to 13 families have been identified in the treatment of malaria.     

Traditional effects of medicinal plants in the treatment of respiratory diseases and disorders: an ethnobotanical study in the Urmia

ObjectiveTo identify, present and review the respiratoty medicinal plants which used by Urmian herbalists.MethodsThe list of traditional healers of West Azarbaijan Province was prepared and data were obtained by direct observation, interviews and the questionnaires After that, herbarium samples were collected from the desired area and deposited in herbarium unit of the Faculty of Agriculture, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran.ResultsOur results demonstrated that 20 medicinal plants from 10 plant families are used to treat respiratory disorders. Also, the most plant part that used for treating of respiratory disorders was seed (27%) and the most traditional form prescribed by herbalists was boiled (54%). Forty three percentage of Urmia herbalists have used herbs for the treatment of cough.ConclusionsPeople in this area have a strong belief that plants have a positive impact in the treatment of respiratory disorders and they have used medicinal plants since ancient times to treat these disorders. Our study revealed the importance of herbal medicines and traditional medicine in this area as medicinal resource for drug discovery in future.     

Luffa echinata Roxb.-A review on its ethanomedicinal,phytochemical and pharmacological perspective

Luffa echinata Roxb. (Cucurbitaceae) is a spreading climbing herb of tremendous medicinal importance, distributed throughout Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Northern Tropical Africa. Traditionally various parts of the plant are being used for the treatment of different ailments such as jaundice, intestinal colic, enlargement of liver and spleen, leprosy, diabetes, bronchitis, nephritis, rheumatism, cirrhosis, dropsy, anthelmintic, stomach ache, snake bite, dog bite, fever, diarrohea and hemorrhoid disorder. The plant also possesses antioxidant, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antidepressant, anxiolytic, antiepileptic, hepatoprotective, antibacterial, antifungal, antiulcer and anticancer activity. Research has been carried out using different techniques to support most of these claims. This review is an attempt to compile an up-to-date data on its ethanomedicinal, phytochemical and pharmacological perspective.     

Zizyphus xylopyrus (Retz.) Willd: a review of its folkloric,phytochemical and pharmacological perspectives

Zizyphus xylopyrus (Retz.) Willd (Rhamnaceae) is an ever-green shrub of tremendous medicinal importance, distributed throughout the North-Western India, Pakistan, and China. Various parts of plant are used in Ayurvedic and other folk medicine for the treatment of different ailments such as obesity, diabetes, snake bite, fever, diarrhoea, insomnia and digestive disorders. The plant also possesses antisteroidogenic, anticonvulsent, antinociceptive, antiinflammatory, antidepressant, antidiarroheal and wound healing activity. Research has been carried out using different techniques to support most of these claims. This review is an attempt to compile an up-to-date on its folkloric or traditional uses, phytochemical as well as pharmacological properties of Zizyphus xylopyrus.     

Trace elements content in the selected medicinal plants traditionally used for curing skin diseases by the natives of Mizoram,India

ObjectiveTo determine the trace elements content in the selected medicinal plants, namely, Eryngium foetidum L., Mimosa pudica L., Polygonum plebeium, and Prunus cerasoides D. Don traditionally used by the natives of the Mizoram, one of the north eastern states in India as their folklore medicines for curing skin diseases like eczema, leg and fingers infection, swelling and wound.MethodsA 3 MeV proton beam of proton induced X-ray emission technique, one of the most powerful techniques for its quick multi elemental trace analysis capability and high sensitivity was used to detect and characterized for trace elements.ResultsThe studies revealed that six trace elements, namely, Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn, V, and Co detected in mg/L unit were present in varying concentrations in the selected medicinal plants with high and notable concentration of Fe, Zn, Mn and appreciable amount of the Cu, Co and V in all the plants.ConclusionsThe results of the present study support the therapeutic usage of these medicinal plants in the traditional practices for curing skin diseases since they are found to contain appreciable amount of the Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn, V and Co.     

Identification of medicinal plants affecting on headaches and migraines in Lorestan Province,West of Iran

ObjectiveTo identify medicinal plants witch are used for headaches and migraines treatment in Lorestan province of Iran.MethodsTraditional medical herbs information was acquired from indigenous people with the cooperation of health centers of Doroud, Borujerd, Khorramabad, Aleshtar Poldokhtar, Aligoodarz, Nourabad and Kouhdasht cities. The prepared questionnaires were given to trained health volunteers. They attended in the villages and recorded people beliefs in herbal therapy by the questionnaires.ResultsThe results of this study showed that people used 15 herbs traditionally to treat headaches. Because of the importance of the medicinal plants in the study area, it is neccessary to determine sociological studies the plenty of plant species.ConclusionsBecause of the widespread use of traditional medicinal plants and high tendency to herbal medicine and traditional medicine, more extensive researches should be designed in several areas of pharmacy and pharmacology of medicinal plants to prepare proper information for pharmaceutical industries.     

Surveillance of multidrug resistance of two Gram-positive pathogenic bacteria in a teaching hospital and in vitro efficacy of 30 ethnomedicinal plants used by an aborigine of India

ObjectiveTo record hospital- and community-acquired accounts of multidrug resistance (MDR) of two Gram-positive pathogens, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis), by surveillance, and to evaluate antibacterial potencies of 30 plants with information on ethnomedicinal uses for infectious ailments by the aborigine Kandha tribe of Kalahandi district, Odisha (India), against both pathogens.MethodsOver a period of 6 months bacteria/ strains of S. aureus and E. faecalis were isolated from clinical samples in a teaching hospital and their antibiograms were ascertained using 17 antibiotics of 9 different groups. S. aureus strains were further tested for confirmation if they were methicillin and vancomycin resistant, similarly, E. faecalis strains for vancomycin resistance. Concentrated aqueous and ethanolic extracts of leaves/barks of 30 plants were used for monitoring their antimicrobial potencies, by the agar-well diffusion method, along with qualitative phytochemical analyses.ResultsFrom the surveillance, both pathogens were found MDR and it was evident that the distribution of MDR strains was more in hospital-acquired than community-acquired samples. Both aqueous and ethanolic extracts of plants, Diospyrous melanoxylon, Woodfordia fruticosa (W. fruticosa), Oroxylum indicum (O. indicum), Dalbergia paniculata and Lantana camara had the most significant in vitro controlling capacity against MDR strains of both bacteria. Further, extracts of Holarrhena antidysenterica, Aspidopterys tomentosa and Argyreia speciosa had moderate antibacterial activities. Ethanolic extracts of L. camara, O. indicum and W. fruticosa contained all the phytochemicals, alkaloids, glycosides, terpenoids, reducing sugars, saponins, tannins, flavonoids and steroids, which could be attributed to the recorded significant antibacterial activity.ConclusionS. aureus strains have been found as the most widely prevailing pathogens in nosocomial settings, than in community. Plants, L. camara. W. fruticosa, O. indicum and P. santalinus, particularly could be useful for a use as complementary/ supplementary/alternative therapeutic agents against Gram-positive pathogens.     

Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants used in the management of diabetes mellitus in the Urmia,Northwest Iran

ObjectiveTo collect and document information on anti-diabetic plants traditionally used in the treating of diabetes in Urmia at Northwest Iran because ethnomedicines are considered as valuable sources to find new potential drugs.MethodsWe used the method of direct observation and interview (35 traditional healers) along with gathering herbarium specimens mentioned plants in site.ResultsThere were 30 medicinal plants from 17 families for the treatment of diabetes. The family with most plants was Lamiaceae (20%). Leaves (20%) are often used and its form is decoction (70%). It was also found that Citrullus colocynthis has the most frequency of use among traditional healers.ConclusionsFurthermore, base on current findings many of the mentioned plants have potential active ingredients to influence diabetes.     

A systematic review of antiglycation medicinal plants

Background and objectivesThe present review shows a list of anti-glycation plants with their anti-glycation activity mechanisms that can attract the attention of pharmacologist for further scientific research towards finding better remedy for diabetic complications.MaterialsGoogle scholar, Pubmed, Web of Science and Scopus were searched. The terms were advanced glycation end products (AGEs), medicinal plants, antiglycation products.Resultsplants that studied in this review inhibit glycation in several possible mechanisms. Some of these plants inhibit the production of shiff base and amadori products. The others inhibit the generation of amadori products in the advanced phase. Some others blocked the aggregation of AGEs and some plants have antioxidant activity and reduce AGEs formation by preventing oxidation of amadori product and metal-catalyzed glucoxidation.ConclusionThis review can help pharmacologist to find antiglycation natural substance that can be useful in treatment of diabetic complications.     

International rankings of Diabetes and Metabolic diseases related journals in comparison to other medical journals from India

Background and aimsScientific publications from India and Asiatic countries are on rising in the last decade. We have attempted to analyze the growth (over the last 3 years) of various important journals being published from India in various medical fields, especially in the specialty of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism.MethodsWe used the database of SCOPUS, SCIMAGO, and Academic Accelerator to derive the required statistical information from various Indian journals, till 9^th June 2022.ResultsThere are only a very few medical journals from India in Quartile 1(first 25% of all journals), namely Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research and Reviews (DMSCRR), Hepatology International, and the Indian Journal of Medical Research (IJMR). DMSCRR stands at #1 in Diabetes and Metabolic disease-related journals among all the medical journals from India. All metrics of DMSCRR have majorly increased over the last three years; its CiteScore has almost quadrupled, the h-index is doubled, and the number of citations received has quadrupled. The DMSCRR is now ranked globally at #23/227 (90^th percentile) amongst all Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolic journals. In the recently announced metrics by SCOPUS in June 2022, the DMSCRR has ranked as the #1 journal in Asiatic countries.ConclusionSome Indian journals have increased their rankings in 2021 and among them, the Diabetes Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews has now become the highest-ranked medical journal in India, not only in the field of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism but also in all the medical specialties.     

Correlation study to identify the factors affecting COVID-19 case fatality rates in India

Background and aimsIn India, COVID-19 case fatality rates (CFRs) have consistently been very high in states like Punjab and Maharashtra and very low in Kerala and Assam. To investigate the discrepancy in state-wise CFRs, datasets on various factors related to demography, socio-economy, public health, and healthcare capacity have been collected to study their association with CFR.MethodsState-wise COVID-19 data was collected till April 22, 2021. The latest data on the various factors have been collected from reliable sources. Pearson correlation, two-tailed P test, Spearman rank correlation, and Artificial Neural Network (ANN) structures have been used to assess the association between various factors and CFR.ResultsLife expectancies, prevalence of overweight, COVID-19 test positive rates, and H1N1 fatality rates show a significant positive association with CFR. Human Development Index, per capita GDP, public affairs index, health expenditure per capita, availability of govt. doctors & hospital beds, prevalence of certain diseases, and comorbidities like diabetes and hypertension show insignificant association with CFR. Sex ratio, health expenditure as a percent of GSDP, and availability of govt. hospitals show a significant negative correlation with CFR.ConclusionThe study indicates that older people, males of younger age groups, and overweight people are at more fatality risk from COVID-19. Certain diseases and common comorbidities like diabetes and hypertension do not seem to have any significant effect on CFR. States with better COVID-19 testing rates, health expenditure, and healthcare capacity seem to perform better with regard to COVID-19 fatality rates.     

Antibacterial activities of some Indian traditional plant extracts

ObjectiveTo evaluate the in vitro antibacterial activity of various solvent extracts of South Indian traditional medicinal plants Ocimum sanctum, Ocimum gratissimum, Aegle marmelos, and Adhatoda vasica leaves against clinical pathogens of human origin.MethodsThe antimicrobial activity of different solvents crude extract of four medicinal plants used in traditional Indian medicine was tested by disc diffusion method against five bacterial pathogens: Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhi, Salmonella paratyphi and klebsiella pneumoniae.. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) was determined for evaluating the potential plant extract.ResultsThe antibacterial results showed methanol extracts (0.4 g/ml) of Ocimum gratissimum and Ocimum sanctum showed maximum zone of inhibition (30 mm and 25.5 mm, respectively) against Salmonella typhi. MIC was tested at various concentrations from 0.625 mg/ml to 0.039 mg/ml for all the plant extracts. At the lowest concentration (0.039mg/ml) tested, methanol extracts of Ocimum gratissimum showed higher MIC against Salmonella typhi and Salmonella paratyphi where as the methanolic extracts of Ocimum gratissimum showed potent activity against Staphylococcus aureus at 0.078 mg/ml. Methanol extract (0.4 g/ml) of Aegle marmelos showed significant inhibitory activity of 22.5mm and MIC value of 0.156.mg/ml against E. coli strain. The Klebsiella spp was the most resistant strain of all and various concentrations Adhatoda vasica extract showed less activity against the tested pathogens.ConclusionsThe present screening result demonstrated that the Indian traditional medicinal plants Ocimum sanctum, Ocimum gratissimum, Aegle marmelos methanol leaf extract has potent antibacterial activity and the studied plants may be new source for novel antibacterial compound discovery for treating drugs resistant human pathogens.     

Phytochemical evaluation and molecular characterization of some important medicinal plants

ObjectivePhytochemical evaluation and molecular characterization of plants is an important task in medicinal botany and drug discovery. In the current study, Ocimum species, Pimenta officinalis and Piper betel were considered as medicinal plants by evaluation of phytochemical composition like phenol content, Flavonoid content, antioxidant content and other activities like antibacterial, antifungal, lethal dosage (LD 50) of the plant extracts. Among the selected plants P. officinalis shown higher medicinal properties and is selected for molecular characterization.MethodsAntimicrobial activity by agar well diffusion method and also estimated Total phenols, flavonoids content, Total Antioxidants, Cytotoxic assay on Artemia salina for determining lethal dosage (LD50), matK gene was sequenced by using ABI Prism 3700. Leaf extract of P. officinalis plant is further selected for GC-chromatographic analysis to know its chemical composition. DNA was isolated by different protocols, optimized, and is used for the PCR amplification of trnL-gene which is a universal marker among plants in molecular taxonomy. The trnL-gene is amplified by using PCR. The product obtained from PCR is purified and the sample is used for sequencing so that it can be used for comparative studies.ResultsP. offcinalis has shown good antimicrobial activity against all organisms. A. flavus is resistant against O. sanctum (B). Phenolic content (26.5 μg/g) is found to be rich in P. betel where as flavonoid and Antioxidant content are significant in P. betel. The chromatogram revealed the presence of high concentration of Eugenol in the leaf sample. On submitting to BLASTN, the genetic sequence has found similarity with Pimenta dioica plastid partial matK gene and Ugni molinae trnK gene. MatK did not shown any interactions with trnK or trnL genes. MatK has shown interactions with various genes like ycf5, pclpp, psbh, atph, NDVI, rpoc1, ndha, ndhd, psai.ConclusionsWe can conclude for this investigation of chemical composition and antioxidative properties of the essential leaf oil of P. officinalis that contain eugenol, methyl eugenol and β-caryophyllene were found as main components with this capacity. P. offcinalis can be used as alternative source to synthetic drugs against Klebsiella, Pseudomonas, A. niger, A. flavus T. versicolor infections. In silico analysis did not predicted any interactions between matK and trnL or trnK genes.     

Spectrum of Opportunistic Infections and Profile of CD4<Superscript>+</Superscript> Counts among AIDS Patients in North India

Abstract. Background: As the number of AIDS cases increases in India, information available among clinicians about the prevalence of opportunistic infections (OIs) is scarce. The aim of the present study was to document the characteristic OIs of HIV-infected North Indian patients along with their CD4⁺ counts. Patients and Methods: The study group consisted of subjects with confirmed serodiagnosis of HIV, attending the medical clinics at a tertiary health care center in North India. The CD4⁺ counts were estimated by FACS Calibur (BD) flow cytometer. Simultaneously, routine microbiology smears, cultures and serology were performed to confirm OI. Results: In this retrospective study of 421 subjects, the predominant OI was tuberculosis (47%, 189 cells/µl), followed by parasitic diarrhea (43.5%, 227 cells/µl) and oral candidiasis (25.2%, 189 cells/µl). Conclusion: Tuberculosis was the most frequent OI in the HIV-infected patients studied, and the major mode of transmission of HIV was by sexual route. The median CD4⁺ counts observed were lower when compared to other studies.     

Peptic ulcer in Assam

Big differences in the prevalence of peptic ulcer are known to exist in different parts of India. This paper reports a high incidence in Assam and records certain differences with peptic ulcers found in south India.     

Design and rationale of an intelligent algorithm to detect BuRnoUt in HeaLthcare workers in COVID era using ECG and artificiaL intelligence: The BRUCEE-LI study

BackgroundThere is no large contemporary data from India to see the prevalence of burnout in HCWs in covid era. Burnout and mental stress is associated with electrocardiographic changes detectable by artificial intelligence (AI).ObjectiveThe present study aims to estimate the prevalence of burnout in HCWs in COVID-19 era using Mini Z-scale and to develop predictive AI model to detect burnout in HCWs in COVID-19 era.MethodsThis is an observational and cross-sectional study to evaluate the presence of burnout in HCWs in academic tertiary care centres of North India in the COVID-19 era. At least 900 participants will be enrolled in this study from four leading premier government-funded/public-private centres of North India. Each study centre will be asked to recruit HCWs by approaching them through various listed ways for participation in the study. Interested participants after initial screening and meeting the eligibility criteria, will be asked to fill the questionnaire (having demographic and work related with Mini Z questionnaire) to assess burnout. The healthcare workers will include physicians at all levels of training, nursing staff and paramedical staff who are involved directly or indirectly in COVID-19 care. The analysis of the raw electrocardiogram (ECG) data and development of algorithm using convolutional neural networks (CNN) will be done by experts.ConclusionsIn Summary, we propose that ECG data generated from the people with burnout can be utilized to develop AI-enabled model to predict the presence of stress and burnout in HCWs in COVID-19 era.     

Effect of medicinal plants on Moraxella cattarhalis

ObjectiveTo determine the antimoraxella activity of Ethiopian medicinal plants extracts.MethodsTwo clinical isolates of Moraxella cattarhalis (M. cattarhalis) with different antibiotic sensitivity pattern were tested to determine their susceptibility to garlic [Allium sativum (A. sativum)], bark of cinnamon [Cinnamomum zeylanicum (C. zeylanicum)], clove [Syzygium aromaticum (S. aromaticum)], and leaves of avocado [Persea americana (P. americana)], rosemary [Rosmarinus officinalis (R. officinalis)] and prickly poppy [Argemone mexicana (A. mexicana)]. Disk diffusion assay and broth dilution method were used to measure zone of inhibition, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of plant extracts against M. cattarhalis.ResultsBoth the strains of M. cattarhalis exhibited similar sensitivities to the extracts of medicinal plants. Antimoraxella activity was exhibited only by garlic, avocado leaves and cinnamon. Garlic was found to be more antagonistic to M. cattarhalis than cinnamon and avocado. Garlic and avocado leaves have shown similar MIC (30 mg/mL) where as their zone of inhibition (15 and 11 mm, respectively) were different.ConclusionsGarlic, cinnamon and avocado leaves extracts represents alternative source of natural antimicrobial substances for use in clinical practice for the treatment of cases of M. cattarhalis. Further research on the effects of these extracts on M. cattarhalis can be rewarding to pursue in the search for new broad spectrum antimicrobial agents.     

Anti-fungal and anti-bacterial activities of ethanol extracts of selected traditional Chinese medicinal herbs

ObjectiveTo evaluate in vitro antimicrobial activities of selected 58 ethno-medicinal plant extracts with a view to assess their therapeutic potential.MethodsA total of 58 traditional Chinese medicinal plants were carefully selected based on the literature review and their traditional use. The antimicrobial activities of ethanol extracts of these medicinal plants were tested against fungi (Aspergillus fumigatus), yeast (Candida albicans), gram-negative (Acinetobacter baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus). The activities were tested at three different concentrations of 1.00, 0.10 and 0.01 mg/mL. The data was analysed using Gene data Screener program.ResultsThe measured antimicrobial activities indicated that out of the 58 plant extracts, 15 extracts showed anti-fungal activity and 23 extracts exhibited anti-bacterial activity. Eight plant extracts have exhibited both anti-bacterial and anti-fungal activities. For instance, Eucommia ulmoides, Polygonum cuspidatum, Poria cocos and Uncaria rhyncophylla showed activity against both bacterial and fungal strains, indicating their broad spectrum of activity.ConclusionsThe results revealed that the ethanol extracts of 30 plants out of the selected 58 possess significant antimicrobial activities. It is interesting to note that the findings from the current study are consistent with the traditional use. A clear correlation has also been found between the antimicrobial activity and the flavonoid content of the plant extracts which is in agreement with the literature. Hence, the results presented here can be used to guide the selection of potential plant species for the isolation and structure elucidation of novel antimicrobial compounds in order to establish the structure-activity relationship. This in turn is expected to lead the way to the discovery of novel antimicrobial agents for therapeutic use.