An evaluation of the efficacy of ethanolic extract of Nigella sativa L. (Kalonji) on the clinical parameters of moderate­to­severe gingivitis: A split­mouth clinical study.

INTRODUCTION: Gingivitis is a relatively innocuous and reversible inflammation of gingiva. If left untreated, it might progress involving the deeper supporting periodontal tissues of the tooth with consequent mobility and tooth loss. Compelling literature has suggested the role of local antibacterial and anti­inflammatory agents as an adjunct to scaling and root planing (gold standard) for treating periodontal diseases. Various herbs such as Nimba (Azadirachta indica A. Juss), Babbula (Vachellia nilotica (L.) P.J.H. Hurter & Mabb.) and turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) have been used for gingivitis since ancient times. Nigella sativa L. (Kalonji) is one such herb known for its remarkable anti­inflammatory, antioxidant and antimicrobial properties and thus has been utilized in the present study. AIM: The aim of the study was to explore the clinical efficacy of different ethanolic solutions of N. sativa in moderate­to­severe gingivitis patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: It is a split­mouth clinical study with 24 patients of moderate­to­severe gingivitis from the age group of 25-45 years. Recruited individuals were divided in to group I1, group II1 and group III1 (scaling and root planning i.e., control) and group I2, group II2 and group III2 (experimental). Three doses of solution 1 (1:3), solution 2 (1:1) and solution 3 (3:1) were administered to the experimental groups for 3 consecutive days. The clinical parameters, i.e., gingival index (GI) and plaque index (PI) were recorded at baseline, 14 days and 28 days in all the individuals. ANOVA test was used in the study for statistical analysis. RESULTS: Intergroup comparison in terms of GI showed statistically significant difference at 14th and 28th day from baseline between I1 &I2, at only 28th day between II1 & II2 and insignificant difference between III1 & III2 at all time intervals from baseline. On intragroup comparison, statistically significant reduction in GI in all groups from baseline till 28 days was found, but among experimental groups best result was seen in group III2 (P < 0.001; F value 153.75). As far as PI is concerned, intergroup comparison between different groups displayed statistically significant difference from baseline to 14th and 28th day between all groups i.e I1& I2, II1& II2 and III1& III2. On intragroup comparison, statistically significant reduction in PI in all control groups i.e I1, II1 & III1 was found, but among experimental groups only group III2 provided statistically significant reduction (P < 0.001, F value 30.40). CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that, the ethanolic extract of N. sativa is effective in the treatment of moderate to severe gingivitis.

Pharmacognostic and pharmacological evaluation of Eulaliopsis binata plant extracts by measuring in vitro/in vivo safety profile and anti-microbial potential.

The present investigation emphasizes the pharmacognostic and phytochemical screening of Eulaliopsis binata and further evaluates the extracts of this plant for toxicological profile and anti-bacterial potential based on in vivo/in vitro assays. Microscopy, powder characteristics of the leaf material, and physicochemical and phytochemical screening were assessed for pharmacognostic evaluation. Dry leaves of Eulaliopsis binata were extracted using different solvents (methanol, ethyl acetate, and hexane), and the extracts obtained were further investigated for in vitro/in vivo toxicological study. Moreover, acute toxicity was assessed by evaluating the anti-oxidant defense system and anatomical damage in vital organs. In addition, anti-bacterial activity of all the extracts was assessed by the Kirby-Bauer method. Physicochemical and microscopic observations showed the unique identification mark for leaf powder and leaf transverse section. Phytochemical investigation evidenced the presence of flavonoids and phenolic contents in the methanolic extract. All extracts were found to be hemocompatible and exhibited no induction of behavioral alteration and no alteration in the anti-oxidant potential and anatomical structure of the vital organs. On the other hand, the methanolic extract showed a significant upsurge in the reduced glutathione level, whereas all extracts showed significant anti-bacterial potential in a dose-dependent manner. Eulaliopsis binata has inimitable pharmacognostical characteristics, good safety profile and significant anti-oxidant and anti-bacterial potential that show immense possibility for its further investigation for pharmacological use.

Chemical Composition and Cytotoxic Activity of Methanol Extract and its Fractions of Streblus asper Leaves on Human Cancer Cell Lines.

BACKGROUND: Streblus asper, family Moraceae is well-known important medicinal plant used in the Indian system of medicine. In Ayurveda, stem bark of S. asper is recommended against elephantiasis for which there is still no any other effective medicine in the modern system of medicine. OBJECTIVES: In the present work, methanol extract (SAM) and its fractions of S. asper leave tested for in vitro anticancer activity against cancer cell lines (MCF-7, A-549, Hep-G2, and K-562) which claims its folklore importance in cancer and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry identification of extracts was also performed. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Shade dried plant material was extracted with methanol and fractionated sequentially with hexane, chloroform, and butanol. RESULTS: All tested extracts found highly effective against human lung cancer cell line (A-549) with IC50 <10 µg/mL. On Hep-G2 cancer cell line, only chloroform fraction are highly active with IC50 <10 µg/mL. Methanol and hexane fraction showed potent anticancer activity on K-562 cancer cell line with IC50 <10 µg/mL. CONCLUSION: Qualitative phytochemical analysis confirmed the presence of fatty acids, phytosterol, triterpenoids, polyol, sugar acid, aldehyde, diterpene, terpene, carboxylic compounds, acid and sugar in S. asper leaves extract. Topmost abundant compounds in SAM are α-D-glucopyranoside (10.60%), glycerol (7.96%), myo-inositol (4.90%), and butanedioic acid (3.30%). Hexane consists of the higher amount of hexadecanoic acid (18.07%), octadecanoic acid (7.39%), ß-sitosterol (4.50%), and α-D-glucopyranoside (4.03%). Higher component in chloroform extract is lupenyl acetate (11.25%). SUMMARY: All extracts of Streblus asper found potential anticancer activity against lung cancer cell line (A-549)Chloroform fraction is highly active on hepatoma cancer cell line (Hep-G2) whereas methanolic, and hexane fractions have highly cytotoxic potency against leukemia cancer cell line (K-562)Methanolic extract of S. asper is rich source of glycosides, fatty acids, and phytosterolIn Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry evaluation of S. asper ß-stigmasterol, ß-sitosterol, lycopene, and lupeol identified as an anticancer agent from previously reported literature. Abbreviations used: SRB: Sulforhodamine B assay; SAM: Methanol extract; SAH: Hexane extract; SAC: Chloroform extract.

Fatty acid composition and antibacterial potential of Cassia tora (leaves and stem) collected from different geographic areas of India.

The comparative analysis of the fatty acid composition of Cassia tora (leaves and stem) was determined using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Twenty-seven fatty acids were identified in C. tora (leaves and stem) which was collected from three different geographical areas of India: Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh), Nainital (Uttarakhand), and Bhavnagar (Gujarat), coded as CT-1, CT-2, and CT-3, respectively. The gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis showed the presence of various saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. The major fatty acids found were palmitic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, margaric acid, melissic acid, and behenic acid. The highest amounts of saturated fatty acids were found in leaves of C. tora collected from Bhavnagar (Gujarat) (60.7% ± 0.5%). Thus, the study reveals that C. tora has a major amount of nutritionally important fatty acids, along with significant antimicrobial potential. Fatty acids play a significant role in the development of fat products with enhanced nutritional value and clinical application. Remarkable differences were found in the present study between fatty acid profiles of C. tora collected from different locations in India. To the best of our knowledge there is no previously reported comparative study of the fatty acids of C. tora.

Major bioactive phenolics in Bergenia species from the Indian Himalayan region: Method development, validation and quantitative estimation using UHPLC-QqQLIT-MS/MS.

Bergenia species are important medicinal plants used in indigenous systems of medicine for their antilithiatic and diuretic properties. An ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to hybrid linear ion trap triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QqQLIT-MS/MS) method has been developed and validated for the estimation of quantitative variation of eight major bioactive phenolics in the rhizomes (150 samples) of four species of this herb, Bergenia (B. ciliata, B. ligulata, B. purpurascens and B. stracheyi). Chromatographic separation was obtained on a Waters ACQUITY UPLCTM BEH (ethylene bridged hybrid) C18 column with a mobile phase consisting of 0.1% (v/v) formic acid aqueous solution and acetonitrile under a gradient elution manner. A hybrid linear ion trap triple quadrupole mass spectrometer was operated in negative electrospray ionization mode with multiple reactions monitoring for detection and quantification of the eight compounds. The validated method demonstrated good linearity (r2 ≥ 0.9991), precision (RSD ≤ 1.87%) and accuracy (95.16-102.11%, RSD ≤ 1.83%) for all reference analytes. The quantitative results revealed that B. ligulata contains the highest amount of the major active marker-bergenin. The results also suggest that sensitive UHPLC-QqQLIT-MS/MS method, a sensitive, accurate and convenient one, could be helpful in identification of potential accession(s), rapid quality control and establishing authenticity of Bergenia species as raw material for pharmaceutical industries.

Quantitative determination of multi markers in five varieties of Withania somnifera using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography with hybrid triple quadrupole linear ion trap mass spectrometer combined with multivariate analysis: Application to pharmaceutical dosage forms.

An ultra-high performance liquid chromatography electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry method has been developed and validated for simultaneous quantification of six major bioactive compounds in five varieties of Withania somnifera in various plant parts (leaf, stem and root). The analysis was accomplished on Waters ACQUITY UPLC BEH C18 column with linear gradient elution of water/formic acid (0.1%) and acetonitrile at a flow rate of 0.3mLmin(-1). The proposed method was validated with acceptable linearity (r(2), 0.9989-0.9998), precision (RSD, 0.16-2.01%), stability (RSD, 1.04-1.62%) and recovery (RSD ≤2.45%), under optimum conditions. The method was also successfully applied for the simultaneous determination of six marker compounds in twenty-six marketed formulations. Hierarchical cluster analysis and principal component analysis were applied to discriminate these twenty-six batches based on characteristics of the bioactive compounds. The results indicated that this method is advance, rapid, sensitive and suitable to reveal the quality of Withania somnifera and also capable of performing quality evaluation of polyherbal formulations having similar markers/raw herbs.

Isolation, Characterization and Anticancer Potential of Cytotoxic Triterpenes from Betula utilis Bark.

Betula utilis, also known as Himalayan silver birch has been used as a traditional medicine for many health ailments like inflammatation, HIV, renal and bladder disorders as well as many cancers from ages. Here, we performed bio-guided fractionation of Betula utilis Bark (BUB), in which it was extracted in methanol and fractionated with hexane, ethyl acetate, chloroform, n-butanol and water. All six fractions were evaluated for their in-vitro anticancer activity in nine different cancer cell lines and ethyl acetate fraction was found to be one of the most potent fractions in terms of inducing cytotoxic activity against various cancer cell lines. By utilizing column chromatography, six triterpenes namely betulin, betulinic acid, lupeol, ursolic acid (UA), oleanolic acid and ß-amyrin have been isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of BUB and structures of these compounds were unraveled by spectroscopic methods. ß-amyrin and UA were isolated for the first time from Betula utilis. Isolated triterpenes were tested for in-vitro cytotoxic activity against six different cancer cell lines where UA was found to be selective for breast cancer cells over non-tumorigenic breast epithelial cells (MCF 10A). Tumor cell selective apoptotic action of UA was mainly attributed due to the activation of extrinsic apoptosis pathway via up regulation of DR4, DR5 and PARP cleavage in MCF-7 cells over non-tumorigenic MCF-10A cells. Moreover, UA mediated intracellular ROS generation and mitochondrial membrane potential disruption also play a key role for its anti cancer effect. UA also inhibits breast cancer migration. Altogether, we discovered novel source of UA having potent tumor cell specific cytotoxic property, indicating its therapeutic potential against breast cancer.

Effects of honey in the management of alveolar osteitis: A study.

INTRODUCTION: Alveolar osteitis (AO) is a complication of tooth extraction which indicates inflammation of alveolar bone of either maxilla or mandible. This study uses Apitherapy where honey catalyses biological reactions to improve immune system, makes local environment unbearable for microorganisms in the affected socket and enhances healing. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 50 patients of AO were included in the study. After cleansing of the affected socket, honey dressing was applied. Dressings were changed daily for first 2 days and then altenatively. In biochemical investigations, CRP levels in the body were measured using Nephelometry method. Microbiological examination was done for the identification of microorganism and semi quantitative count of colony forming units. RESULT: Results were assessed from clinical, microbiological, biochemical and radiological findings at 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 7th day based on VAS score, erythema, pus discharge, swelling, lymphadenitis, fever, bleeding on probing, exposed bone and necrotic debris. Pre-Treatment CRP was 2.08 ± 1.62 which significantly (P = 0.0001) decreased to 0.82 ± 0.48. Mean change and average percentage change were 1.25 ± 1.51 and 44.1% respectively. CONCLUSION: Majority of the patients with exposed bone got healed socket with evidance of granulation tissue and healing gingiva in about one week. CRP levels at the completion of treatment of AO with honey dressing showed a significant decrease from the pre-treatment values indicating fast recovery. Microbiological examination showed presence of normal commensal flora at AO sites like Streptococcus, Staphyloccocus and Enterococcus. So, the role of bacteria in the genesis of AO, if any, appears unclear.

Composition and in vitro cytotoxic activities of essential oil of Hedychium spicatum from different geographical regions of western Himalaya by principal components analysis.

The rhizome of Hedychium spicatum has been widely used in traditional medicines. The present study deals with the evaluation of the cytotoxic potential of rhizome essential oils from four different regions of the Western Himalaya (India) along with comparative correlation analysis to characterise the bioactive cytotoxic component. The essential oils were coded as MHS-1, MHS-2, MHS-3 and MHS-4, and characterised using GC-FID and GC-MS. The main volatile compounds identified were 1,8-cineol, eudesmol, cubenol, spathulenol and α-cadinol. In vitro cytotoxic activities were assessed against human cancer cell lines such as, the lung (A549), colon (DLD-1, SW 620), breast (MCF-7, MDA-MB-231), head and neck (FaDu), and cervix (HeLa). MHS-4 is significantly active in comparison to other samples against all cancer cell lines. Sample MHS-4 has major proportion of monoterpene alcohol mainly 1,8-cineol. Principal components analysis was performed for the experimental results and all four samples were clustered according to their percentage inhibition at different doses.

Comparative evaluation of topical application of turmeric gel and 0.2% chlorhexidine gluconate gel in prevention of gingivitis.

INTRODUCTION: Turmeric commonly known as "Haldi" is a popular spice frequently used in Indian foods and curry. Turmeric holds a high place in Ayurvedic medicine as a "detoxifier of the body," and today, science has documented several diseased conditions that can be healed by the active ingredients of turmeric. Curcumin is the most active constituent of turmeric curcuminoids obtained from the rhizome of Curcuma longa. Curcumin has been found to have antioxidant, anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, analgesic, anti-allergic, antiseptic properties and thus has a potential against various diseases. Due to these properties it was felt that promotion of turmeric in dental practice may prove beneficial. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was conducted in the Department of Periodontology, Faculty of Dental Sciences, King George's Medical University, Lucknow, India. A total of 40 subjects of both the sexes from age group 20-35 years. Simple random sampling was followed and the participants were assigned to two groups 'A' and 'B' of 20 participants each. Group A subjects were advised 0.2% chlorhexidine gluconate gel. Group B 30 subjects were advised experimental (turmeric) gel. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Data were summarized as mean ± SD. Pre and post outcome measures of two groups were compared by repeated measures analysis of variance (RM ANOVA) using general linear models (GLM) and the significance of mean difference within and between the groups was done by Bonferroni post hoc test after adjusting for multiple contrasts (comparisons). CONCLUSIONS: Based on the observations of our study, it can be concluded that chlorhexidine gluconate as well as turmeric gel can be effectively used as an adjunct to mechanical plaque control in prevention of plaque and gingivitis. chlorhexidine gluconate gel has been found to be more effective when antiplaque and anti-inflammatory properties were considered. The effect of turmeric observed may be because of its anti-inflammatory action. The antiplaque action of chlorhexidine gluconate is due to its substantivity. Substantivity of tutmeric is required to be further studied.

Hupehenols A-E, selective 11ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11ß-HSD1) inhibitors from Viburnum hupehense.

Five selective 11ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11ß-HSD1) competitive inhibitors, hupehenols A-E (1-5), were isolated from Viburnum hupehense. The structure elucidation indicated that compounds 1-5 are new 20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27-octanordammarane triterpenoids. Their structures were established on the basis of NMR spectroscopic and mass spectrometric analysis. Hupehenols A-E (1-5) showed inhibition against human 11ß-HSD1, with hupehenols B (2) and E (5) having IC50 values of 15.3 and 34.0 nM, respectively. Moreover, hupehenols C (3) and D (4) are highly selective inhibitors of human 11ß-HSD1 when compared to murine 11ß-HSD1.

Turmeric - A new treatment option for lichen planus: A pilot study.

Turmeric is dried rhizome of the perennial herbs curcumalonga. It is called Haldi in Hindi, turmeric in English, ukon in Japanese. It has been used in Asian Medicine since the second millennium BC. It's utility is referred to in the ancient Hindu script the Ayurveda. Pathogenesis of the OLP should be taken in consideration for the treatment point of view. The Cell mediated immunity to secondary antigenic change in oral mucous membrane is thought to play a major role in its pathogenesis modified keratocyte surface antigens are the primary target for cytotoxic cellular response. Curcumin also been shown to have immune modulatory effect involving activation of host macrophages and natural killer cells and modulation of lymphocytes mediated function.

Antifungal activity of wogonin.

The antifungal activity of the wogonin isolated from Holmskioldia sanguinea Retz was determined on four different fungal organisms. The pure compound wogonin significantly inhibited the growth of Aspergillus niger, Penicillium frequentance, P. notatum and Botrytis cinerea, in a concentration dependent fashion, when tested by turbidity and spore germination methods. The effects produced by the compound were compared with the standard antifungal agent griseofulvin.

Antifungal activity of the stem bark of Ailanthus excelsa.

The methanol extract of stem barks of Alianthus excelsa was partitioned with chloroform. The chloroform extract showed fungistatic and fungicidal activity against Aspergillus niger, A. fumigatus, Penicillium frequentence, P. notatum and Botrytis cinerea.