A pharmacological perspectives of Musa sapientum peels against lung cancer: An in vitro and in silico study.

CONTEXT: The essential role of medicinal plants is studied over 5000 years against the life-threatening diseases such as cancer in developing countries. The more cognizance on molecular mechanism will engender trend to use them efficaciously. AIMS: To analyze the pharmacological activity of banana peel against lung cancer. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: Banana fruit is a nutritious victuals with proven medicinal properties. The underlying molecular mechanism of phytochemicals present in the banana peel was studied using in vitro and in silico methods to explore an efficacious anticancer drug against lung cancer. METHODS AND MATERIALS: The petroleum ether extract of Musa sapientum peel is analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, in vitro studies using 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT), 2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), and lipid peroxidase assay, and the in silico studies by molecular docking. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Microsoft Excel 2010 is used to calculate the mean and standard deviation for the ABTS and lipid peroxidation assay. RESULTS: The antioxidant activity was found to be 20 µg/ml concentration in ABTS assay and 10 µg/ml concentration in lipid peroxidation assay. The in vitro anticancer activity was inspected using A549 cell lines by MTT assay. Tri cyclo [5,1,0,0 (2, 4) oct 5-ene 5 proponoic acid] 3,3,8,8 tetramethyl was selected as best lead against epidermal growth factor receptor of human based on the energy score calculated using the Auto-dock software. CONCLUSIONS: This study strongly supports that unexploited banana peels could be used to harvest promising lead molecules against non-small cell lung cancer.

Effect of bacopa monniera on cold stress induced neurodegeneration in hippocampus of wistar rats: a histomorphometric study.

INTRODUCTION: Bacopa monniera/ Brahmi,is used over centuries in Ayurvedic medicine for memory development, learning, concentration and other mental illnesses such as nervousness and poor cognition. The present study aims to evaluate the effect of Bacopa monniera (Brahmi, BM) on cold stress induced histological changes in hippocampus of Wistar rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Total 24 male rats divided into four groups were used (n=6) for this study. Group I was control in which rats were kept under ideal laboratory conditions, Group II was given 40 mg/kg of BM extract, Group III was cold water swim stress in which rats were forced to swim in the cold water maintained at 18±2(o)C till it started to sink for a period of one month and Group IV in which cold water swim stress given for a month followed by oral administration of BM extracts 40mg/kg treatment for a month. The whole study was carried out for a period of 60 d. The animals were sacrificed next day and their brains dissected out for histomorphometric analysis. The diameter, packing density and total number of neurons were calculated from stained histological section by using micrometry in the CA-1 region of the hippocampus. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The analysis and plotting of graphs were carried out using Sigma Plot 12 (Systat Software Inc., USA). Values are expressed as Mean ± SEM (n = 6). One way analysis of variance followed by Student-Newman-Keul's multiple comparisons test was used for the comparison of means. A probability of 0.05 and less was taken as statistically significant. RESULTS: The results showed that there is no significant difference in the diameter of the cells between the groups but total number of the cells in Group II was statistically significant when compared with the others groups. Student-Newman-Keuls method showed that Group II and Group IV are statistically significant when compared to Group III (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: RESULTS indicates that when BM extracts administered orally produce neuroprotective effect in cold stress induced hippocampal neurodegeneration of rats. Hence, the herb BM can possibly be used as an adjuvant to improve memory to combat stress in our day to day life.

Effectiveness of antimicrobial peptide immobilization for preventing perioperative cornea implant-associated bacterial infection.

Titanium (Ti) is a promising candidate biomaterial for an artificial corneal skirt. Antimicrobial peptide (AMP) immobilization may improve the bactericidal effect of the Ti substrate. In this study, we tested the bactericidal efficacy of a functionalized Ti surface in a rabbit keratitis model. A corneal stromal pocket was created by a femtosecond laser. The Ti films were then inserted into the pocket, and Staphylococcus aureus or Pseudomonas aeruginosa was inoculated into the pocket above the implant films. The corneas with Ti-AMP implants were compared with the corneas implanted with unprotected Ti by slit lamp observation and anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT). Inflammatory responses were evaluated by bacterium counting, hematoxylin-eosin staining, and immunostaining. There was a lower incidence and a lesser extent of infection on rabbit corneas with Ti-AMP implants than on those with unprotected Ti implants. The bactericidal effect of AMP against S. aureus was comparable to that of postoperative prophylactic antibiotic treatment; hence, SESB2V AMP bound to the Ti implant provided functional activity in vivo, but its efficacy was greater against S. aureus than against P. aeruginosa. This work suggests that SESB2V AMP can be successfully functionalized in a rabbit keratitis model to prevent perioperative corneal infection.

Cardiovascular parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction in female rheumatoid arthritis patients.

The autonomic dysfunction has been reported in patients with (rheumatoid arthritis) RA and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) like connective tissue disorders and it may be due to the vasculitis of vasa nervorum and secondary amyloidosis. The pathogenesis may also have an immune component that affects autonomic functions. In the present study, three standard cardiovascular parasympathetic function tests were performed in 207 RA patients and in 106 healthy controls. 14.45% patients were presented with symptoms related to cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction. Heart rate variation to deep breathing (DBD), standing (30:15 ratio), Valsalva ratio (VR) were found to be significantly reduced in RA patients and was weakly associated with female RA patients (r = 0.165, p = 0.018) and was not correlated to disease duration, RF positivity & severity of the disease. In conclusion, this study has confirmed the presence of significant subclinical cardiovascular parasympathetic nervous dysfunction in RA patients and its positive association with female gender. Hence, inclusion of cardiovascular autonomic function tests in the routine clinical examination may be helpful in the early detection of autonomic dysfunction in RA.

Association between interleukin-1 gene polymorphism and severity of chronic periodontitis in a south Indian population group.

BACKGROUND: Periodontitis is a bacterial disease modified by multiple factors. Interleukin-1 (IL-1) is a key regulator of the host response and a major modulator of extracellular matrix catabolism and bone resorption. It has been reported that variations in IL-1 gene are associated with increased susceptibility to periodontitis. The aims of the study were 1) to analyze the distribution of single nucleotide polymorphism of IL-1 (IL-1A-+4845 and IL-1B-+3954) and 2) to correlate the association of the composite genotype with the severity of chronic periodontitis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty patients aged above 35 years were selected. Following a periodontal examination, using the clinical parameters plaque index, gingival bleeding index, probing depth, and clinical attachment loss (CAL), the selected subjects were categorized into four groups of differing disease severity based on CAL. Five milliliters of venous blood was drawn. DNA was isolated by phenol chloroform method. Amplification of IL-1A+4845 and IL-1B+3954 was done by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Detection of genotype was done using restriction fragment length polymorphism using the enzymes FnU4HI for IL-1A and TaqI for IL-1B. The results obtained were analyzed statistically. RESULTS: The frequencies of IL-1A-+4845 and IL-1B-+3954were significantly greater in severe periodontitis patients. The distribution of composite genotype (allele 2 of IL-1A+4845and allele 2 of IL-1B+3954) also correlated with the severity of periodontitis. Genotype-positive subjects had a higher mean bleeding index (%) when compared to genotype-negative patients. But no correlation was observed between mean plaque level among genotype-positive and -negative subjects. CONCLUSION: IL-1 gene polymorphism IL-1A+4845, IL-1B+3954 and composite genotype is an indicator of susceptibility to severe periodontitis in adults.

Route of transmission might influence the clinical expression of periodontal lesions in "human immunodeficiency virus" positive patients.

BACKGROUND: Various routes have been reported with respect to the transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) from one individual to another. But it is not clear whether they alter the clinical expression of the disease. This study was conducted to know whether there exists any difference in the occurrence of periodontal lesions among untreated HIV subjects who acquired the disease either through intravenous drug abuse or sexual contact and to correlate those lesions with immune suppression as indicated by CD 4 T lymphocyte counts. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this cross-sectional study 213 HIV-positive subjects who had not started on Highly Active Anti Retroviral Therapy (HAART) were selected and divided into two groups intravenous drug users (IVDU) and non-IVDU (NIVDU). CD 4 T lymphocyte counts were evaluated and clinical examination was done to detect the presence of pathologic periodontal lesions. RESULTS: Mean probing depth (PD) and clinical attachment level (CAL) are significantly higher in drug users than nondrug users. When periodontal lesions are compared with CD 4 cell counts, it is found that significant inverse relation exists between linear gingival erythema, necrotizing ulcerative periodontitis, and CD 4 counts, but only in nondrug users. CONCLUSION: An inverse correlation between linear gingival erythema, necrotizing ulcerative periodontitis, and CD 4 counts in NIVDU indicating their reliability as a marker for immune suppression. Periodontitis is more prevalent among drug users indicating some difference in disease expression among the groups.

Communication between the vagus and hypoglossal nerves

Although the existence of the gross vagal-hypoglossal connection is known, no convincing role for the direct connection from the vagus to the hypoglossal nerve has been suggested. The purpose of this study was to investigate the anatomy of the vagal-hypoglossal connection. Forty human cadavers (22 males and 18 females), aged 25 to 75 years, were used. In 31 (75%) cadavers, there were two connections between the vagus and hypoglossal nerves, proximal to the inferior ganglion of the vagus and from the ganglion itself. In 8 (20%) cadavers there were only one connection joining the inferior ganglion of the vagus with the hypoglossal nerve. In 1 (2.5%) cadaver, the connection was by a thin intracranial vagal branch, proximal to its superior ganglion, joined the extracranial hypoglossal nerve. The communication was never from the vagus distal to the inferior ganglion. In 5 (12.5%) cadavers, the inferior ganglion of the vagus was bound to the trunk of the hypoglossal nerve and it was difficult to separate the nerve from the ganglion. Results suggest that the vagal-hypoglossal communication could be the afferent and efferent limbs for reflexes involving the tongue (AU)

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