NOPR Collection:

Antigenotoxic effect of allicin against SCEs induced by methyl methanesulphonate in cultured mammalian cells

Thu, 01 Apr 2004 00:00:00 GMT

Title: Antigenotoxic effect of allicin against SCEs induced by methyl methanesulphonate in cultured mammalian cells Authors: Siddique, Yasir Hasan; Afzal, Mohammad Abstract: Allicin, one of the sulphur compounds of garlic (Allium salivum), possesses antioxidant and thiol disulphide exchange activity and is also shown to cause a variety of activities potentially useful for human health. In this investigation, the effect of 1,5,10 and 20μM of allicin was determined for inhibiting the rate of SCE induced by 60μM of MMS. Cultured human lymphocytes from two female donors were used for the experiment. The levels of SCEs were lowered by allicin suggesting its antigenotoxic activity in mammalian cells in vitro. Page(s): 437-438

Semecarpus anacardium L, nuts inhibit lipopolysaccharide induced NO production in rat macrophages along with its hypolipidemic property

Thu, 01 Apr 2004 00:00:00 GMT

Title: Semecarpus anacardium L, nuts inhibit lipopolysaccharide induced NO production in rat macrophages along with its hypolipidemic property Authors: Tripathi, Y B; Pandey, R S Abstract: Traditionally S. anacardium is used for rejuvenation, rheumatoid arthritis, fever and neurological disorders. In the present study it was observed that a fraction of S. anacardium at dose of 1mg/100g body wt, significantly reduced serum cholesterol from 378.87 mg/dl in the rats fed with atherogenic diet (AD) to 197.99 mg/dl (45-52%) in the rats fed with AD diet and increased serum HDL-cholesterol (33-37%). The same fraction also inhibited LPS induced NO production in the culture activated rat peritoneal macrophages in the dose dependent manner with IC₅₀value at 50ng/ml of the culture medium. The drug in the above doses was completely safe and non-toxic, (no change in the enzymes), to liver and kidney functions. Page(s): 432-436

Formalin assay parameters differ in confirming the antinociceptive mechanism of domperidone in mice

Thu, 01 Apr 2004 00:00:00 GMT

Title: Formalin assay parameters differ in confirming the antinociceptive mechanism of domperidone in mice Authors: Sivasanker, M; Reddy, PM K; Shashindran, C H; Ramaswamy, S Abstract: Domperidone, a prokinetic drug with minimal extrapyramidal side-effects was investi gated for its antinoc iceptive response in mice using formalin assay procedure. Two parameters namely the pain score and the time spent by the animal in licking/biting the formalin injected paw were considered. Domperidone (1, 2.5 or 5 mg/kg: ip) injected 15 min prior to formalin effectively reduced the pain score bringing it to zero at the 15^th minute and was also effective till 30 min but to a lesser degree. This effect of domperidone (2.5 mg/kg) was significantly attenuated in naloxone pretreated mice indicating a partial role for opioid pathways. In the other parameter i.e. time spent in licking/biting, dompericlone in all the doses employed failed to modify significantly the same by the animal in the early phase.In contrast, a dose related inhibition of the time spent was recorded in the late phase. Besides, a trend towards the enhancement of the inhibitory effect of domperidone (2.5 mg/kg) in the late phase was noticed in naloxone pretreated mice. Possibly, the peripheral analgesic mechanisms may play a role in this response since the late phase was considered akin to inflammation. The results confirm the antinociceptive effect of domperidone and suggest that caution be exercised while selecting the parameters when formalin assay is employed. Page(s): 429-431

Efficient clonal propagation method for Decalepis hamiltonii, an endangered shrub, under the influence of phloroglucinol

Thu, 01 Apr 2004 00:00:00 GMT

Title: Efficient clonal propagation method for Decalepis hamiltonii, an endangered shrub, under the influence of phloroglucinol Authors: Gururaj, H B; Giridhar, P; Ravishankar, G A Abstract: A highly efficient two stage protocol was developed for induction of multiple shoots from single node in vitro shoot tip explants of Decalepis hamiltonii. It was found that phloroglucinol (PG) had synergistic effect on shoot multiplication when added with N⁶-benzyladenine and gibberellic acid. This protocol uses PG for both multiple shoot induction from nodal ex-plants, elongation of primary shoots and initiation of adventitious shoot formation from primary shoots, which was more in presence of triacontanol (TRIA). Maximum number of shoots per culture was observed on the medium containing N⁶ -benzyladenine (1.1μM ; BA), GA₃ (5 .8 μM) and PG (800 μM ). Sub-culturing of the shoots onto MS medium containing optimum concentration of BA (5.6 μM ), PG (200 μM) and TRIA (0.011μM) produced elongated shoots along with secondary shoot formation. The long shoots were rooted on α-naphthalene acetic acid (5.38 μM; NAA) and PG (400 μM) containing medium. The rooted plantlets were hardened and their field survival rate was 80 -90%. Page(s): 424-428