Posted by admin on May 31, 2026 in |
Mental disorders, particularly depression, substantially affect health by impairing daily functioning and lowering quality of life (QoL). This study assessed the relationship between depression severity, QoL, and cost of illness among 51 depressive patients. Regression analysis showed that age was the only significant demographic factor influencing QoL (β = -0.433, p = 0.043), while other factors, such as gender and education, showed no significant effects. A strong negative correlation was observed between depression severity and all QoL domains of WHOQOL-BREF (total r = -0.970, p< 0.001), indicating that QoL decreases markedly with increasing depression severity. One-way ANOVA further confirmed significant differences across severity groups (F = 63.20, p< 0.001). Cost analysis revealed a significant negative correlation between QoL and indirect costs (r = -0.472*, p = <0.001), suggesting that higher financial burden—especially from productivity loss was associated with poorer QoL. Overall, the findings emphasise that advancing age, greater depression severity, and increased indirect economic burden significantly reduce the quality of life in depressive...
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Posted by admin on May 31, 2026 in |
Gastric ulcers (GU) represent a world prevalence of 5-10% and a 10.4% prevalence in Cameroon. The frequent use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) is one of the major causes. The effective treatments available are expensive and have serious side effects. Treating GU with medicinal plants could be a safer alternative solution. In this work, we formulated an anti-ulcer syrup using the aqueous extract of Khaya grandifoliola bark (KG). GU was induced in rats by administering orally indomethacin at 5mg/kg for 5 days. A treatment for 5 days with Khaya grandifoliola syrup (12.4 mg/kg), Spathodea campanulata syrup (200 mg/kg) and misoprostol (100 µg/kg), a reference pharmaceutical drug was given. KG syrup quality control test gave a pH of 5.18 and a density of 1.28. This syrup caused a 79.72% reduction of ulceration surface area and a significant increase in mucus mass of 85.29% (p < 0.05) compared to the Ulcer control. Biochemical parameters revealed a significant increase in antioxidants (65.38% GSH; 45.65% Catalase at p< 0.05) and a decrease of...
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Posted by admin on May 31, 2026 in |
Heavy metal contamination poses a severe risk to soil health and crop productivity, particularly in industrially impacted regions. In this study, agricultural soils surrounding the Pariccha Thermal Power Plant, Bundelkhand, Uttar Pradesh, were sampled to isolate cadmium (Cd)-tolerant rhizobacteria from three different sites. A total of 35 bacterial isolates were obtained, among these, three (VYS1, RGB2, and RGB4) demonstrated strong Cd tolerance up to 500 µg/mL. These isolates were further evaluated for plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) traits, including phosphate solubilization, indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) production, and ammonia generation. All three isolates exhibited positive activity, with RGB4 showing the highest phosphate solubilization and ammonia production, while RGB2 produced comparatively higher IAA levels. The findings highlight the dual functionality of indigenous rhizobacteria from contaminated soils—tolerance to cadmium stress and expression of PGPR traits—suggesting their potential as preliminary candidates for bioremediation and sustainable agriculture. Future work should focus on molecular identification and in-planta validation to confirm their bioinoculant...
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Posted by admin on May 31, 2026 in |
Background: Pain management remains challenging with current analgesics associated with significant adverse effects. Lactium, a milk protein hydrolysate containing α-casozepine with GABA-A receptor affinity, has unexplored analgesic potential. Methods: Twenty-four male Swiss albino mice (20-30g) were randomly divided into four groups (n=6): control (normal saline 10ml/kg), standard (pentazocine 10mg/kg), and test groups receiving Lactium at 150mg/kg and 300mg/kg, administered orally. Analgesic activity was assessed using Eddy’s hot plate method and Haffner’s tail clip method at 0, 30, and 60 minute post-administration. Statistical analysis was performed using two-way repeated measures ANOVA followed by Bonferroni post-hoc test. Results: Lactium at 300mg/kg demonstrated statistically significant analgesic activity in both hot plate (30 min: p=0.004; 60 min: p<0.001) and tail clip (p<0.001 at both time points) methods. At 60 minutes, no significant difference was observed between Lactium 300mg/kg and pentazocine in hot plate (p=1.000) or tail clip (p=1.000) tests, indicating equivalent efficacy. Lactium 150mg/kg showed no significant analgesic effect. The effects were consistent across both thermal and mechanical nociception models. Conclusion: Lactium at 300mg/kg exhibits dose-dependent analgesic activity comparable to pentazocine at peak effect. Given its established...
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Posted by admin on May 31, 2026 in |
Saussurea lappa C.B. Clarke (Asteraceae), an important medicinal plant widely used in Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, and Traditional Chinese Medicine, is a key ingredient of several classical formulations, including Kabasura Kudineer. Owing to its extensive therapeutic applications in inflammatory, respiratory, and infectious disorders, standardization and quality evaluation of this plant are essential. The present study aimed to estimate and quantify selected antioxidant marker compounds in Saussurea lappa roots using a High-Performance Thin Layer Chromatography (HPTLC) method. Methanolic extracts of authenticated Saussurea lappa root powder were analyzed alongside standard markers, including vitexin, gallic acid, mangiferin, kaempferol, rutin, quercetin, and rosmarinic acid. Chromatographic separation was achieved on silica gel 60 F254 plates using a mobile phase consisting of toluene: ethylacetate: formic acid: methanol (3:6:1.6:0.4 v/v/v/v). Densitometric scanning was performed at 254 nm and 366 nm. The method provided clear resolution with Rf values ranging from 0.08 to 0.91. Quantitative analysis revealed the presence of kaempferol (0.66%w/w), gallic acid (0.05%w/w), vitexin (0.02%w/w), and mangiferin (0.47%w/w) in Saussurea lappa extracts. This study provides a...
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