Posted by admin on Jan 31, 2016 in |
A galactose-specific lectin was purified from seeds of a leguminous plant, Bauhinia variegata, by affinity chromatography on lactose–agarose. Protein extract agglutinated human erythrocytes (treated with proteolytic enzyme). Among various carbohydrates tested, the lectin was best inhibited by D-galactose and other sacharides. SDS-PAGE showed that the lectin, named BVL produce a single band establishing that the lectin is composed of similar type of subunits. The antimicrobial activity of the purified lectin was carried out by agar ditch diffusion method at different concentrations using appropriate standards. BVL demonstrated a remarkable antibacterial activity against the pathogenic bacteria Pseudomonas aeroginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Bacillus subtilis. BVL also shows a significant antifungal activity against Aspergilas niger and Penicilium...
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Posted by admin on Jan 31, 2016 in |
Crustacean’s shells constitute the traditional and current commercial source of Chitin. These derivatives/molecules are potential resource as well as multiple functional substrates have generate attractive interest in various fields such as biomedical, pharmaceutical, food and environmental industries. In the present investigation, chitinous wastes were collected from the fresh water areas of Dehradun and Rishikesh of Uttarakhand State. The bacterium, Bacillus sp. isolated from soil produces chitinase enzyme responsible for degradation of chitin obtained from chitinous wastes. Further the chitinases enzyme was utilized to degrade the chitinous wastes into chito-oligosaccharides. Chitosan was prepared by deacetylation process and chito-oligosaccharides (COS) was prepared by enzymatic hydrolysis of chitosan. As per the solubility aspect of chitosan and chito-oligosaccharides, it was found that these are more soluble in comparison to chitin, the parent compound. The anti-diabetic potential of these chitin based derivatives was determined against alloxan-induced albino rats (diabetic model). In alloxan-induced diabetic rats, both the chitosan and chito-oligosaccharides (COS) both decremented blood sugar levels at the cessation of 1st, 2nd and 4th hours...
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Posted by admin on Jan 31, 2016 in |
Diabetes mellitus is known to induce microvascular changes and alterations to neuronal functions. Diabetic neuropathy and diabetic nephropathy are two of the major long-term complications of diabetic mellitus (DM). The main aim of the comparative study is to investigate the role of cations contents compared to the age matched control.Adult rats were humanely killed and detrusor muscles of urinary bladder located and excised rapidly and placed in organ baths. Then urinary bladder detrusor muscles were blotted, weighed and dissolved in concentrated nitric acid for the measurements of cation contents. The levels of Na+, K+, Mg2+, Zn2+, Cu2+, Ca2+, Pb2+ and Fe2+ were measured by flame photometry, atomic absorbance spectrophotometry and inductively coupled plasma- mass spectrometry. The results show marked changes in the characteristics of diabetic and control animals. Diabetic rats weighed significantly (P<0.05) less compared to age-matched control rats. Diabetic rats also have significantly (P<0.05) elevated blood glucose, weight of bladder and bladder strip compared to age-matched control rats. The results also show that the levels of cations for...
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Posted by admin on Jan 31, 2016 in |
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) is one of the deadly diseases among children causing a number of deaths worldwide. It could be treated using chemotherapy, bone marrow transplantation or irradiation therapy but it may cause side-effects. Therefore, interest has arisen in the use of plants for treatment of ALL. Cannabis sativa is known to produce L-asparaginase which is used to treat ALL. L-asparaginase breaks down asparagine to aspartic acid and ammonia. Thus the cancer cells die due to asparagine starvation as they cannot synthesize asparagine on their own. L-asparaginase was extracted from C. sativa and immobilized to develop a biosensor for the detection of asparagine levels in leukemic serum samples. Out of the various immobilized techniques Polyvinyl Alcohol and hydrosol gel on nylon membrane were found to give the fastest response. Therefore, they were used to detect asparagine levels in leukemic serum samples. The concentration of asparagine in leukemic samples was 10-2 to 10-3 M and in normal samples it was 10-5...
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Posted by admin on Jan 31, 2016 in |
Traditional knowledge and ethno-botanical use of plants have been widely acknowledged all over the world. The cicatrizing properties of extracts obtained from this plant have been scientifically studied, attributing the main biological activity to its tannin and flavonoid content. Recent commercialization of the plant drug Adiantum capillus veneris Linn. requires pharmacognostical information to develop quality-control methods for raw materials and extracts produced with this plant drug. Macro and micro-morphological parameters were established to authenticate the genuine drug that allowed detection of adulterants usually found in commercial samples of this plant material. All the parameters were studied according to WHO guidelines and Indian Pharmacopoeia. These morphological characteristics can be used for rapid identification of the drug and are particularly useful in the case of powdered materials. Physicochemical parameters such as total ash, water soluble ash, acid insoluble ash, sulphated ash, crude fibre content, loss on drying, percentage of foreign matter and extractive values were determined. Preliminary phytochemical screening in different solvents showed the presence of steroids, flavonoids, terpenoids, fats, tannins...
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