European Journal of Medicinal Plants

Aims: To show the levels of awareness, attitude, practices and socioeconomic factors related to consuming herbal products among Alexandrian citizen visiting pharmacies. The findings of this study are meant also to show the practices and beliefs of healthcare providers regarding using herbal remedies in treatment, including advising patients, reporting adverse effects and possessing knowledge about specific herb-drug interactions.

Study Design:  people visiting pharmacies as well as pharmacists in their pharmacies and physicians in their clinics were invited to complete a questionnaire about their knowledge and personal experience in the consumption of herbal remedy. Anonymity was guaranteed. Questionnaire consists of three parts: demographic data, personal experience and a part concerning health care providers.

Place and Duration of Study: Study area is the city of Alexandria, Egypt from the 1^st July through September 2018.

Methodology: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study that used a self-administered, questionnaire from 213 participants (153+ 60 health care providers HCPs).

Results: Almost half the respondents preferred to be treated with herbs because they believed that herbs are safe. But they are not the proper choice to cure chronic diseases. Only 25% of herb users recorded suffering from side effects. The most common source of information about herbs was via internet, followed by family and friends, television and other types of media. Herbal remedies were purchased mainly from outlets other than pharmacies. The willingness to buy such products was not affected by participants’ education level or their monthly income. The public didn’t feel it’s important to mention any herbal remedy they consume to their physician; similarly HCPs did not ask them. Generally, it was shown that HCPs have inadequate knowledge about herbs.

Conclusion: The prevalence of herb usage is moderate among the Alexandrian population. And it is imperative to educate HCPs about the benefits, risks and interactions of herbal supplements.

This article reports the synthesis, characteristics and biomedical applications of CeO₂-ZrO₂ and TiO₂-ZrO₂ nanoparticles. The nanoparticles are synthesized by Green combustion method. Aloe Vera, dates and pomegranate extracts are used as mediators to avoid toxicity instead of chemical reagents. Hence it is biocompatible, non-toxic and avoiding adverse effect in biomedical applications. The nanoparticles are characterized by XRD to confirm the physical structure. The FTIR, Raman and SEM with EDAX analyses the chemical composition and their morphology. The antibacterial activity of these nanoparticles is assayed by well diffusion method against the bacterial pathogens of Stephylococcusaureus, Shigillaflexneri and Bacillus sp. The anticancer effect of the nanoparticles is investigated on A549 cell line by In Vitro assay. The conceivable purpose is the hydroxyl radicals which are easily produced by oxidizing more hydroxide ions in alkaline solution. Thus the competence of the development is rationally improved at pH is 9.

Aims: This study aimed at investigating the antioxidative, anticonvulsive and histological effects of ethanolic fruit extract of Dennettia tripetala on the pre-frontal lobe of the brain in isoniazid-induced (300 mg/kg, i.p) seizure in adult wistar rat.

Introduction: Neuronal hyper-excitability and excessive production of free radicals have been implicated in the pathogenesis of a considerable range of neurological disorders, including epilepsy. The high rate of oxidative metabolism, coupled with the low antioxidant defenses and the richness in polyunsaturated fatty acids, makes the brain highly vulnerable to free radical damage.

Study Design: This is an original research conducted in Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), Parklane, Enugu State, Nigeria, between June and August, 2019.

Methodology: A total number of twenty four wistar rats were used for this experiment, the animals were grouped into six groups with four animals per group, Group I served as the negative control, Group II served as the positive control, Group III received the standard drug as well as the Isoniazid, while group IV,  V and VI  were treated with  ethanolic extract of Dennettia tripetala at different dosages; 250 mg/kg, 500 mg/kg and 750 mg/kg, intraperitoneally (i.p) respectively and its effects compared with a standard drug (Pyridoxine) treated group.

Results: The extract significantly prolonged the onset of seizure at high dose administration (750 mg/kg) but completely prevented seizure occurrence at low and medium dose administration (250 mg/kg and 500 mg/kg, i.p) when induced with isoniazid (300 mg/kg, i.p.).

Conclusion: The results obtained from this work suggest that ethanolic extract of Dennettia tripetala has anticonvulsant activity, and this supports the use of the formulation traditionally in the treatment of convulsions, thus should be considered for clinical trials.

Background: The relationship between iron, hypoxia, inflammation, and erythropoietin in cellular homeostasis is well documented. Patients on radiotherapy are known with active immune/inflammatory disorders often accompanied with reduced iron uptake or unavailability of circulatory iron and hence, must be adequately evaluated. The present study hypothesized “aqueous extracts of Camellia sinensis, Telfairia occidentalis and Parquetina nigrescens have chemical properties of ameliorating and restoring to normal, functional iron deficiency sequel to Cobalt 60 irradiation effect”.

Materials and Methods: Fifty-Five young male guinea-pigs approximately 450 gram in weight were recruited and thirty were randomly assigned to 3 groups (A, B and C) for the study. Groups A and B were further divided into 4 (A1-4 and B1-4) with 3 animals (n=3) per group. Three guinea-pigs were also assigned to group C. Groups A and B belonged to Pre and post-irradiation groups while groups C served as control. Each animal was given 400r (4.0 Gy) whole-body gamma-irradiation under general anaesthesia, using a Co⁶⁰ therapy unit as a source. Groups A1, A2, A3 and A4 had 1,400 mg/kg C. sinensis, 4000 mg/kg P. nigrescens, 3,500 mg/kg T. occidentalis and Combined dose (1,400 mg/kg C. sinensis + 400 mg/kg P. nigrescens + 3,500 mg/kg T. occidentalis) respectively twice daily 72 hours prior to irradiation and continued throughout the 14 days of the study. Groups B1, B2, B3 and B4 had similar treatment but commenced 24 hours after exposure to radiation and likewise continued throughout the 14 days of the study. Group C were not given any treatment but also had irradiation.

Results: Total Iron Binding Capacity, Ferritin, Serum Transferrin receptor and Iron were all increased significantly for all the extracts pre and post irradiation. However, C-reactive protein decreased significantly.

Conclusion: Aqueous extracts of Camellia sinensis, Parquetina nigrescens and Telfairia occidentalis leaves have good ameliorating effect on irradiation-induced injuries.

Herbal formulations are used worldwide during these days specifically as the remedy of some commonly occurring health problems such as diabetes, obesity and digestive disorder. As the use and demand of these herbal formulations have increased, cases of adulteration of herbal formulations with synthetic pharmaceuticals have also increased. The main reason behind the adulteration in herbal formulation with the synthetic drug is to get commercial gain by increasing effectiveness of the herbal formulation. As the use of herbal slimming formulation is on the rise in India due to increasing problem of obesity, therefore, the main aim of the present study is to analyze the herbal slimming formulations present in the Indian market for the presence of synthetic pharmaceuticals by FTIR method. Out of 20 herbal slimming formulations analysed, 7 herbal slimming samples were detected with the presence of synthetic drugs such as Modafinil, Salbutamol, Phenolphthalein and Caffeine. In our study, FTIR has proven an effective method for screening of synthetic pharmaceutical in Herbal formulations.