Volume12,Issue2

Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among females. It occurs due to the uncontrolled proliferation of breast epithelial cells. Plant-derived drugs are more efficacious than synthetic drugs since it lacks side effects. Andrographolide is an active principle of the herb Andrographis paniculata (Burm. f.) Nees. It is a potent therapeutic drug against breast carcinoma. It induces breast cancer cell‐cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase via the induction of cell‐cycle inhibitory protein p27 and decreases the expression of cyclin‐dependent kinase 4 (CDK4). It also activates the intrinsic apoptotic pathway, via the induction of bax and bak. It enhances caspase production and p53 gene expression. Andrographolide inhibits angiogenesis and metastasis of breast carcinoma. Andrographolide nanoparticle production and synergetic therapies of andrographolide along with other chemotherapeutic drugs is a breakthrough in breast cancer treatment.

The objective of this study was to investigate the potential of emulgel as a topical delivery system to enhance the permeation of Boswellia serrata (BS).  BS loaded emulgel was prepared using 3² factorial design and were characterized using Scanning electron microscopy, % drug content and spreadability determination. The design of experiment was done to optimize the result, and then surface plots were generated to compare with the practical results. The prepared BS loaded emulgel showed an average spreadability of 29.840–75.6 g.cm/s, pH of all formulation was in range of 6.3 to 7.09. Rheological behaviour was studied using viscosity measurements and skin irritation test was performed to evaluate biocompatibility of formulation. Skin permeation study was carried out with rat dorsal skin using modified Franz diffusion cell. BS emulgel showed high drug deposition on excised rat skin, test showed biocompatibility of formulated emulgel. These results show that BS loaded emulgel as superior topical application vehicle for Boswellia serrata.

Amomum subulatum Roxb, commonly known as Badi Ilaichi is a traditional medicinal herb. The fruit of the plant is rich in essential oil content. In present study, transdermal patches of the essential oil of A. subulatum seeds were prepared by solvent casting method and evaluated for various parameters viz. thickness, weight uniformity, folding endurance, % moisture content, % moisture uptake, drug content, in vitro and in vivo drug release etc. The evaluation of transdermal patches indicated very good physic-chemical properties and significant efficacy. Formulation F4 exhibited significant results. The transdermal patched of A. subulatum essential oil can be utilized in case of chronic pain as it can be the alternative to give sustained relief.

This research analyzed the major chemical constituents present in the methanolic extract of the leaves of Citrus limon Linn. The leaves of Citrus limon Linn  were collected, powdered, de-fatted with n-hexane and then extracted with 90% methy alcohol. Preliminary phytochemical screening of the methanolic leaf extract of Citrus limon Linn showed the presence of chemical constituents like alkaloids, glycosides, phenolic compounds, tannins and resins. HPTLC fingerprint analysis of the extract was carried out using CAMAG HPTLC. The result obtained HPTLC  at  UV 254 nm, 366 nm, and in visible light for methanolic extract of Citrus limon Linn. TLC plate using Toluene:  Di ethyl ether   (1:1) as mobile phase in case of Bergapten (Br) and Umbelliferone(Um) were done.  The amount of of bergapten  and Umbelliferone  was present    4.227µg and 1.451 µg  respectively in Citrus limon Linn.

Nanotechnology is the field of science that encompasses the production of nanoparticles at nanoatomic scale. The nanoparticles size governs wide range of therapeutic properties. The nanostructures when formulated using DNA or RNA materials can result in enhanced hydrophobic properties, shelf life and also may enhance targeted drug delivery. Structured or dynamic DNA nanostructures involve basic nucleotide pairing with protein backbone. The DNA nanostructures produced by Bottom to Top approach are currently being applied in medicine, cancer, ophthalmic drug delivery and also for diagnosis and treatment. They involve complimentary DNA base pairing (AT/GC) for strong interaction resulting in formulation of structures with 10-50mm size. RNA nanostructures are multifunctional manipulative structures synthesized using Bottom-Up approach which results in modulated physiochemical properties and enhanced stability. RNA nanoparticles are currently exploited in the field of cancer. Both DNA and RNA nanostructures are 2D/3D multi dimensional models which are novel structures in the field of nanoscience. DNA/RNA nanostructures can be identified by Killer Killiani test , Quantitative estimation and also spectroscopic methods like UV, SDS-Page, XRD, SEM and DLS techniques can be applied. The wide range of applications of these DNA/RNA nanostructures are currently considered as an area of interest in field of therapeutics by most of the researchers. The current review describes the core nature of Nucleic acid nanostructure-DNA/RNA build nanoparticles, characterization techniques, Design, optimization, analysis of nucleic acid nanostructures and their diverse applications.

Plants possess good antioxidant capacity to get rid of free radicals that cause many lifestyle diseases especially cancer. Amaranthus viridis (Amaranthaceae) widely distributed all over the world, growing under a wide range of climatic conditions and has been utilized as a medicinal herb in traditional Ayurveda medicine as antipyretic agents, also for the treatment of inflammation, ulcer, diabetic, asthma and hyperlipidemia. The aim of the study was designed to evaluate the antioxidant and biological properties of Amaranthus viridis. In the present study evaluation of aqueous extract of plant with the help of ABTS scavenging Activity, reducing power and DPPH method. The study concluded that the promising antioxidant capacities of Amaranthus viridis extract can further be utilized in various agricultural, pharmaceutical, and food applications.

Ageing may be due to simple chronological passing of years or may be due to photageing induced by prolonged exposure to the sun. Herbal cosmetics are the preparations used to enhance the human appearance by playing a major role in impeding and reversing ageing of the skin. Thus, Herbal creams are safe to use and can be used as the provision of a barrier to protect skin. In the present study, four creams (AA1, AA2, AA3 & AA4) were formulated by varying the concentrations of herbal oils like tamanu oil, lavendor oil etc,  for physical characterization  and also to determine the in-vitro sun protection factor of anti-ageing poly herbal cream. The evaluations were done for all the formulations on the parameters like pH, spreadability, extrudability, stability etc. The UV-B protection of a sun care product is given by the Sun Protection Factor (SPF).  In-vitro sun protection factor (SPF) was determined using Mansur equation  by UV-Spectrophotometer at the range of 200-320 nm. All formulations showed good spreadability, good consistency, homogeneity with good appearance, pH, no evidence of phase separation and ease of removal. But a little change in color was observed for creams AA2 & AA4.  The formulations AA1 and AA3 showed no redness, edema, inflammation and irritation to the skin during irritancy studies on rabbits. In-vitro SPF of AA1 & AA3 were found to be 2.16 ± 0.57 and 2.21 ± 0.60 respectively. Stability studies were also performed over a period of 3 months while maintaining the products at 4 °c, 25 °c and 40 °c as per ICH guidelines for the parameters like pH, spreadability, extrudability and viscosity. Statistical analysis was also performed using SPSS software 17.0 version. Ultimately, AA1 and AA3 were found no change and maintained their stability during the period of three months and by statistical analysis.

In the present investigation, the methanolic root extracts of Glycyrrhiza glabra were evaluated for antimicrobial activity against some human pathogenic bacterial strains and subsequently phytochemical analysis of the crude extracts was carried out to determine the active phytochemical constituents responsible for antimicrobial activity. It was observed that methanolic root extract of G. glabra shows significant effect on the tested pathogenic bacterial strains with zone of inhibition ranging between 21 to 31mm. preliminary phytochemical screening of the extract revealed that they were positive for glycosides, flavonoids, steroids, phenols, saponins, alkaloids, tannins, anthraquinones. IR and ¹HNMR studies confirmed the presence of 3 metabolites such as glycyrrhizin (Gg I), glabridin (Gg II) and 18-β-glycyrrhetinic acid (Gg III). The results of the antimicrobial study revealed efficient activity of crude extract which might be due to the presence of soluble bioactive components and were confirmed by phytochemical analysis, IR and ¹HNMR. Thus it was observed that the roots of G. glabra could be used for the extraction of medicinally important bioactive compounds.

This study was carried out with an objective to investigate the antibacterial and antifungal potentials of leaves of Mimusops elengi Linn. The aim of the study is to assess the antimicrobial activity and to determine the zone of inhibition of extracts on some bacterial and fungal strains. In the present study, the microbial activity of different extracts of leaves of mimusops elengi Linn was evaluated for potential antimicrobial activity against medically important bacterial and fungal strains. The antimicrobial activity was determined in the extracts using agar disc diffusion method. The antibacterial and antifungal activities of different extracts of Mimusops elengi linn  were tested against two Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus & two Gram-negative Escheria coli, Xanthomonas human pathogenic bacteria; and one fungal strains— Candida albicans. Zone of inhibition of different extracts were compared with that of standards like ampicillin for antibacterial activity and clotrimazole for antifungal activity. The results showed that the remarkable inhibition of the bacterial growth was shown against the tested organisms. The phytochemical analyses of the plants were carried out. The microbial activity of the Mimusops elengi linn was due to the presence of various secondary metabolites. Hence, these plants can be used to discover bioactive natural products that may serve as leads in the development of new pharmaceuticals research activities.