ABSTRACT
HMGCoA Reductase (HMGCR), a key enzyme in the cholesterol biosynthesis, catalyzes the conversion of 3- hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMGCoA) into mevalonate. Thus this enzyme is the target of the cholesterol-lowering drugs known as the statins. Phytoformulation1 is a polyherbal formulation consists of the extracts of plant constituents. The present study was designed to examine the ability of the secondary metabolites of Phytoformulation 1 as an antagonist to HMGCoA reductase enzyme by in silico molecular docking. The docking analysis was carried out by Ligand Fit Accelry’s Discovery studio 2.1, which allows virtual screening of database of compounds and predict the strongest binders based on various scoring functions. Fifteen ligands were docked with HMG CoA reductase receptor, out of which four compounds Dichloroacetic acid 2, 2- dimethylpropyl ester, 1, 6, 10-Dodecatriene-3-ol, 3, 7, 11-trimethyl-[S-(Z)]-, Isopropyl acrylate and 3, 3- Dimethylacryloyl chloride were able to form hydrogen bonds with active site of target protein. Thus it may be concluded that the secondary metabolites of Phytoformulation 1 can be an inhibitor of the HMGCR receptor that could be used to treat hyperlipidemia and further in vivo studies may be carried out to prove the same.
ABSTRACT
To elucidate the bacterial etiology of childhood diarrhoea in Dhahira, 856 children < 12 years admitted for diarrhoea to Ibri Regional Referral Hospital from 2000 to 2002 were studied. The mean age was 2.4 [SD 2.3] years; the majority [92.9%] were < 5 years. Bacterial etiology was found in 15.2% of cases; 10.6% due to Shigella and 2.1% to Salmonella. Sh. sonnei was the commonest Shigella serogroup isolated. Salmonella infection was significantly associated with cramps, while Shigella infection was associated with fever, bloody stools and cramps. Antibiotics were prescribed in 36.2% of cases and the resistance to the common antibiotics tested was low