Clinical trial of antidiabetic traditional medicine formulation (TMF) No. 32

Clinical trial to determine the therapeutic efficacy of a traditional antidiabetic drug, TMF-32, was carried out on six Type II NIDDM patients who were admitted to the Traditional Medicine Hospital, Yangon. All patients, 3 males and 3 females, had a fasting blood glucose level of more than 150 mg percent (205.2 + 35.6) and a 2 hour post-prandial blood glucose level of more than 200 mg percent (323.0 + 62.09) and were clinically free from complications of diabetes. The study was a complete cross-over design, using tolbutamide as a control and was conducted under strict diabetic diet wupplying approximately 2500 kcals per day. Hypoglycaemic efficacy calculated from oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) curves indicated that TMF-32, at doses of 2G and 3G, significantly reduces the blood glucose levels in these patients (p < 0.01 in both doses). The maximum hypoglycaemic effect was seen at approximately 2 hours after dosing and the duration of action lasted only up to 6 hours. Construction of log. dose-response curves showed TMF-32 of having a hypoglycaemic potency of 73 percent of tolbutamide but frequent side effects and cost of drug give rise to contradicting questions on whether it may be useful as a standard traditional antidiabetic drug.

Chemical composition of home-based fluids commonly used in Myanmar

Rehydration measure should be instituted as early as possible when lifethreatening dehydration state due to diarrhoea or severe fever is suspected or detected. Home-based fluids are usually given under such circumstance and thus chemical compositions of syrups (m=9), soft drinks (n=5), fresh fruit juices (n=3) and plant decoctions (n=7) were analysed by using published methods and atomic absorption spectrophotometer. High concentrations of total sugars (8.67 to 34.87 g/100ml) and free reducing sugars, mainly as glucose and fructose (1.97 to 21.49) g/ 100ml) were detected in syrups and soft drinds. Potassium was found to be rich in plant decoctions (34.08 to 273.10 mg/100ml) and sodium in soups (140.0 to 475.0 mg/100ml). Soft drinks were found to be acidic (pH = 2.76 to 3.63) whereas soups and plant decoctions have pH values 5.29 to 8.91. Colours used in syrups and soft drinks were found to be permitted dyes.

Isolation of dengue type 3 from mosquitoes in Rangoon.

A virus was isolated in suckling mice from Aedes aegypti collected from Rangoon area, during the month of July 1969. The virus was identified as a member of Group B arbovirus dengue type 3, by means of its ability to agglutinate goose erythrocyte at pH 6.6, haemagglutination inhibition and complement fixation tests, and its growth characteristics in Aedes albopictus cell cultures. The isolated dengue type 3 virus differs slightly from the Indian dengue type 3 virus in its ability to produce haemagglutinin of high titer from the early mouse passage, variation in the pH for optimum haemagglutination and ability to produce cytopathic effect in Vero cell cultures.