Physiology of Normal Sleep: From Young to Old.

Human sleep, defined on the basis of electroencephalogram (EEG), electromyogram (EMG) and electrooculogram (EOG), is divided into rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and four stages of non–rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. Collective monitoring and recording of physiological data during sleep is called polysomnography. Sleep which normally starts with a period of NREM alternates with REM, about 4-5 times, every night. Sleep pattern changes with increasing age. Newborns sleep for about 14-16 hours in a day of 24 hours. Although there is a wide variation among individuals, sleep of 7-8.5 hours is considered fully restorative in adults. Apart from restorative and recovery function, energy conservation could be one of the functions of sleep. The role of sleep in neurogenesis, memory consolidation and brain growth has been suggested. Though progress in medical science has vastly improved our understanding of sleep physiology, we still do not know all the functions of sleep.

Ameliorative effects of standardized extract from Trigonella foenum-graecum L. seeds on painful peripheral neuropathy in rats

OBJECTIVE@#To evaluate the effects of the standardized extract of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L. Family: Leguminasae) seed (IND01) in animal models of peripheral neuropathy.@*METHODS@#IND01 was prepared from fenugreek seeds and standardized by high performance liquid chromatography to a marker compound, trigonelline. The effects of daily oral administration of IND01 (50, 100 and 200 mg/kg) were studied in rats after partial sciatic nerve ligation (PSNL) and sciatic nerve crush injury (SNCI) during 30-days period. The measurements on thermal hyperalgesia (TH), motor function test (MFT) score and motor nerve conduction velocity (MNCV) were recorded.@*RESULTS@#IND01 offered sustained protection against TH and deranged MFT scores in both models from 7-day onwards. Fifteen days of daily oral administration of IND01 restored MNCV reduction in rats with SNCI but not with PSNL.@*CONCLUSIONS@#IND01 was found to be effective in rat models of painful peripheral neuropathy.

Anti-hyperglycaemic activity of IND 01 and its interaction with glyburide and pioglitazone in alloxan induced diabetic mice

The antihyperglycaemic activity of IND 01 and its interaction with glyburide and pioglitazone on serum glucose, body weight and oral glucose tolerance test [OGTT] was determined in alloxan-induced diabetic mice. IND 01 [100 mg/kg], glyburide [10 mg/kg], pioglitzone [10 mg/kg] and their concomitant administration were administered orally in alloxan [80 mg/kg, i.v.] induced diabetic mice. The study design consisted of estimation of serum glucose after acute, subacute and glucose load administration. Administration of IND 01 [100 mg/kg] alone significantly [p<0.001] reduced serum glucose level at 6 h after administration. The antihyperglycaemic effect of glyburide and their concomitant administration of IND 01 with glyburide were similar, that is, onset was 2 h; peak effect was 6 h but the effect waned at 24 h. The onset of concomitant administration of IND 01 with pioglitazone was 4 h; peak effect was at 6 h but the effect waned at 24 h. In the subacute study, reduction in serum glucose was observed on 28[th] day after withdrawal for 7 days. The effects of concomitant administration were more pronounced than single drug treatment. In mice treated with either IND 01 [100 mg/kg], glyburide, pioglitazone alone or their combination, the body weight was not reduced in contrast to that in the control group. In the oral glucose tolerance test [OGTT], increased glucose utilization was observed in animals after concomitant administration of IND 01 [100 mg/kg] and glyburide [10 mg/kg] as well as IND 01 [100 mg/kg] and pioglitazone [10 mg/kg]. The concomitant administration of IND 01 with glyburide as well as pioglitzone produced synergistic antihyperglycaemic effect than either drug alone

Combinative therapeutic approach for better blood sugar level control in alloxan diabetic mice

In the present study the combined therapeutic approach of using an isolated compound from a herb and an oral hypoglycemic drug in alloxan-induced diabetic mice is investigated. Herbal drugs can have beneficial effects in terms of reducing the dosage, side effects and duration of action of synthetic drugs. The results show that combined therapy with 4-hydroxyisoleucine and pioglitazone is more beneficial than pioglitazone alone and also more beneficial than the combination of 4 hydroxyisoleucine and glyburide in the treatment of diabetes