Mechanism of action of a hypoglycemic principle isolated from fenugreek seeds.

Mechanism of action of an orally active hypoglycemic principle isolated from water extract of seeds of Trigonella foenum graecum (fenugreek) was investigated in alloxan induced subdiabetic and overtly diabetic rabbits of different severities. The active principle was orally administered to the subdiabetic and mild diabetic rabbits (five in each group) at a dose of 50 mg/kg body weight for 15 days. The treatment produced significant attenuation of the glucose tolerance curve and improvement in the glucose induced insulin response, suggesting that the hypoglycemic effect may be mediated through stimulating insulin synthesis and/or secretion from the beta pancreatic cells of Langerhans. Prolonged administration of the same dose of the active principle for 30 days to the severely diabetic rabbits (n = 5) lowered fasting blood glucose significantly, but could elevate the fasting serum insulin level to a much lower extent, which suggests an extra-pancreatic mode of action for the active principle. The effect may also be by increasing the sensitivity of tissues to available insulin. The hypoglycemic effect was observed to be slow but sustained, without any risk of developing severe hypoglycemia.

Inflammatory pseudotumour of the lung : report of a case and review of literature.

A case of unusual benign tumour of the lung is described. The patient presented with a history of prolonged cough with expectoration, and fever with generalised weakness of shorter duration. Radiological examination of the chest revealed a large non-homogeneous opacity with calcification in the left lower zone. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) was inconclusive. Therefore, surgical exploration and a left lower lobectomy was performed. The diagnosis of inflammatory pseudotumour was made on histopathological examination.

Hypoglycemic effect of Biophytum sensitivum in the alloxan diabetic rabbits.

Hypoglycaemic effect of a Neapalese plant Biophytum sensitivum was investigated in the alloxan diabetic male rabbits of different severities: subdiabetic (Alloxan recovered; AR), mild diabetic (MD) and severely diabetic (SD). Assessment of activity of the extract, prepared from the plant leaves, was done by fall in fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and improvement in the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), following single dose and prolonged administrations. Following single dose administration there was fall in 1 hour and 2.5 hour glucose values by 25.9% and 27.4% respectively in the subdiabetic rabbits, and by 36.9% and 37.7% in the mild diabetic rabbits. Improved GTT response is shown by fall in area under curve (AUC) from 16138 mg/dl to 12355 mg/dl (23.4%) in the subdiabetic rabbits, and from 19258 to 12238 mg/dl in the MD rabbits. More significant improvements occurred following one week of above treatment. The results prove that the plant material has significant hypoglycaemic effect, which is possibly due to pancreatic beta-cell stimulating action. To investigate its possible role in correction of other metabolic abnormalities of diabetes further long term studies are required.

Depression in general clinical practice--a diagnostic problem.

The study was conducted on 100 patients suffering from depression with the aim to highlight the common manifestations of depression in people belonging to a developing country like India, and to apprise the general practitioners and medical specialists of various disciplines, of various manifestations of depression to help early detection and timely treatment of the problem. It was observed that depression had varied manifestations like depressed mood, anxiety, somatic features, insomnia, lack of interest, paranoid ideas, obsessions, etc. Although 100% of patients had depressed mood but only 22% actually complained of it. Most patients often selectively highlighted somatic manifestations and overtly suppressed the mood component, thereby posing a diagnostic problem to the physician.

Peak expiratory flow rates of healthy tribal children living at high altitudes in the Himalayas.

Peak expiratory flow rates (PEFR) of 237 healthy tribal children living at or above 3000 metres from sea level were measured. The mean age, height and PEFR for boys were 10.7 years, 130.7 cm, 245.5 +/- 74.0 l/min, respectively. The values of these parameters in girls were 10.5 years, 128.2 cm and 222.3 +/- 78.6 l/min. The PEFR of these children, especially for boys, were comparable with North Indian urban children or children of the West.

Serum lipids in healthy tribals living at high altitudes in the Himalayas.

Serum lipids of 70 healthy volunteer tribals (36 males, 34 females) living at high altitudes (3100-4500 metres) in the Himalayas were studied. The mean total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDLc, LDLc and VLDLc levels for the group were 178.6 +/- 19.5, 101.4 +/- 18.3, 44.1 +/- 12.4, 114.5 +/- 17.3 and 20.2 +/- 3.6 mg/dl respectively. There was no significant difference between the two sexes and the various age groups. The total cholesterol/HDL ratio for men and women was 4.2 and 3.9 respectively. The various interacting factors responsible for overall pattern of lipids in these individuals is discussed.