Antimicrobial activity of Coleus aromaticus (benth) against microbes of reproductive tract infections among women

Coleus aromaticus (Benth) is a commonly available medicinal herb in India. The antimicrobial activity of this herb is tested as a cure for reproductive tract infections (RTI) among women. Fresh leaf has been used as a disc in different diameters to test the antimicrobial activity; against RTI causing microbes. Candida krusei showed the highest zone of inhibition of growth; followed by Candida albicans; Proteus mirablis; Escherichia coli; Staphylococcus aureus ; Enterococcus faecalis ; Klebsiella pneumoniae and the least inhibition was observed for Neisseria gonohorreae. Coleus aromaticus exhibits an effective antifungal and marked antibacterial activity. Using the leaf as a disc seems to be a novel and easy method that can be used initially to access the antimicrobial activity of a herb; before proceeding for further studies. This herb seems to be an ideal choice to treat RTI infections among women

Biting behaviour of Armigeres subalbatus (Coquillett) with reference to host selection and landing.

Armigeres subalbatus (Coquillett), a vicious crepuscular biter, has been selected to study the biting behaviour with reference to factors affecting landing and host selection in the laboratory. The mosquito showed a higher attractancy to relatively warmer skin of human hands. There was also a significant attraction towards the artificially warmed hands than the normal ones, and the mosquitoes avoided the artificially cooled hands. Therefore, host temperature is a factor which influences the attraction and subsequent landings of A. subalbatus. When the mosquitoes were offered animal hosts, the order of host preference by these mosquitoes was hen > rabbit > guinea pig, both in single and two-host combinations thus, showing their preference to avian host.

Circadian rhythm in the biting behaviour of a mosquito Armigeres subalbatus (Coquillett).

The crepuscular biting rhythm of A. subalbatus has been found to be a genuine circadian rhythm. When the entrained biting rhythm is allowed to freerun in constant darkness (DD) and continuous illumination (LL), it persists in DD (tau = 24.36 hr) and also in LL of ca. 0.1 1x (tau-23.82 hr) thus deviating from the strict 24 hr periodicity of the geophysical day. The biting rhythm becomes arrhythmic in LL of 1.0, 10, 0.4, 4, 40 lx even the first cycle damping away.