Growth assessment in asthmatic patients

Asthma is a chronic disease and the chronic disease states regardless etiology can cause growth failure in infant and toddler. To assess growth of asthmatic patients. One hundred asthmatic children between [5-15 years] of age. Both asthmatic and control group studied in term of height, weight and skin fold thickness, all anthropometric measurements of height, weight and skin fold thickness measured for both groups. Height, weight and skin fold thickness were significantly retarded in asthmatic, the more severe the disease and longer duration the more retardation in the height and weight. The height was affected more than the weight by the disease duration and severity. The diminution in skin fold thickness was retarded both with increase disease duration and severity but the female was less retarded than male as the disease duration prolonged. All growth parameter [height, weight, SFT] affected by asthma [duration and severity], so the growth parameters can be used in asthmatic children to evaluate the effect of treatment.

Nephroprotective activity of Solanum xanthocarpum fruit extract against gentamicin-induced nephrotoxicity and renal dysfunction in experimental rodents

OBJECTIVE@#To evaluate nephroprotective potential of Solanum xanthocarpum (S. xanthocarpum) fruit extract(SXE) against gentamicin (GM) induced nephrotoxicity and renal dysfunction.@*METHODS@#Twenty-four Wistar rats were divided into four groups (n=6). Control rats that received normal saline (i.p.) and 0.5% carboxymethyl cellulose (p.o.) per day for 8 d. Nephrotoxicity was induced in rats by intraperitoneal administration of GM (100 mg/kg/d for 8 d) and were treated with SXE (200 and 400 mg/kg/d (p.o.) for 8 d). Plasma and urine urea and creatinine, kidney weight, urine output, blood urea nitrogen, renal enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants and lipid peroxidation was evaluated along with histopathological investigation in various experimental groups of rats.@*RESULTS@#It was observed that the GM treatment induced significant elevation (P<0.001) in plasma and urine urea, creatinine, kidney weight, blood urea nitrogen, renal lipid peroxidation along with significant decrement (P<0.001) in urine output, renal enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants. SXE 200 and 400 mg/kg treatment to GM treated rats recorded significant decrement (up to P<0.001) in plasma and urine urea and creatinine, renal lipid peroxidation along with significant increment (up to P<0.001) in renal enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants. Histological observations of kidney tissues too correlated with the biochemical observations.@*CONCLUSIONS@#These finding powerfully supports that S. xanthocarpum fruit extract acts in the kidney as a potent scavenger of free radicals to prevent the toxic effects of GM both in the biochemical and histopathological parameters and thus validates its ethnomedicinal use.

Evaluation of chemopreventive effect of Fumaria indica against N-nitrosodiethylamine and CCl4-induced hepatocellular carcinoma in Wistar rats

OBJECTIVE@#To investigation the chemopreventive potential of Fumaria indica (F. indica) extract (FIE) on N-nitrosodiethylamine and CCl(4)-induced hepatocarcinogenesis in Wistar rats.@*METHODS@#The experimental animals were divided into six groups (n=6). Hepatocellular carcinoma was induced by single intraperitoneal injection of N-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA) in normal saline at a dose of 200 mg/kg body weight followed by weekly subcutaneous injections of CCl(4)(3 mL/kg/week) for 6 weeks, as the promoter of carcinogenic effect. After administration of the carcinogen, 200 and 400 mg/kg of FIE were administered orally once a day throughout the study. At the end of 20 weeks, the body weight, liver weight and relative liver weight were measured. The percentage of nodule incidence and liver cancer markers such as aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), γ-glutamyl transferase (γ-GT), total bilirubin level (TBL), α-feto protein (AFP) and carcinoembryonic antigen were estimated along with histopathological investigation in experimental groups of rats.@*RESULTS@#Obtained results demonstrated that the cotreatment with FIE significantly prevented the decrease of the body weight and also increased in relative liver weight caused by NDEA. The treatment with FIE significantly reduced the nodule incidence and nodule multiplicity in the rats after NDEA administration. The levels of liver cancer markers such as AST, ALT, ALP, γ-glutamyl transferase, TBL, AFP and carcinoembryonic antigen were substantially increased by NDEA treatment. However, FIE treatment significantly reduced the liver injury and restored the entire liver cancer markers. Histological observations of liver tissues too correlated with the biochemical observations.@*CONCLUSIONS@#These finding powerfully supports that F. indica exert chemopreventive effect by suppressing the tumor burden and restoring the activities of hepatic cancer marker enzymes on NDEA and CCl(4)-induced hepatocarcinogenesis in Wistar rats.

Hepatoprotective effect of Solanum xanthocarpum fruit extract against CCl4 induced acute liver toxicity in experimental animals

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the hepatoprotective potential of Solanum xanthocarpum (Solanaceae) (S. xanthocarpum) in experimental rats to validate its traditional claim.@*METHODS@#50% ethanolic fruit extract of S. xanthocarpum (SXE, 100, 200 or 400 mg/kg body weight) was administered daily for 14 days in experimental animals. Liver injury was induced chemically, by CCl(4) administration (1 mL/kg i. p.). The hepatoprotective activity was assessed using various biochemical parameters like aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), Serum alkaline phosphatise (SALP) and total bilirubin. Meanwhile, in vivo antioxidant activities as lipid peroxidation (LPO), reduced glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) were screened along with histopathological studies.@*RESULTS@#Obtained results demonstrated that the treatment with SXE significantly (P<0.05-<0.001) and dose-dependently prevented chemically induced increase in serum levels of hepatic enzymes. Furthermore, SXE significantly (up to P<0.001) reduced the lipid peroxidation in the liver tissue and restored activities of defence antioxidant enzymes GSH, SOD and catalase towards normal levels. Histopathology of the liver tissue showed that SXE attenuated the hepatocellular necrosis and led to reduction of inflammatory cells inflltration.@*CONCLUSIONS@#The results of this study strongly indicate the protective effect of SXE against acute liver injury which may be attributed to its hepatoprotective activity, and there by scientifically support its traditional use.