Development and evaluation of the effect of ethanol and surfactant in vesicular carriers on Lamivudine permeation through the skin.

The skin embodies a relatively large and readily accessible surface area to absorb a drug through a non-invasive procedure. The vesicular carrier systems such as liposomes, ethosomes, and transethosomes have been explored as non-invasive systems for transdermal delivery of drugs. In the present study, different vesicular carriers were prepared by the thin-film hydration method with modification, and various parameters like size, elasticity, and release profiles were evaluated. Ethosomes and transethosomes have shown the smaller size of 362.21 ± 55.76 and 314.34 ± 41.21 nm, with deformity of 19.34% and 25.04%, respectively, compared with liposomes. The FTIR study of the skin before and after the application of vesicular formulation was performed. The ethosomes and transethosomes changed the orthorhombic phase to the liquid crystalline phase to move the vesicular carrier with the drug to cross the stratum corneum (SC) of the skin. The thermotropic behaviour of drug and vesicular carrier ingredients was studied using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Fluorescence images of vesicular-skin permeation have revealed that ethosome and transethosome formulation have shown deeper penetration across the SC and epidermis. The in vitro drug release from the ethosomes and transethosomes has shown 93.34 ± 1.23% and 95.45 ± 2.67% of drug release using Franz diffusion cell and porcine skin as a membrane. The nanostructured flexible vesicular carrier containing ethanol alone and a combination of ethanol and edge activator is a perfect carrier for drug penetration to the deeper skin layer and maintaining the sustained release of drug for a prolonged time.

Management of drug induced sexual dysfunction in male rats by ethyl acetate fraction of onion.

The present study aimed to investigate the effect of ethyl acetate fraction of A. cepa bulb on mating behavior in paroxetine-induced sexually dysfunction male rats. Sexual dysfunctions such as decreased libido, delayed orgasm, difficulties in maintaining an erection, and inhibition of ejaculation are common side effects of paroxetine. A. cepa bulb ethyl acetate fraction (200 mg/kg) was administered orally in paroxetine-induced sexually impaired male rats for 7 days. At the end of 7th day, mount frequency (MF), intromission frequency (IF), ejaculatory frequency (EF), mount latency (ML), intromission latency (IL), ejaculatory latency (EL) and post-ejaculatory interval (PEI) were the parameters observed. Results showed that in relation to the paroxetine treated group, ethyl acetate fraction, significantly restored the normal sexual behavior as evident from increased MF, IF, EF and reduced ML, IL, EL and PEI.

Recent studies on aphrodisiac herbs for the management of male sexual dysfunction--a review.

An aphrodisiac is a type of food or drink that has the effect of making those who eat or drink it more aroused in a sexual way. Aphrodisiacs can be categorized according to their mode of action into three groups: substances that increase libido (i.e., sexual desire, arousal), substances that increase sexual potency (i.e., effectiveness of erection) and substances that increase sexual pleasure. Some well-known aphrodisiacs are Tribulus terrestrins, Withania somnifera, Eurycoma longifolia, Avena sativa, Ginko biloba, and Psoralea coryifolia. Ethnobotanical surveys have indicated a large number of plants as aphrodisiacs. The paper reviews the recent scientific validation on traditionally used herbal plants as aphrodisiac herbs for the management of sexual disorder erectile dysfunction.

Evaluation of in vitro antioxidant potential of aqueous extract of Trapa natans L. fruits.

In the present study, the in vitro antioxidant potential of aqueous extract of Trapa natans L. fruits rind was investigated. The extract was found to contain a large amount of polyphenols and also exhibited an immense reducing ability. The total content of phenolic, flavonoid and tannin compounds was estimated as 63.81 mg of gallic acid equivalents/g of dry material, 21.34 mg of rutin equivalents/g of dry material and 17.11 mg of total tannin equivalent /g of dry material, respectively. IC50 values for different antioxidant model were calculated as 128.86 microg/mL for DPPH radicals, 97.65 microg/mL for O2*-, 148.32 microg/mL for H2O2 and 123.01 microg/mL for NO, respectively. Reducing power and inhibition of *OH radical-induced BSA oxidation were also determined. The data obtained in the present study suggest that the aqueous extract of Trapa natans L. fruit rind have significant antioxidant activity against free radicals.

Antidiabetic potential of medicinal plants.

It is the fact that diabetes can't be cured and it has never been reported that someone had recovered totally from diabetes. The rapidly increasing incidence of diabetes mellitus is becoming a serious threat to mankind health in all parts of the world. Moreover, during the past few years some of the new bioactive drugs isolated from plants showed antidiabetic activity with more efficacy than oral hypoglycemic agents used in clinical therapy. The traditional medicine performed a good clinical practice and is showing a bright future in the therapy of diabetes mellitus. The present paper reviews natural medicines with their mechanism of action and their pharmacological test results. Many studies have confirmed the benefits of medicinal plants with hypoglycemic effects in the management of diabetes mellitus. The effects of these plants may delay the development of diabetic complications and correct the metabolic abnormalities. WHO has pointed out this prevention of diabetes and its complications is not only a major challenge for the future, but essential if health for all is to attain. Therefore, in recent years, considerable attention has been directed towards identification of plants with antidiabetic ability that may be used for human consumption. Further, it emphasizes strongly in this regard the optional and rational uses of traditional and natural indigenous medicines.

Wound healing activity of aqueous extract of Radix paeoniae root.

Aqueous extract of the roots of Radix paeoniae (Paeonaceae) was screened for wound healing by excision, incision and dead space wound models on Wistar rats. The parameters studied were breaking strength in case of incision wounds, epithelialisation and wound contraction in case of excision wound and granulation tissue dry weight, breaking strength and hydroxyproline content in case of dead space wound. The Nitrofurazone ointment treated group showed a significant (p < 0.001) reduction in the wound breaking strength when compared to control group in incision type of wound model. The results obtained indicated that Radix paeoniae root extract accelerates the wound healing process by decreasing the surface area of the wound and increasing the tensile strength. The histological examination of the granulation tissue of treated group showed increased cross-linking of collagen fibers and absence of monocytes.

Antioxidant and hepatoprotective activity of ethanolic and aqueous extracts of Amorphophallus campanulatus Roxb. tubers.

In the present study, the hepatoprotective activity of ethanolic and aqueous extracts of Amorphophallus campanulatus (Roxb.) tubers were evaluated against carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) induced hepatic damage in rats. The extracts at a dose of 500 mg/kg were administered orally once daily. The substantially elevated serum enzymatic levels were significantly restored towards normalization by the extracts. Silymarin was used as a standard reference and exhibited significant hepatoprotective activity against carbon tetrachloride induced haptotoxicity in rats. The biochemical observations were supplemented with histopathological examination of rat liver sections. The results of this study strongly indicate that Amorphophallus campanulatus (Roxb.) tubers have potent hepatoprotective action against carbon tetrachloride induced hepatic damage in rats. The ethanolic extract was found hepatoprotective more potent than the aqueous extract. The antioxidant activity was also screened and found positive for both ethanolic and aqueous extracts. This study suggests that possible mechanism of this activity may be due to free radical scavenging potential caused by the presence of flavonoids in the extracts.

Antipyretic activity of Radix paeoniae.

The acetone extracts of Radix paeoniae (Paeonaceae) root (100 and 200 mg/kg orally) were tested in brewer's yeast-induced pyrexia in rats to assess their antipyretic activity. The pyrexia in rats was reduced significantly (P < 0.05) compared to that of control. These results indicate that the extracts possess antipyretic properties. The root extract showed significant reduction in normal body temperature and yeast-provoked elevated temperature comparable to that of standard antipyretic drug paracetamol. The antipyretic effect was started at 1h and extended for at least 4h after the drug administration.