Antioxidants from Callus Technology

Antioxidants are very important compounds that are very vital in human health and they have been proven to reduce the risk of diseases such as cancer in human health. Many researchers have used callus to produce antioxidant and most of them used different techniques to get reasonable amounts of antioxidants. The technique used determines the number of antioxidants that will be produced from any explants. Callus Technology involves the techniques of producing callus and metabolites in the presence of explants using different plant hormonal combination in media, different environmental culture condition (light, relative humidity and tempreture), use of elicitors and under a sterile conditions. Callus technology is very promising due to its ability to produce a larger quantity of metabolites (antioxidants) compare to the raw extract of its explants. The use of callus to produce antioxidants is very important and very useful in discovering new plants as a source of antioxidants. The use of callus technology was reviewed for production of antioxidant from the callus of the following plants: Sericostoma pauciflorum, Helicteres angustifolia L, Lepidium sativum L, Randia echinocarpa, Andrographis paniculata Nees, Citrullus colocynthis, Rauwolfia vomitoria Afzel, Decalepis hamiltonii, Bacopa monnieri (Linn.) and Isodon rugosus (Wall. Ex Benth). Callus technology can be utilized to produce antioxidants and other metabolites in industrial quantity. Most of the metabolites from plants have been found to have medicinal values or useful to mankind and antioxidant is one of them.

Detection of adulteration of Decalepis hamiltonii Wight & Arn. with Hemidesmus indicus (L.) R. Br. by pharmacognostic, molecular DNA fingerprinting by RAPD, chemical and HPTLC studies

Hemidesmus indicus (L.) R. Br. (Apocynaceae) root is extensively used in Indian traditional systems due to its biological activities. Decalepis hemiltonii Wight & Arn. is another member from the same family resembling H. indicus and is adulterated in the herbal market. Aim of the study was to compare and evaluate the distinguishing features based on macroscopy, microscopy, powder microscopy, molecular differences in the genomic DNA by RAPD, physiochemical, phytochemical screening, TLC and HPTLC fingerprint profiling of successive extracts. Microscopically cork, cortex, phloem, xylem, medullary rays and pith; powder microscopically size and shape of the cork cells, fibre, fibre tracheids, vessels, xylem parenchyma cells were different from each other. Polymorphism (75.4 %) was found in eight primers out of 16 primers analyzed. The water soluble extractive and the hexane soluble extractive of D. hamiltonii was higher than H. indicus. Tannins, flavonoids, steroids and coumarins were present only in H. indicus and absent in D. hamiltonii. After derivatization, spots at Rf 0.88 (hexane extract), 0.81 (chloroform extract) and 0.55 (ethanol extract) in H. indicus; spots at Rf 0.22, 0.45 (chloroform extract), 0.19, 0.35, 0.58, 0.59 (ethanol extract) in D. hamiltonii were observed. This study will be helpful to find out adulteration of D. hemiltonii in place of H. indicus sold in the crude drug market and in herbal formulations.

A CRITICAL PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF DIFFERENT SOURCES OF SARIVA FROM ITS NATURAL HABITAT

The material medica has over 25000 plant species having therapeutic value, and more than 500 are used in indigenous systems of medicine. Sariva is one such drug having multifaceted activities widely used as coolant, blood purifier. In Ayurvedic classics two varieties have been mentioned, Shweta and Krishna. Regarding the botanical identity of both the varieties, Shweta Sariva is unanimously accepted as Hemidesmus indicus, where as for Krishna Sariva is accepted as both Ichnocarpus frutescens, Cryptolepis buchnani. In the market, by the name of Sariva Decalepis hamiltonii is usually sold. Hence all the four sources were collected from their natural habitat, subjected for phytochemical analysis, including its morphological features and HPTLC was carried out. In this research work it was found that the four sources of Sariva have match with standards mentioned in quality standards of Indian medicinal plants, published by ICMR, New Delhi. Further these sources should be subjected for pharmacological evaluations pertaining Sariva as to confirm the genuine source and best substitute.

IN-VITRO ALPHA-AMYLASE AND ALPHA-GLUCOSIDASE INHIBITION ACTIVITY OF DECALEPIS HAMILTONII WIGHT AND ARN

Biologically active polyphenol, D-catechin was isolated from Decalepis hamiltonii and characterized by IR, 1 H- NMR 13C- NMR and evaluation of its in-vitro α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibition activities. Bioactive compounds are deposited in many parts of the plants, such as in roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits and seeds. They protect the plants from diseases and contribute aroma, color and flavor. Inhibitors 𝛼 - amylase and 𝛼-glucosidase delay the breaking down of carbohydrates in the small intestine and lower the postprandial blood glucose excursion. Methanolic extract showed the greater % inhibition of the alpha glucosidase enzyme compared to D-catechin. The herbal extracts produced a slightly weak alpha glucosidase enzyme inhibition when compared with alpha amylase.