Wednesday, September 16, 2015

Can relying on nature help cure dengue?


"Dengue", the big tropical devil
Dengue is an arthropod-borne viral disease carried by Aedes aegypti as the vector, caused by 4 possible viral serotypes, namely, serotype 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the Flaviviridae family. As per the present literature, there is no specific targeting drug nor vaccine available for the treatment of dengue . Supportive management with fluids etc. are some of the treatment options. In here lies another issue named as secondary infection. Secondary infection is a major risk factor for DHF possibly due to antibody-dependent enhancement. A patient with dengue fever presents typically with fever, headache, and rash known as the dengue triad. There are many other nonspecific signs and symptoms associated with DF and patient can progress to DHF and typically manifests as abdominal pain, bleeding, and even circulatory collapse. The clinical course of dengue has an abrupt onset followed by three phases, namely, the febrile phase, the critical phase and the recovery phase. It is during the critical phase that thrombocytopaenia, characterized by a decrease in platelet count below 100 000 per mm3 from the baseline and haemoconcentration, characterized by an increase of haematocrit by 20% or more, is detectable before the subsidence of fever and the onset of shock.

The Savior Leaf (Papaya):
Scientifically known as Carica papaya is a Mexican origin plant but now abundantly grown and seen in tropical and sub tropical regions of the world is a well known plant. The fruit is said to be a rich source of vitamin A, C, and calcium. It was known to be trusted by the folk medicine since centuries. So that trust was said to be supported by recent studies. Studies have shown its beneficial effect as an anti-inflammatory agent, for its wound healing properties, anti-tumor as well as immune-modulatory effects and as an antioxidant. The most recent study was done for oral toxicity and was thus confirmed that it could be orally consumed. These studies bought some good hope and paved a path for dengue studies.

Researchers have aimed to target the platelet escalation which they thought was prime in saving a life. Thoughts piled up and resulted in few studies where they could affirm that the papaya leaf could significantly raise the platelet levels. In a study conducted by Subenthiran et al., 2013, they have observed that the PTAFR gene which is known to be responsible for increased platelet production and aggregation was expressed 13.42-folds among the patients who consumed the juice as compared to the control group indicating that the juice had played an important role in addressing the arresting of bleeding tendencies among these patients. A study conducted in Brazil showed that injection of Platelet Activating Factor (PAF/PTAFR) in mice induced an increase in platelet count. However, after a certain level, further administration of PAF failed to induce platelet production indicating autosensitization. These findings show that PAF/PTAFR can induce the release of platelets which may be relevant to thrombocytosis.

Now I personally think that these evidences support ethno pharmacologically the potency of papaya.

Another plant coming into vision is Fenugreek also called as methi in "Hindi". It was well seen that it could reduce the blood pressure and heart beat of patients but this herb needs a strong scientific evidence.

We all know that vaccines failed to show their mightiness yet. Vaccines by reputed companies like Sanofi have not yet been successful in releasing their product as they are experiencing cross serotype reactions. So why not let the herbs play their role? A better filtered and processed extract or isolate of papaya can be used by the emergency units in hospitals in dengue prone areas which may save some lives.

Sunday, May 24, 2015

Can genes flip the sex???


Female Aedes mosquitoes are prime culprits in transmitting diseases like yellow fever and dengue. Researchers have been finding for a logical end for this issue and came out with one solution of amending sex change strategy. Going to the genetic level was one way to make this possible.

In this action, scientists have identified that the Aedes aegypti embryos male resides on chromosome 1 which was termed as M locus. Due to the presence of repetitive DNA, it was a great challenge for researchers to sequence that region. After an intense search among various strains of both sexes, they have identified 164 sequences where they could match against the data. In the 24 sequences that remained, they found one new gene, which they named Nix.

Though various research organizations have developed strategies like offspring killing genes, scientists are now having tons of hope on this novel research policy though it is in a nascent stage. Scientists are also aiming to push a pint pointed genes into the next generation at precision guided frequency where they can couple with the Nix to spread the male genes which would eventually lead to population crash. Such strategies are certainly building hope among researches to pave new goals but provided they should be controlled and checked before implementation.


 

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Indo Global Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences as a potent competitor in publishing platform


As to publish your write ups, I proudly announce this latest addition to blog- Indo-global journal of Pharmaceutical sciences. This journal started in year 2011 by Mr. Rajeev K. Singla, indexed under various International indexing agencies like CAB, Indexing Copernicus, NLM etc. with a diverse area of scope, journal welcomes articles from all forms of pharmaceutical sciences.
For all the readers, there is a chance to promulgate your research activity. This submission program helps to bring your research work into a common platform. All the new ideas, innovative research andreviews will serve as a source for the learning process.  However, this not restricted to new announcements, commentaries, research results and analysis. It can be new ideas, hypothesis, literature reviews on existing research. Here is a chance for all the life sciences personnel to make use of the opportunity to the fullest. This is a onetime permanent record of the paper and can be intended for all the future reference.
Join hands together to express your science in the way of an article, to make this periodical serve as a medium, a gold standard of scientific communications & Information.

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Taste receptors and testes. What is the relation?

We generally have an opinian that testes is the organ in the body dealing with reproduction and related function. Testes is known to have cells and receptors which involve in various functions. But we are not aware of a astonishing fact. Have anyone ever wondered that some irrelated receptors like taste receptors are presnt in the testes and play a prime role in reproduction and fertility? Yes it does

TAS1R taste receptors are the receptors responsible and involved in sugar sensing. According to the previous studies their function was unknown though they were found in testes and sperm. But in a study by Bedrch Mosinger et al., this function was confirmed. Sperm formation in animals without functional TAS1R3 and GNAT3 is compromised, with malformed and immotile sperm. The hypothesis in this study revealed that even low levels of these compounds can lower sperm count and negatively affect human male fertility, which common mouse toxicology assays would not reveal. The study also speculated that TAS1R3 and GNAT3 activators may help infertile men, particularly those that are affected by some of the mentioned inhibitors and/or are diagnosed with idiopathic infertility involving signaling pathway of these receptors.

We need more confirmations and proofs to support this research as this may lead us to many different ways and pave path towards 100% fertility in males.

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Friday, June 14, 2013

Innovation at fingertips ! (Astonishing ability of mammals to regenerate by stemcells)

Mammals acquire remarkable ability to regenerate a lost fingertip, including the nail, nerves and even bone. In humans, an amputated fingertip can sprout aback in as little as two months, a abnormality that has remained ailing accepted until now. Researchers afford ablaze on this attenuate adorning ability in mammals, application genetically engineered mice to certificate for the aboriginal time the biochemical alternation of contest that unfolds in the deathwatch of a fingertip amputation. The allegation authority affiance for amputees who may one day be able to account from therapies that advice the physique change absent limbs.



Now, Dr. Ito and team have discovered an important clue in this process: a population of self-renewing stem cells in the nail matrix, a part of the nail bed rich in nerve endings and blood vessels that stimulate nail growth. Moreover, the scientists have found that these stem cells depend upon a family of proteins known as the “Wnt signaling network”—the same proteins that play a crucial role in hair and tissue regeneration—to regenerate bone in the fingertip.

Researchers have found an astonishing fact i.e.. they concluded that they could manipulate the Wnt pathway to stimulate the bone and tissue. These findings suggest that Wnt signaling is essential for fingertip regeneration, and point the way to therapies that could help people regenerate lost limbs. The teams’ next footfall is to zoom in on the atomic mechanisms that ascendancy how the Wnt signaling alleyway interacts with the attach axis beef to access cartilage and attach growth.



 

Monday, June 10, 2013

Pharma Innovation ! Inculcating the Implant (A novel Bioengineered Vein)

Till date, bio engineering achieved many novel aspects. But now, it is the height of innovation. University Researchers have come to such a state of innovation that, they have discovered a new equipment or implant which is rejection free as it is non biological in nature which is supposed to be the biggest advantage.
A Duke University spinoff has reached a milestone in tissue engineering as it transplanted the first bioengineered blood vessel into the arm of a patient with end-stage kidney disease.
In its first U.S. clinical trial, Humacyte is testing the safety and effectiveness of the blood vessel, which is intended to be an off-the-shelf product that’s derived from human cells but doesn’t have any of the biological properties that cause organ rejection.
People with kidney disease undergo dialysis, which often requires use of a graft to connect an artery to a vein. Current options carry risks of complications, according to Duke, like clotting and infection.
Humacyte creates its vessels by cultivating donated human cells on a tubular scaffold. The resulting vessel is then cleansed of the qualities that might trigger an immune response, leaving a collagen structure that mechanically matches artery and vein it’s being sewn to.