In vitro antimicrobial activity of auxiliary chemical substances and natural extracts on Candida albicans and Enterococcus faecalis in root canals.
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Antidiarrhoeal activity of an ethanol extract of the stem bark of Piliostigma reticulatum (Caesalpiniaceae) in rats.
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Piliostigma reticulatum (Caesalpiniaceae) is used in Africa as a traditional medicine for the treatment of many diseases, such as malaria, tuberculosis and diarrhoea. We investigated the antidiarrhoeal properties of a crude ethanol extract from the stem bark of Piliostigma reticulatum (EEPR) in Wistar albino rats to substantiate its traditional use and to determine its phytochemical constituents. The antidiarrhoeal activity of the plant extract was evaluated in a castor oil-induced diarrhoea model in rats and compared with loperamide. The effect of the extract on gastrointestinal motility was also determined by the oral administration of charcoal meal and castor oil-induced intestinal fluid accumulation (enteropooling). EEPR showed remarkable dose-dependent antidiarrhoeal activity evidenced by a reduction of defecation frequency and change in consistency. Extracts at 250, 500 and 1000 mg/kg body weight significantly reduced diarrhoeal faeces. EEPR also significantly inhibited gastrointestinal motility and castor oil-induced enteropooling at 500 and 1000 mg/kg, similar to the inhibition obtained in control rats treated by atropine. Phytochemical screening revealed the presence of tannins, flavonoids, polyphenols and reducing sugars in the stem bark of P. reticulatum. No mortality or visible signs of general weakness were observed in the rats following administration of the crude extract in doses up to 6000 mg/kg body weight in an acute toxicity study. Our results show that the stem bark of P. reticulatum possesses antidiarrhoeal activity and strongly suggest that its use in traditional medicine practice could be justified. (+info)
Dimethoxyflavone isolated from the stem bark of Stereospermum kunthianum possesses antidiarrhoeal activity in rodents.
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This study was undertaken to evaluate the antidiarrhoeal activity of 3, 7, 4'-trihydroxy-3'-(8''-acetoxy-7''-methyloctyl)-5, 6-dimethoxyflavone, a flavonoid isolated from the stem bark of Stereospermum kunthianum. The antidiarrhoeal activity was evaluated using rodent models with diarrhoea. The normal intestinal transit, castor oil-induced intestinal transit and castor oil-induced diarrhoea tests in mice as well as castor oil-induced intestinal fluid accumulation in rats were employed in the study. The animals were pretreated with distilled water (10 ml/kg for mice, 5 ml/kg for rats), dimethoxyflavone (25 mg/kg or 50 mg/kg), morphine (10 mg/kg), or indomethacin (10 mg/kg) before induction of diarrhoea with castor oil (0.2ml for mice and 2ml for rats). Dimethoxyflavone dose dependently and significantly reduced (P<0.05) castor oil-induced intestinal motility. Its antimotility effect at the dose of 50 mg/kg was higher compared to that of morphine (10 mg/kg). Dimethoxyflavone (25 mg/kg and 50 mg/kg) caused a delay in the onset of diarrhoea reduction in the number and weight of wet stools and total stools in mice with castor oil-induced diarrhoea compared to the distilled water treated mice. Treatment with dimethoxyflavone (25 mg/kg or 50 mg/kg) did not produce any remarkable effect on castor oil-induced intestinal fluid accumulation in rats and normal intestinal transit in mice. The results indicate that dimethoxyflavone possesses antidiarrhoeal activity due to its intestinal antimotility effect and inhibition of other diarrhoeal pathophysiological processes. In conclusion, dimethoxyflavone reduced the frequency and severity of diarrhoea in the diarrhoeal models studied. (+info)
Glutathione preservation during storage of rat lenses in optisol-GS and castor oil.
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Castor oil increases intestinal formation of platelet-activating factor and acid phosphatase release in the rat.
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1. When castor oil was administered by gavage to rats, the duodenum and jejunum but not ileum and colon produced large amounts (5-6 fold greater than control) of platelet activating factor (Paf). 2. Intraluminal release of acid phosphatase (AP) was also markedly increased (5-6 fold greater than control) in the duodenum and jejunum of castor oil-treated rats and there was a correlation between the elevated release of AP and intestinal hyperaemia. 3. These findings support a role for Paf as a mediator of intestinal damage induced by castor oil. (+info)
Thermal inactivation of L-thyroxin.
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We assessed the extent of inactivation of L-thyroxin induced by exposure to heat in the presence of two vehicles. Preparations of L-thyroxin in the dry powder form, or dispersed in the solvents propylene glycol (water-like) or ethoxylated castor oil (oil-like), were heated at temperatures ranging from 65 to 160 degrees C, for 5- to 15-min periods. Heating L-thyroxin to a temperature below that of cooked bovine ground meat (72 degrees C) produced less than 10% degradation. Thermal degradation was pronounced only above 90 degrees C, and was almost completed at 160 degrees C. L-Triiodothyronine was the only thermal degradation product identified after L-thyroxin was heated at 125 degrees C. In a separate experiment we measured the melting point of L-thyroxin, 148.81 degrees C. This value agrees closely with the observed thermal sensitivity. We conclude that L-thyroxin is not significantly degraded under conditions encountered during cooking of ground bovine meat for short times at moderate temperatures. (+info)