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First two decades of the twenty-first century are characterised by epidemics of non-communicable diseases such as many hundreds of millions of patients diagnosed with cardiovascular diseases and the type 2 diabetes mellitus, breast, lung, liver and prostate malignancies, neurological, sleep, mood and eye disorders, amongst others. Consequent socio-economic burden is tremendous. Unprecedented decrease in age of maladaptive individuals has been reported. The absolute majority of expanding non-communicable disorders carry a chronic character, over a couple of years progressing from reversible suboptimal health conditions to irreversible severe pathologies and cascading collateral complications. The time-frame between onset of SHS and clinical manifestation of associated disorders is the operational area for an application of reliable risk assessment tools and predictive diagnostics followed by the cost-effective targeted prevention and treatments tailored to the person.This article demonstrates advanced strategies in bio/medical sciences and healthcare focused on suboptimal health conditions in the frame-work of Predictive, Preventive and Personalised Medicine (3PM/PPPM). Potential benefits in healthcare systems and for society at large include but are not restricted to an improved life-quality of major populations and socio-economical groups, advanced professionalism of healthcare-givers and sustainable healthcare economy. Amongst others, following medical areas are proposed to strongly benefit from PPPM strategies applied to the identification and treatment of suboptimal health conditions:Stress overload associated pathologiesMale and female healthPlanned pregnanciesPeriodontal healthEye disordersInflammatory disorders, wound healing and pain management with associated complicationsMetabolic disorders and suboptimal body weightCardiovascular pathologiesCancersStroke, particularly of unknown aetiology and in young individualsSleep medicineSports medicineImproved individual outcomes under pandemic conditions such as COVID-19.

Chemical medicine which are synthetic chemicals or isolation products must not be added to herbal medicine, that was standared by Indonesian Head of the Drug and Food Control Agency in statement regarding Criteria and Procedure for Registration of Traditional Medicines, Standardized Herbal Medicines, and Phytofarmaka. This study aims to develope prototype of paper-based color test-strip to identify paracetamol trace in several types of Indonesian herbal medicine, better known as Jamu. Research conducted with experimental research wich make paper test-strip prototype by immobilizing reagents into Whatman’s filter paper, then it used to identify paracetamol in extracted Jamu samples. The paracetamol qualitative test uses 10 Jamu samples that distributed in Samarinda area. were also carried out on. Comparison methode with qualitative color reaction tests using specific reagents in the laboratory were also carried out beside the paper-based color test-strip methode. In addition with positive control tests using 5000 ppm paracetamol solution to make sure both methode used are valid. The results of this study showed that two prototype paper-based color test-strips containing 10% iron (III) chloride reagent and folin ciocalteu were able to detect the presence of paracetamol chemicals in Jamu samples with color reaction.

As the main carrier of cultural inheritance, paper cultural relics are easily affected by the microorganism and external environment. In order to protect paper cultural relics, in this paper, traditional Chinese medicine A and sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) were prepared into a multi-functional mixture solution to use for antibacterial and reinforcement of paper relics. The antibacterial effects of the A on Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were studied through the single factor experiment. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of A and the concentration range of A-CMC for paper reformulation were determined. The results showed that the MIC values of A to Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were 0.2 mg/ml. The optimal ratio of the composite liquid is 0.8% CMC concentration and 0.2 mg/ml A. Under this condition, the paper has a good bacteriostatic effect. This showed that the traditional Chinese medicine A can be used as an antibacterial agent for paper. Keywords: Traditional Chinese Medicine A, bacteriostasis, CMC, paper properties.

Background: There has been an increasing trend in Clinacanthus nutans’ research, an important medicinal herb of Malaysia and Thailand, well known as an anti-viral, anti-cancer, and insect bite treatment. This study examines the trend in Clinacanthus nutans’ research from 2000 to 2019 and compares the contribution of research on this topic from different institutions and authors. Methods: Publications from the Scopus database were retrieved using keywords and identify top ten institutions/universities, list of prominent authors, top ten journals that published research, top five influential articles, top fifty cited papers, and global distribution of publications on Clinacanthus nutans. Microsoft Excel 2016, Wordcloud, SPSS version 26, and GunnMap 2 were used to analyse indicators. A total of 167 articles were identified from the Scopus database. All research publications were screened initially. Five articles (n=5) were removed due to the unavailability of the full-text version of the article. 162 articles were included in the final study. Results: Universiti Putra Malaysia and the Journal of Ethnopharmacology published the highest number of articles on Clinacanthus nutans. Herpes, antioxidant, phenolic, flavonoids, cancer, antimicrobial were common keywords identified using a word cloud. Over the past 20 years, the literature on Clinacanthus nutans has continuously grown, with the rate increasing after 2012. Conclusion: The prominent research on Clinacanthus nutans was based upon their identified and isolated bioactive constituents, and there is a need for more research on clinical trials.

The species Arrabidaea chica (Humb. & Bonpl.) B. Verl. (Bignoniaceae) is a plant native to tropical forests, popularly known as pariri or crajiru, and it is widely used in folk medicine to treat inflammatory diseases, anemias, skin diseases and to assist in the treatment of leukemia. Because of the widespread use of the plant, concern with its quality and effectiveness is fundamental. This study demonstrates the application of mass spectrometry with ionization by paper spray (PS-MS) as a chemical characterization method to evaluate the presence of the active principles in teas prepared by infusion from commercial samples of the medicinal plant Arrabidaea chica by infusion. The analyses of the samples were performed in two periods: 24 hours and 15 days after the preparation of the teas. Compounds referring to the class of substances 3-deoxythocyanidins were detected without any pre-treatment of the sample or chromatographic separation to provide valuable information for the evaluation and quality control of this product. Significant changes in the m/z signals of greater intensity, referring to the class of 3-deoxythocyanidins, were observed in the mass spectra, and multivariate analysis corroborated the degradation of this class of substances with time, resulting in a probable loss of the quality and effectiveness of the tea. La especie Arrabidaea chica (Humb. & Bonpl.) B. Verl. (Bignoniaceae) es una planta originaria de los bosques tropicales, conocida popularmente como pariri o crajiru, y se usa ampliamente en la medicina popular para tratar enfermedades inflamatorias, anemia, dermatosis y para ayudar a tratar las leucemias. Debido al amplio uso de la planta, la preocupación por su calidad y efectividad es fundamental. Este estudio demuestra la aplicación de la Espectrometría de Masas de Ionización por Paper Spray (PS-MS) como método de caracterización química para evaluar la presencia de principios activos en tés preparados por infusión a partir de muestras comerciales de la planta medicinal Arrabidaea chica por infusión. Los análisis de las muestras se realizaron en dos períodos: 24 horas y 15 días después de la preparación del té. Los compuestos que se refieren a la clase de sustancias 3-desoxitocianidina se detectaron sin ningún pretratamiento o separación cromatográfica de la muestra para proporcionar información valiosa para la evaluación y el control de calidad de este producto. Se observaron cambios significativos en las señales m / z de mayor intensidad, que se refieren a la clase de 3-desoxitocianidinas. El análisis multivariado, a su vez, corroboraron la degradación de esta clase de sustancias a lo largo del tiempo, resultando en una probable pérdida de la calidad y eficacia del té. A espécie Arrabidaea chica (Humb. & Bonpl.) B. Verl. (Bignoniaceae) é uma planta nativa das florestas tropicais, popularmente conhecida como pariri ou crajiru, amplamente utilizada na medicina popular no tratamento de doenças inflamatórias, anemias, enfermidades da pele e auxiliar no tratamento de leucemia. Devido ao uso difundido da planta é fundamental a preocupação com sua qualidade e eficácia. Este estudo demonstra a aplicação da Espectrometria de Massas com a Ionização por Paper Spray (PS-MS) como uma metodologia de caracterização química para avaliar a presença dos princípios ativos presentes nos chás obtidos por infusão de amostras comerciais da planta medicinal Arrabidaea chica obtidos por infusão. As análises das amostras foram realizadas em dois períodos: 24 horas e 15 dias após o preparo dos chás. Foram detectados compostos referentes à classe de substâncias 3 desoxiantocianidinas sem qualquer pré-tratamento da amostra ou separação cromatográfica, fornecendo informações valiosas para a avaliação e controle de qualidade deste produto. Alterações significativas nos sinais m/z de maior intensidade, referentes à classe da 3 desoxiantocianidinas, foram observadas nos espectros de massas. As análises multivariadas dos dados, por sua vez, corroboraram a degradação desta classe de substâncias como o decorrer do tempo e, consequentemente, uma provável perda da qualidade e eficácia do chá.

The indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants appeared when humans started and learned how to use the traditional knowledge of medicinal plants. The various literature available shows the significant role of medicinal plants in primary health care delivery in Ethiopia (about 70% of humans and 90% of livestock population) depend on traditional plant medicine. This is similar to many developing countries, particularly with those countries in Sub-saharan Africa. Medicinal plants provide a vital contribution to human and livestock health care. This seminar review was an attempt to present five medicinal plants (citrus lemon, caricapapaya, Moringa stenopetala, Allium sativum, Zingiber officinale).

Traditional herbal medicine in Indonesia is still in great demand and popular in society. The Indonesian government regulations state that herbal medicine should not contain chemical drug due to the toxic effect of uncontrolled consumption. Allopurinol is one of the drugs commonly added to herbal medicine for the treatment of chronic gout. Paper-based analytical device is one of the latest forms of analysis that has been widely used for the identification of chemical elements, environmental contamination, bacteria, and many more. In this study, experiments were conducted using Whatman filter paper No. 1, No. 2, and No. 4 and Whatman chromatography as a paper, and 9 colorimetric reagents were tested for allopurinol detection in herbal medicine. There were 5 specific reagents that reacted positively with allopurinol and only 3 reagents that can be applied to the paper, that is, Folin-Ciocalteu, Tollens, and p-DAB reagent. The results of the optimization show that the most optimal immersion time was 60 minutes with a drying time of 30 minutes at 50°C. Each filter paper has different characteristic; however, there was no significant difference when all of the papers were used as PAD for allopurinol detection.

The American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) published an initial white paper on herbal products in 2000. Since then, the global market for natural products has continued to expand, with tens of millions of consumers using such products on an annual basis in the United States alone. However, despite this expansion, natural products remain largely unregulated compared with prescription medications, have moderate- to low-level clinical evidence for efficacy, and continue to have safety concerns, including adulteration and misbranding. As comprehensive medication management experts, clinical pharmacists are uniquely qualified to navigate these concerns and advise patients appropriately. To develop and recommend a suitable care plan involving natural products, clinical pharmacists must establish a strong pharmacist-patient relationship, assess the appropriateness of therapy, educate the patient regarding key issues, and continuously monitor and follow up on the effectiveness of the care plan. This process should not only occur in an individual community or hospital setting, but also whenever a patient transitions from one care setting to another in cooperation with other clinicians.

In the United States and other Western countries, dry needling has been a topic in academic and legal fields. This White Paper is to provide the authoritative information of dry needling versus acupuncture to academic scholars, healthcare professionals, administrators, policymakers, and the general public by providing the authoritative evidence and expertise regarding critical issues of dry needling and reaching a consensus. We conclude that Dr. Travell, Dr. Gunn, Dr. Baldry and others who have promoted dry needling by simply rebranding (1) acupuncture as dry needling and (2) acupuncture points as trigger points (dry needling points). Dry needling simply using English biomedical terms (especially using "fascia" hypothesis) in replace of their equivalent Chinese medical terms. Dry needling is an over-simplified version of acupuncture derived from traditional Chinese acupuncture except for emphasis on biomedical language when treating neuromuscularskeletal pain (dry needling promoters redefined it as "myofascial pain"). Trigger points belong to the category of Ashi acupuncture points in traditional Chinese acupuncture, and they are not a new discovery. By applying acupuncture points, dry needling is actually trigger point acupuncture, an invasive therapy (a surgical procedure) instead of manual therapy. Dr. Travell admitted to the general public that dry needling is acupuncture, and acupuncture professionals practice dry needling as acupuncture therapy and there are several criteria in acupuncture profession to locate trigger points as acupuncture points. Among acupuncture schools, dry needling practitioners emphasize acupuncture's local responses while other acupuncturists pay attention to the responses of both local, distal, and whole body responses. For patients' safety, dry needling practitioners should meet standards required for licensed acupuncturists and physicians.

Carrying out chemical analysis of antimalarials to detect low-quality medications before they reach a patient is a costly venture. Here, we show that a library of chemical color tests embedded on a paper card can presumptively identify formulations corresponding to very low quality antimalarial drugs. The presence or absence of chloroquine (CQ), doxycycline (DOX), quinine, sulfadoxine, pyrimethamine, and primaquine antimalarial medications, in addition to fillers used in low-quality pharmaceuticals, are indicated by patterns of colors that are generated on the test cards. Test card sensitivity for detection of these pure components ranges from 90% to 100% with no false positives in the absence of pharmaceutical. The color intensities from reactions characteristic of CQ or DOX allowed visual detection of formulations of these medications cut with 60% or 100% filler, although samples cut with 30% filler could not be reliably detected colorimetrically. However, the addition of unexpected fillers, even in 30% quantities, or substitute pharmaceuticals, could sometimes be detected by other color reactions on the test cards. Tests are simple and inexpensive enough to be carried out in clinics, pharmacies, and ports of entry and could provide a screening method to presumptively indicate very low quality medicines throughout the supply chain.

The leaves of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalisL.) are used very common in the medicine. However, after the usage of leaves,stalks are useless. In this study, utilization of rosemary stalks in pulp andpaper industry is analyzed. For this purpose, chemical and morphologicalproperties were determined. Also, some derived values (slenderness ratio,flexibility coefficient, rigidity coefficient, mühlsteph ratio and F ratio)were found from the fiber properties (fiber length, fiber diameter, cell wallthickness and lumen diameter). Results were compared with other lignocellulosicmaterials. The stalks composed of 63.6% holocellulose, 36.4% α-cellulose, 26.9%lignin and 1.9% ash. Solubility values were 4.8%, 10.4%, 7.9% and 22.8% as fortoluene-alcohol-acetone mixture, hot water, cold water and 1% NaOH,respectively. Fiber length, fiber diameter, cell wall thickness and lumendiameter were found 0.36 mm, 12.84 µm, 4.31 µm and 4.22 µm, respectively. Theslenderness ratio, flexibility coefficient, rigidity coefficient, mühlstephratio and F ratio were determined in the order of 27.7, 32.87, 33.57, 2.04,89.20 and 82.72%. According to these results the stalks of rosemary showedsimilarities with hardwood species with respect to holocellulose, α- celluloseand lignin. However derived values indicated that the stalks of rosemary is notsuitable for pulp and paper production., Biberiye (Rosmarinus officinalisL.) yapraklarından elde edilen ürünler tıbbi alanda yaygın olarakkullanılmaktadır. Yaprakların değerlendirilmesinden sonra geri kalan biberiyesapları ise atıl olarak kalmaktadır. Bu çalışmada biberiye saplarının kağıthamuru ve kağıt endüstrisinde değerlendirme potansiyelinin olup olmadığı belirlenmeyeçalışılmıştır. Bu amaçla sapların kimyasal ve morfolojik özellikleri ile lifboyutlarının birbirlerine oranlanması ile bulunan veriler (keçeleşme oranı,elastiklik katsayısı, rijidite katsayısı, mühlstep oranı ve F oranı) tespitedilmiş ve sonuçlar diğer lignoselülozik malzemelerle karşılaştırılmıştır.TAPPI standartlarına göre yapılan kimyasal analiz sonuçlarına göre biberiyesapı %63.6 holoselüloz, % 36.4 α-selüloz, %26.9 lignin ve %1.9 küliçermektedir. Çözünürlükleri ise sırasıyla toluen-alkol-aseton % 4.8, sıcak su%10.4, soğuk su %7.9 ve %1 NaOH %22.8’dir. Lif uzunluğu 0.36 mm, lif çapı 12.84µm, çeper kalınlığı 4.31 µm ve lümen çapı 4.22 µm’dur. Morfolojik özelliklerdentüretilen verilere göre keçeleşme katsayısı 27.77, elastiklik katsayısı 32.87,katılık katsayısı 33.57, runkel oranı 2.04, mühlstep oranı 89.20 ve F oranı%82.72’dir. Biberiye sapı holoselüloz, α- selüloz ve lignin bakımından yapraklıağaç odun özelliği göstermektedir. Morfolojik özelliklerden türetilen verileregöre biberiye sapı, kağıt hamuru ve kağıt üretimine uygun bir hammadde olmadığısonucuna varılmıştır.

Infectious diseases caused by pathogenic bacteria seriously threaten human lives. Although antibiotic therapy is effective in the treatment of bacterial infections, the overuse of antibiotics has led to an increased risk of antibiotic resistance, putting forward urgent requirements for novel antibacterial drugs. Traditional Chinese herbal medicine (TCHM) and its constituents are considered to be potential sources of new antimicrobial agents. Currently, a series of chemical compounds purified from TCHM have been reported to fight against infections by drug-resistant bacteria. In this review, we summarized the recent findings on TCHM-derived compounds treating drug-resistant bacterial infections. Further studies are still needed for the discovery of potential antibacterial components from TCHM.

Reports of low-quality pharmaceuticals have been on the rise in the past decade, with the greatest prevalence of substandard medicines in developing countries, where lapses in manufacturing quality control or breaches in the supply chain allow substandard medicines to reach the marketplace. Here, we describe inexpensive test cards for fast field screening of pharmaceutical dosage forms containing beta lactam antibiotics or combinations of the four first-line antituberculosis (TB) drugs. The devices detect the active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) ampicillin, amoxicillin, rifampicin, isoniazid, ethambutol, and pyrazinamide and also screen for substitute pharmaceuticals, such as acetaminophen and chloroquine that may be found in counterfeit pharmaceuticals. The tests can detect binders and fillers such as chalk, talc, and starch not revealed by traditional chromatographic methods. These paper devices contain 12 lanes, separated by hydrophobic barriers, with different reagents deposited in the lanes. The user rubs some of the solid pharmaceutical across the lanes and dips the edge of the paper into water. As water climbs up the lanes by capillary action, it triggers a library of different chemical tests and a timer to indicate when the tests are completed. The reactions in each lane generate colors to form a "color bar code" which can be analyzed visually by comparison with standard outcomes. Although quantification of the APIs is poor compared with conventional analytical methods, the sensitivity and selectivity for the analytes is high enough to pick out suspicious formulations containing no API or a substitute API as well as formulations containing APIs that have been "cut" with inactive ingredients.

Introduction Paper spray-mass spectrometry (PS-MS) is a kind of ambient MS technique for the rapid analysis of samples. Corni fructus has been widely used in traditional Chinese compound preparations and healthy food. However, a number of counterfeits of Corni fructus, such as Crataegi fructus, Lycii fructus, and grape skin are illegally sold in crude herb markets. Therefore, the development of a rapid and high-throughput quality evaluation method is important for ensuring the effectiveness and safety of the crude materials of Corni fructus. Objective To develop PS-MS chemical profiles and a semi-quantitative method of Corni fructus for quality assessment and control, and species distinction of Corni fructus. Methodology Both positive and negative ion PS-MS chemical profiles were constructed for species distinction. The statistical analysis of the chemical profiles was accomplished by principal component analysis (PCA). Rapid semi-quantitative analysis of loganin and morroniside in the extracts of Corni fructus were accomplished by PS-MS. Results The profiles of the Corni fructus and Crataegi fructus samples were clearly clustered into two categories. The limit of quantification (LOQ) in the semi-quantitative analysis was 6 μg/mL and 5.6 μg/mL for loganin and morroniside, respectively. Conclusion PS-MS is a simple, rapid, and high-throughput method for the quality control and species distinction of Corni fructus. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The use of antibiotics to prevent post-weaning diarrhoea (PWD) in pigs has faced a setback owing to the associated antibiotic resistance in pigs and in the human populace that consumes the pork. In fact, antibiotic resistance that originates from the food chain is estimated to cause around 700,000 deaths globally each year. Consequently, scientists and researchers have suggested possible alternatives to antibiotics in pig diets. The chief of these has been the use of probiotics. The authors reviewed the literature on the use of probiotics as an alternative to antibiotics in treating PWD in pigs. It is clear that because of pathogenic Escherichia coli PWD continues to be a challenge to profitable swine production. The vast number of studies that was reviewed, point to the beneficial effects of probiotic supplementation on reducing the severity and incidence of PWD. However, some studies report inconsistencies to the general hypothesis. The majority of the microorganisms used as probiotics in the studies belong to the genera Lactobacilli , Bacillus , Bifidobacterium , Enterococcus , probiotic Escherichia coli , and Saccharomyces . The review also revealed that the bacterial strains that are used as probiotics are given individually or as combinations of multiple strains, and at various dosages, yielding varied results in each case. Interestingly, the authors observed wide disparities in the onset of probiotic supplementation and duration of the treatment to attain the results. Hence there is a need to standardize supplementation strategies, including dosage, onset and duration of treatment for probiotics. Furthermore, many of the in vivo studies that revealed positive effects of probiotics on diarrhoea and other production parameters were carried out in more controlled environments. The authors therefore suggest that more field studies in more natural and commercial farm settings should be conducted to augment the literature in relation to the use of probiotics as alternatives to antibiotics in treating PWD. Keywords: antimicrobial resistance, directly-fed microorganisms, post-weaning diarrhoea, swine diets

The effectiveness of Asarum sieboldii extracts as an environmental-friendly fumigant to mitigate the aging of Korean paper cultural heritage made of traditional paper called Hanji was examined. As results, antimicrobial activity of A. sieboldii extracts against Aspergillus versicolor on Hanji is observed at the concentration exceeding 25 mg. As the short-term change of Hanji property right after treatment of A. sieboldii extracts exceeding 25 mg, it is observed that the physical and optical properties of initial Hanji decreased with the increases of the extracts concentration. In terms of the long-term change by artificial aging test, however, the aging rate of Hanji samples treated by A. sieboldii extracts is similar to that of non-treated Hanji samples. It means that A. sieboldii extracts do not degrade the stability of Hanji property. Overall, these results demonstrate that A. sieboldii extracts may have the potential as a fumigant to the Korean paper cultural heritage due to their antimicrobial effectiveness and long-term permanence.

The anti-fungal activity of plant extractives was investigated and the lacquer extractives were selected. The lacquer extractives were coated on anti-fungal paper and confirmed its effect. Water repellency, ten-sile index and brightness of anti-fungal paper treated with natural extractives were similar to commercial pesticide-treated paper. The incidence of Fusicaladium leuieri MAGNUS of commercial pesti-cide-treated paper and anti-fungal paper treated with lacquer were similar but, the incidence of Botryosphaeria dothidea (Moug.) Ces & De Not and Gloeodes pomigena of those were increased 1060 % than commercial pesticide-treated paper. Keywords: lacquer extractives, anti-fungal paper, disease incidence, Botryosphaeria dothidea (Moug.) Ces & De Not, Fusicaladium leuieri MAGNUS, Gloeodes pomigena 1. 서 론 과수재배기술의 핵심은 병해충과의 전쟁이라고 할 수 있을 만큼 과수 재배 기간 동안 많은 농약을 사용하게 된다. 이에 과일봉지와 같은 농업용 항균지는 과실에 직접 접촉되는 농약은 방지할 수 있으나 과실을 병해충으로부터 보호하기 위하여 과일봉지 제조에 있어서 농약을 원지에 도포하였다. 과일봉지에의 농약 도포는 지금까지는 문제되지 않았지만 과일봉지에 도포된 농약이 과실에서 검출될 가능성을 전혀 배제할 수는 없는 상황이다. 이러한 문제점을 근본적으로 해결하기 위해서는 과일봉지와 같은 농업용 항균지 생산에 있어서 농약의 효능을 대체할 수 있는 친환경적인 천연 대체물의 모색이 시급하다고 할 수 있다. 농업용 항균지

Background The standards of Ayurveda education in India are being questioned in the recent years and many suggestions related to educational reforms are being put forth by educators and health policy experts. However, the Post Graduate Entrance Examinations (PGEEs) that are carried out to select the candidates to pursue postgraduate programs have received little attention in this context. Objectives The objective of this study was to classify the Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) from Ayurveda PGEEs conducted in different universities of India during the five year period (ranging from 2010 to 2014) into six levels of Bloom's Taxonomy in cognitive domain. Methods This is a retrospective observational study. The sampling method followed was purposive sampling. Totally, 3299 MCQs obtained out of 25 question papers from seven universities spread across four zones of India (North, South, West and East) were included in the study and were classified based on the Bloom's taxonomy. Results About 93.3% of MCQs assessed only the ‘recall’ component whereas 6.2% of the MCQs assessed ‘comprehension’. Percentage of MCQs that assessed ‘application’ level was a mere 0.3% whereas the percentage of MCQs that assessed the ‘analysis’ component was found to be only 0.2%. There was not even a single question to assess the ‘synthesis’ and ‘evaluation’ components. Conclusions We conclude that an appropriate proportion of MCQs assessing ‘higher order thinking’ are required to be included in Ayurveda PGEEs. While it is possible to frame MCQs to assess all six levels of Bloom's taxonomy in cognitive domain, the teachers are required to be trained well in the skills of MCQ writing. We propose that our study may be taken as a lead to introduce the required reforms in PGEEs. Clinical Trial Registration No.: Not applicable.

Non-conventional medical practices that make use of dietary supplements, herbal extracts, physical manipulations, and other practices typically associated with folk and Traditional Medicine are increasingly becoming popular in Western Countries. These practices are commonly referred to by the generic, all-inclusive term “Complementary and Alternative Medicine.” Scientists, practitioners, and medical institutions bear the responsibility of testing and proving the effectiveness of these non-conventional medical practices in the interest of patients. In this context, the number of peer-reviewed journals and published articles on this topic has greatly increased in the recent decades. In this editorial article, we illustrate the policy of the Journal of Traditional and Complementary Medicine for publishing solid and scientifically sound papers in the field of Traditional and Complementary Medicine.

Wenchao Gu,1YapingYuan,1 HuaYang,1GuangshengQi,1XiaoyanJin,2JinYan2 1Department of Respiratory Medicine, People’s Hospital of Shanghai, Pudong New Area, 2Department of Respiratory Medicine, Tongren Hospital, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China Objective: We aimed to identify the 100 top-cited articles published on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and to analyze their characteristics so as to provide information on the achievement and development in COPD research over the past decades. Methods and materials: A comprehensive list of citation classics in COPD was generated by searching the Science Citation Index expanded database, using the keywords “COPD” or “chronic obstructive pulmonary disease” or “chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases”. The 100 top-cited research papers were retrieved by reading the abstract or full text if needed. All eligible articles were read for basic information, including country of origin, organizations, article type, journals, research field, and authors.Results: The 100 top-cited articles on COPD were published between 1966 and 2010. The number of citations ranged from 254 to 2,164, with a mean of 450 citations for each article. These citation classics were from 32 countries, with 38 from the United States. The Imperial College London led the list of classics, with 16 papers. The 100 top-cited articles were distributed in 18 journals, with the American Journal of Respiratory, Critical Care Medicine, and Journal of the American Medical Association topping the list. Among the various fields, both respiratory system (63%) and general internal medicine (63%) were the most common fields of study for the 100 articles. Conclusion: Our bibliometric analysis provides a historical perspective on the progress of scientific research on COPD. Articles originating from the United States and published in high-impact specialized respiratory journals are most likely to be cited in the field of COPD research. Keywords: citation analysis, top-cited, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Rhinosinusitis is a very common condition of the upper respiratory tract. The disease may be caused by viral, bacterial or fungal infections as well as by allergens or air pollution (e.g. tobacco smoke), with viral infections being the most common cause. The first phase of viral rhinosinusitis therapy involves the use of antipyretics, analgesics, anti-oedematous agents as well as nasal decongestants, occasionally, topical glucocorticosteroids, nasal irrigation and adjunct phytotherapy. Viral or allergic rhinosinusitis does not require antibiotic therapy. Antibiotics should be used if symptoms persist after 7–10 days or bacterial superinfection develops. More intense treatment (antibiotic, metronidazole, intranasal glucocorticosteroid as well as formulations that dilute mucous secretions and have anti-oedematous effects) for up to several days is necessary in cases of acute rhinosinusitis in children, which is quite often a very serious disease bordering on sepsis (pansinusitis). According to the 2012 European Position Paper on Rhinosinusitis and Nasal Polyps 2012 (EPOS 2012), natural compounds may be used as an adjunct treatment in some cases and in certain periods of the disease. These include nasal irrigation with saline or an appropriate seawater solution as well as the use of herbal medicinal products. The paper discusses in detail the use of different herbal medicinal products and presents literature data related to the efficacy and tolerance of these products.

Dental caries is the major dental and oral health problems in Indonesia and world wide. Alteration in the saliva acidity level (pH) in the oral environment plays an important role in dental caries. Red betel leaf (piper crocatum) is a herbal plant that commonly found in Indonesia. Red betel leaf contains alkaloid, flavonoid, tannin and essential oil which have antibackterial activities. Objectives : The aim of this study was to determine the acidity change (pH) of saliva in elderly people with diabetes mellitus type 2 after gargling of 10% boiled red betel leaves. Methods : the subjects of this study were 30 persons who divided randomly into two groups i.e treatment group and control group. Each group consisted of 15 persons. In the treatment group, the subjects gargled using 10% boiled red betel leaves, while in the control group the subject gargled using aquades. The saliva was collected on each time treated and followed by pH measuring. The data analysis was conducted by Independent t-test statistic (p≤0,05). Results : the results showed that there was an effect of increasing salivary acidity (pH) of saliva after gargling boiled of red betel leaf (Piper crocatum) in elderly people with diabetes mellitus type 2. Conclusion : The change of acidity level (pH) of saliva was increased significant ly at 5 th to 15 th minute from 5.33 to 6.67 after gargling boiled red betel leaves concentration of 10%. The acidity level range stated above indicates a normal. Key words : pH of saliva , red betel leaves, elderly , diabetes mellitus type 2

ABSTRACI The flavonoid of the flowers of sixtees members of the Papilionaceae were examined using paper chronatography. Thirty flavonoids were identified on the basis of colcur reactions and where necessary co-chromatography with authentic markers. A flavonoid profile of each plant has been constructed. This is is the first report of such a comprehensive biochemical study and this work contributes to the under standing of the chemistry of this important flora and their application in local medicine. Two new solvent systems were developed in the course of this work which will aid flavonoid research immensely.

In this study, we evaluated the antimildew effects on paper of Plectranthus amboinicus (Lour.) Spreng leaf essential oil prepared through hydrodistillation. The oil was isolated with a Clevenger-type apparatus and then characterized through gas chromatography with flame ionization detection (GC-FID) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). A total of 43 compounds were identified, representing 99.5% of the oil. The main ingredients were carvacrol (50.0%), γ-terpinene (13.1%), and β-caryophyllene (11.3%). The leaf oil had excellent antimildew effects; its minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values against Aspergillus clavatus, A. niger, Cladosporium cladosporioides, Chaetomium globosum, Myrothecium verrucaria, Penicillium citrinum, and Trichoderma viride were 100, 200, 75, 75, 100, 150, and 150 μg/cm2 respectively. The leaf oil was further partitioned into 6 derivative fractions (PO1-PO6). PO2 had excellent antimildew effects on the abovementioned strains; at a concentration of 100 μg/cm2, all were 100% inhibited, except A. niger, which was 75.8% inhibited. Carvacrol, the main ingredient of PO2, was then isolated and used for antimildew tests; carvacrol had excellent antimildew activities. Since both P. amboinicus leaf essential oil and carvacrol were proved to have excellent antimildew effects on paper, they are worth further research and development.

Plants have been used as treatments for thousands of years, based on experience and folk remedies and continue to draw wide attention for their role in the treatment of mild and chronic diseases. In these eras, focus on plant research has increased all over the world and a large body of evidence has been accumulated to highlight the immense potential of medicinal plants used in various traditional systems of medicine. In various medicinal plants Centella asiatica is one of the most useful plants seen in Ayurveda medicines. Centella asiatica (commonly known as Brahmi in India) is an imperative medicinal drug which possesses significant medicinal properties, especially those involving cognition. It has been extensively known as a brain tonic that promotes cerebrum development. This herb is recommended for the treatment of various skin conditions such as leprosy, lupus, varicose ulcers, eczema, psoriasis, diarrhea, fever, amenorrhea, diseases of the female genitourinary tract and also for relieving anxiety and improving cognition. The present paper reviews Brahmi (Centella asiatica) as a medicinal plant and highlights its benefits in various health problems.

Research dissemination is becoming more and more global. There is, however, limitation in allowing researchers who speak a language other than Chinese to follow the research trends in China, a country with the largest population in the world. Therefore, the purpose of this review article was to introduce the current research studies conducted in Mainland China. We limited our search of publications between 2012 and 2013 from three tier one Chinese mental health journals. We identified and reviewed seven papers which were highly downloaded by Chinese readers and which had not been published in English.

지류문화재는 식물성 섬유인 cellulose로 이루어져 있으며 노출된 환경이나 급변하는 온·습도에 따라 구조가 쉽게 변형되며 보존처리 과정을 통해 수리, 복원된다. 그 과정에서 결손부 보수, 배접, 장황비단의 배접 등 유물의 고색(古色)을 맞추기 위해 염색된 보수지가 사용(Tokyo National Museum, 2004)되는데 결손부의 크기 및 색상이 다양하므로 유물의 상태와 재질 특성에 따라 이질감을 줄이기 위해 유사한 재질로 염색을 하고 있다. 이는 지류문화재의 지속적인 보관 및 유물의 감상을 용이하게 하므로 염색보수지의 제작에 있어 천연염색은 중요한 역할을 차지한다.천연염색(天然染色)은 자연에서 채취된 색소가 염색대상과 흡착되는 특성을 이용하여 염색하는 것을 말한다. 현존하는 지류문화재 중에서 황벽염색을 이용한 능화지(Kim, 2007)나 쪽물을 들인 사경(Chen, 2007), 홍화로 물들인 홍패지(Jung, 2011) 등 실제로 천연염색이 적용된 사례를 쉽게 찾아볼 수 있다. 문화재 보존처리의 목적이 아닌 일반적인 천연염색은 미적 추구, 우수한 염착성과 색이 빠지지 않는 비가역적인 효과 및 한 가지 염료로도 다양한 색상을 구현시키기 위한 목적으로 화학적 재료인 산성매염제, 알칼리매염제, 알루미늄매염제, 금속매염제 등과 같이 여러 가지 합성매염제를 사용하고 있다. 반면 지류문화재 보존 수복 시 사용되는 천연염색은 색상의 재현뿐만 아니라 염색되는 바탕 재질의 물성자체가 비교적 안정되어 보존처리 후에도 재료의 지속적인 안정화를 유지해야 한다. 따라서 염색과정에서도 높은 온도나 지나친 염색시간은 섬유의 풀어짐을 야기 시켜 한지의 강도를 떨어뜨리고 부풀게 하여 두께를 증가시킬 우려가 있으므로 유의해야 한다(Cho, 2010). 또한 농도가 진하고 눈에 띄는 선명한 색상을 발현시키는 일반적인 염색의 목적과는 다르게 시간의 흐름에 따라 변화된 유물 자체의 고색(古色)과 어우러지는 색상 발현을 염색의 목적으로 두고 있다.따라서 본 연구는 지류문화재 보존처리 상황에서 천연염색시 바탕종이에 비교적 안정적인 매염제를 제시하는데 그 목적을 가진다. 이를 위해 바탕 종이에 일반적으로 사용되는 매염제들을 적용하여 염색한 후 시료의 열화를 통해 색상 및 물성변화를 측정하여 그 결과를 바탕으로 시료의 퇴색과 산성도에 중점을 두고 화학성분인 매염제가 바탕종이에 어떠한 영향을 미치는지 파악하고자 하였다 .

We read with great interest the paper titled “X-ray repair crosscomplementing group 1 Arg194Trp polymorphism is associated with increased risk of lung cancer in Chinese Han population” published in Tumor Biol. 2013, 34: 2611–2615 [1].Wu et al. performed a meta-analysis to investigate the association between X-ray repair cross-complementing group 1 (XRCC1) Arg194Trp polymorphism and lung cancer risk in Chinese Han population on the basis of 12 case-control studies with 4385 cases and 4545 controls. The authors found that XRCC1 Arg194Trp polymorphism was associated with increased risk of lung cancer in Chinese Han population under three main models (allele contrast model, odds ratio (OR)=1.12, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.00–1.26, P=0.049; homozygote model, OR=1.27, 95 % CI 1.09–1.48, P=0.003; recessive model, OR=1.26, 95 % CI 1.09–1.46, P=0.003) when all eligible studies were pooled into meta-analysis. It is an interesting study. Nevertheless, a careful examination of the data provided by Wu et al. (Fig. 1 in the original text) [1] revealed two key issues that are worth noticing. Firstly, one overlapping paper [2] was not properly excluded from Wu et al.’s study [1]. Secondly, four eligible papers [3–6] published before 2013 were not included in Wu et al.’s study [1]. Therefore, the conclusions by Wu et al. [1] are not entirely reliable. In order to obtain a precise estimation of the relationship between XRCC1 Arg194Trp polymorphism and lung cancer risk in Chinese population, a meta-analysis was re-conducted on the basis of a total of 16 studies with 4591 cases and 4899 controls, which may provide comprehensive evidence for the association of XRCC1 Arg194Trp polymorphism with lung cancer risk in Chinese population. Table 1 listed the general information of selected studies. Table 2 listed the summary odds ratios of the association between XRCC1 Arg194Trp polymorphism and lung cancer risk in Chinese population. Overall, we observed an increased lung cancer risk in Chinese population among subjects carrying XRCC1 194 Trp/Trp genotype (OR=1.26, 95 % CI 1.09–1.46) comparing with Arg/ Arg genotype carriers in total population (Fig. 1a). We did not observe any association of Arg/Trp vs. Arg/Arg and Trp/Trp+Arg/Trp vs. Arg/Arg polymorphisms with lung cancer risk in Chinese population (OR=1.05, 95 % CI 0.90–1.22 and OR=1.12, 95 % CI 0.95–1.31, respectively) (Fig. 1b, c). In the subgroup analysis by a source of control, we observed an increased risk of XRCC1 194 Trp/Trp vs. Arg/Arg polymorphism for lung cancer in a healthy subject-based study (OR=1.34, 95 % CI 1.13– 1.59) (Table 2); we did not observe any association between XRCC1 Arg194Trp polymorphism and lung cancer risk in additional subgroup analyses (Table 2). Limiting H. Yang Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, People’s Republic of China

Objectives : The focus of the analysis was laid on changes in research pertaining to pharmacopuncture in regards to time progression. Methods : Type analysis was done on pharmacopuncture related papers published in the Journal of Korean Institute of Pharmacopuncture from the inaugural issue to June 2006 issue. 196 papers are analyzed to the sort of type. Results : For type analysis of the type of studies, experiment papers outnumbered other types with 94 cases, followed by 67 for clinical trials, and 35 for literary studies. Type analysis on the type of illnesses listed in the Methods section, 31 papers concentrated on arthritis or HIVD of spine, 6 for Pharmacopuncture response in human, 5 for anti-cancer and immune disorders, etc. Conclusion : Since its inaugural issue in 1997 to August 2006 issue ranging 10 years, type analysis revealed that the number of journals pertaining to pharmacopuncture has risen steadily over the years and nearly half of papers published recently are dealing with pharmacopuncture. Pharmacopuncture is a treatment method based on the unique theory of Korean traditional medicine. Its superior efficacy is proven through numerous research works, and effort and academical approach on pharmacopuncture are expected to receive positive evaluation.