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Polysaccharides have been studied, examined and explored for number of decades and a wide range of information has been discovered about the polysaccharides that helps in modifying the immune system and its effectiveness. Natural polymers are available in abundance and bear significant resemblance to constituents of biological extracellular matrices. Polysaccharides from plants such as gums, resins, tannins and mucilage have been put to use for their medicinal properties as well as for innovative dosage forms. Polysaccharides are easily endured by human body and even tend to seize high bioactivity and biocompatibility. There have been various investigations to demonstrate the organizational features of these bioactive elements and result in interfering with the cellular units of host individual. This review manuscript will focus on the immunomodulatory potential of non-conventional natural polysaccharides of microbial and plant origin. These specialized polysaccharides are capable of producing a strong impact on the adaptive-, acquired-, and innate-immune system. This is usually carried out by the interaction between them along with T-cells, leukocytes, monocytes, and most importantly with macrophages. Polysaccharides are capable of enriching and modulating the immune response of the host in response to infections as well as have anti-tumor properties – signifying its importance of getting widely available in countries like Japan(currently) and in India (from historic times).

The prevalence of Helicobacter pylori infection remains significant worldwide and it depends on many factors: gender, age, socio-economic status, geographic area, diet, and lifestyle. All successful infectious diseases treatments use antibiotic-susceptibility testing, but this strategy is not currently practical for H. pylori and the usual cure rates of H. pylori are lower than other bacterial infections. Actually, there is no treatment that ensures complete eradication of this pathogen. In the context of an alarming increase in resistance to antibiotics (especially to clarithromycin and metronidazole), alternative and complementary options and strategies are taken into consideration. As the success of antibacterial therapy depends not only on the susceptibility to given drugs, but also on the specific doses, formulations, use of adjuvants, treatment duration, and reinfection rates, this review discusses the current therapies for H. pylori treatment along with their advantages and limitations. As an alternative option, this work offers an extensively referenced approach on natural medicines against H. pylori, including the significance of nanotechnology in developing new strategies for treatment of H. pylori infection.

The importance of monoclonal antibodies in oncology has increased drastically following the discovery of Milstein and Kohler. Since the first approval of the monoclonal antibody, i.e. Rituximab in 1997 by the FDA, there was a decline in further applications but this number has significantly increased over the last three decades for various therapeutic applications due to the lesser side effects in comparison to the traditional chemotherapy methods. Presently, numerous monoclonal antibodies have been approved and many are in queue for approval as a strong therapeutic agent for treating hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. The main target checkpoints for the monoclonal antibodies against cancer cells include EGFR, VEGF, CD and tyrosine kinase which are overexpressed in malignant cells. Other immune checkpoints like CTLA-4, PD-1 and PD-1 receptors targeted by the recently developed antibodies increase the capability of the immune system in destroying the cancerous cells. Here, in this review, the mechanism of action, uses and target points of the approved mAbs against cancer have been summarized.

Nowadays, the tendency in pharmaceutical and food industries is to replace synthetic antioxidants with the natural ones. For this reason, there is a growing interest in analyzing natural, healthy and non-toxic additives as potential antioxidants. Some plants, which contain high levels of phenolic compounds, present an increasing interest for medicine due to their ability to scavenge free radicals, along with other pharmacological activities, such as antibacterial activity, wound healing and anti-inflammatory effect, to mention only a few. The aim of this review is to explore the therapeutic potential of Ocimum basilicum and Trifolium pratense in relation with their phytochemical profile and to highlight the pharmacological activity of aqueous or ethanol extracts. Special attention was devoted to the dermal pathology and wound healing effects, in the context of multiple skin conditions such as acne, eczema boils, psoriasis and rashes. Additionally, both extracts (Trifolium sp. and Ocimum sp.) are characterized by high content of antioxidant compounds, which are responsible for the radiance and resistance of the skin and slowing down of the aging process by maintaining estrogen levels. Moreover, the potential combined effect of the mixed extract is pointed out in terms of future applications for wound healing, based on some preliminary results obtained from a “scratch tests” assay performed with respect to human dermal fibroblasts.

Okra is a nutritional source of power used throughout history for both medicinal and culinary purposes. Okra is good source of minerals, vitamins and nutrients that are responsible for the health benefits. It has various reported pharmacological properties like antidabetic, antioxidant, nootropic, eye, heart disease and neurological disorders etc. This effort is towards providing the evidence in support to encourage more scientific research to find out more pharmacological and nutritional potential of Abelmoschus esculentus that may be suggestive of new drug discovery.

The present study was carried out to evaluate antiarthritic potential and phytochemical screening of various extracts ofFicus lacoraerial roots. The antiarthritic activity was evaluated by adjuvant-induced arthritis at the dose of 50 and 100 mg/kg body weight and the standard drug used was indomethacin. The extracts administered in higher doses reduced the lesions to a greater extent showing a dose-dependent decrease in lesions comparable with standard drug indomethacin. The extracts of FLPE and FLET showed significant increase in body weight as compared to arthritic control group as well as an increase in liver weight, a decrease in liver weight, and an increase in spleen weight in arthritis control. The extracts of FLPE and FLET showed significant decrease in WBC count, increase in hemoglobin contents, and RBC count as compared to control group. FLEA and FLCF were not able to produce a significant effect. There was significant reduction in production of IL-1 and TNF-αlevel between model group and control group in serum. In conclusion, we demonstrate that, at 100 mg/kg body weight, doses of FLPE and PLET extracts were highly effective in preventing and suppressing the development of adjuvant-induced arthritis.

The objective of the present study was to design ophthalmic delivery systems based on polymeric carriers that undergo sol-to-gel transition upon change in temperature or in the presence of cations so as to prolong the effect of HP-β-CD Voriconazole (VCZ)in situgelling formulations. Thein situgelling formulations of Voriconazole were prepared by using pluronic F-127 (PF-127) or with combination of pluronic F-68 (PF-68) and sodium alginate by cold method technique. The prepared formulations were evaluated for their physical appearance, drug content, gelation temperature (),in vitropermeation studies, rheological properties, mucoadhesion studies, antifungal studies, and stability studies. All batches ofin situformulations had satisfactory pH ranging from 6.8 to 7.4, drug content between 95% and 100%, showing uniform distribution of drug. As the concentration of each polymeric component was increased, that is, PF-68 and sodium alginate, there was a decrease in with increase in viscosity and mucoadhesive strength. Thein vitrodrug release decreased with increase in polymeric concentrations. The stability data concluded that all formulations showed the low degradation and maximum shelf life of 2 years. The antifungal efficiency of the selected formulation againstCandida albicansandAsperigillus fumigatusconfirmed that designed formulation has prolonged effect and retained its properties against fungal infection.

Article history: Received on: 18/10/2012 Revised on: 06/11/2012 Accepted on: 12/11/2012 Available online: 29/11/2012 The present study was to evaluate the antioxidant potential of ethanol extract from roots of Murraya koenigii. Ethanol extract of roots was used to study their total phenolic and flavonoid contents and antioxidant including radical scavenging of 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and nitric oxide. The ethanol extract showed significant results, Total phenolic contents were estimated to be equivalents to 51.23 ± 2.53mg of gallic acid equivalent and total flavonoid contents were 43.58 ± 1.89mg of catechin/g equivalent. The percentage of DPPH and NO scavenging activity increased with increasing various concentration of extract.

Different monofloral honeys have a distinctive flavor and color because of differences in physicochemical parameters because of their principal nectar sources or floral types.Honey samples were collected from Apis mellifera colonies forged on 10 floras to analyze the quality of honey in terms of standards laid by Honey Grading and Marking Rules (HGMR), India, 2008 and Codex Alimentarious Commission (CAC), 1969 . The honey samples were analyzed for various physicochemical parameters of honey quality control, i.e., pH, total acidity, moisture, reducing sugars, non-reducing sugars, total sugars, water insoluble solids (WIS), ash content, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural content, and diastase value. The antioxidant potential was estimated using Folin-Ciocalteu reagent. Further, honey samples were assayed for antibacterial activities against clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli using the hole-plate diffusion method.The physicochemical variation in the composition of honey because of floral source shows Ziziphus honey with high pH and diastase values along with low acidity, whereas Helianthus honey contained high reducing sugar and low moisture content. Amomum, Brassica, Acacia, and Citrus contained lowest amount of non-reducing sugars, ash, WIS, and moisture, respectively. Lowest 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) value was detected in Amomum honey, while highest HMF value was observed with Eucalyptus. The maximum antibacterial and antioxidant potential was observed in Azadirachta and Citrus, respectively.The quality of honey produced by local beekeepers met HGMR and CAC standards, and the chemical composition and biological properties of honey were dependent on the floral source from which it was produced.