February 2015

Light spectra affect the morphoanatomical and chemical features of clonal Phyllanthus tenellus Roxb. grown in vitro

Phyllanthus tenellus Roxb. is a widely distributed tropical medicinal plant and highly valued for its therapeutic properties. Since variable light conditions can significantly alter phenolic compounds that are the main therapeutic constituents of P. tenellus, including tannins and flavonoids, the development of this plant and its chemical metabolism in response to different light spectra were investigated. To accomplish...

Author(s): Cristiane Pimentel Victório, Marcos Vinicius Leal-Costa, Eliana Schwartz Tavares, Ricardo Machado Kuster and Celso Luiz Salgueiro Lage,  

February 2015

Effect of Ginkgo biloba extract on sperm quality, serum testosterone concentration and histometric analysis of testes from adult Wistar rats

Ginkgo biloba extract is a widely consumed phytotherapic used mainly in the treatment of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, and it has also been employed to treat erectile dysfunction and as an aphrodisiac. This work was aimed at evaluating its effect on sperm quality, serum testosterone concentration and on the histometric analysis of the testes from adult male Wistar rats. Three-month-old Wistar rats were treated...

Author(s): Leonardo Toshio Oshio, Cláudia Cristina Teixeira Ribeiro, Renato Macedo Marques, Martha de Oliveira Guerra, Sérgio Luis Pinto da Matta, João Evangelista de Paula Reis, Rita de Cássia da Silveira e Sá, Leandro Vespoli Campos  and Vera Maria Peters  

February 2015

In vitro and in vivo evaluation of quinones from Auxemma oncocalyx Taub. on Leishmania braziliensis

The effect of a quinone fraction (QF) isolated from the heartwood of Auxemma oncocalyx Taub. was investigated in vitro and in vivo on Leishmania braziliensis. Although QF (1-10 μg/mL) showing marked in vitro anti-Leishmania activity (81 to 94%), the oral treatment with the compound did not protect hamsters against progressive L. braziliensis infection. When QF was administered intraperitoneally (20 mg/kg) the lesion...

Author(s): Sayonara de Melo Viana, Maria Augusta D. Ferreira, Priscila Valera Guerra, Glauce S. Barros Viana and Maria Jania Teixeira  

February 2015

Libidibia ferrea (Mart. ex Tul.) L. P. Queiroz: A review of the biological activities and phytochemical composition

Libidibia ferrea (Mart. ex Tul.) L. P. Queiroz is a medicinal plant widely known in Brazil as “jucá” or “pauferro” that belongs to the Fabaceae family. The species is native to Brazil and is mainly found in the North and Northeastern regions. It has been studied for its biological activities and chemical composition. Scientific literature has reported that this species contains different...

Author(s): Magda Rhayanny Assunção Ferreira, and Luiz Alberto Lira Soares,  

February 2015

Evaluation of membrane stabilizing, anthelmintic, antioxidant activity with phytochemical screening of methanolic extract of Neolamarckia cadamba fruits

The current study was directed on methanolic extract of Neolamarckia cadamba fruits, belonging to the family Rubiaceae, to reveal the possible phytochemicals existence and also to evaluate the membrane stabilizing, anthelmintic, antioxidant properties. To estimate the membrane stabilizing activity, both heat and hypotonic solution induced haemolysis techniques were used. The anthelmintic test was conducted on earthworm...

Author(s): Tairin Islam, Abhijit Das, Kumar Bishawjit Shill, Palash Karmakar, Shafiul Islam and Mohammad Mafruhi Sattar