€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****MEDICAL JOURNAL OF AUSTRALIA***** Pearn J Acacias and aesculapius. Australian native wattles and the doctors they commemorate. In: Med J Aust (1993 Dec 6-20) 159(11-12):729-38 ISSN: 0025-729X Acacias have had significant pharmacological, nutritive and toxicological associations with medicine since before recorded history, an interplay which continues to the present day. One of the most ubiquitous and loved symbols of Australia, and of Australian life and lore, indigenous wattles have also figured in the lives and memorials of medical practitioners. Some 20 indigenous Acacia species bear the names of medical explorers and clinical pioneers. This article documents some of the medical and related uses of Acacia by European and Aboriginal Australians and the evolution from this of a colonial herbal pharmacopoeia. It also gives brief precis and illustrations of the medical practitioners whose lives and works are immortalised in Australian native species of Acacia. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****AMERICAN JOURNAL OF CHINESE MEDICINE***** Chiu KW Wong SW Sham SK Observations on blood pressure responses to injections of medicinal plant extracts in rats. In: Am J Chin Med (1995) 23(1):91-9 ISSN: 0192-415X Aqueous extracts of plant species from different families produced dose dependent decreases in blood pressure in rat within the first minute (immediate hypotensive response) and in duration of this hypotensive response following i.v. injection, while the subsequent response could be either hypotensive or hypertensive depending on plant species. The subsequent response was not dose-related in both magnitude and duration. The immediate hypotensive response was not due to the vehicle (NaCl solution) nor the common cations present in the extracts. It represented probably a reflex response with chemicals in the plant extracts acting on the peripheral chemoreceptors, or in the pacemaker and/or cardiac tissue, leading to a decrease in heart rate and tension. The subsequent hypotensive/hypertensive response was due to the chemicals acting on targets in different parts of various body systems. REGISTRY NUMBERS: 7439-95-4 (Magnesium) 7440-70-2 (Calcium) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY***** Roy AK Sinha KK Chourasia HK Aflatoxin contamination of some common drug plants. In: Appl Environ Microbiol (1988 Mar) 54(3):842-3 ISSN: 0099-2240 This paper deals with the natural occurrence of aflatoxins in some common drug plants collected from storehouses in Bihar, India. Of 15 samples analyzed, 14 were aflatoxin positive. The highest level of aflatoxin contamination was detected in the seeds of Piper nigrum (1.20 micrograms/g), followed by the level detected in the seeds of Mucuna prurita (1.16 micrograms/g), and the lowest level was detected in the bark of Acacia catechu (0.09 micrograms/g). Of 158 isolates of Aspergillus flavus obtained from as many samples of drug plants, 49 were found to be toxigenic. The amount of aflatoxin B1 elaborated by the toxigenic isolates was in the range of 0.86 to 5.24 micrograms/ml of culture filtrate. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****DTW. DEUTSCHE TIERARZTLICHE WOCHENSCHRIFT***** Sotohy SA Muller W Ismail AA "In vitro" effect of Egyptian tannin-containing plants and their extracts on the survival of pathogenic bacteria. In: DTW Dtsch Tierarztl Wochenschr (1995 Sep) 102(9):344-8 ISSN: 0341-6593 This study was conducted on leaves from tannin containing plants which are widely spread in Upper Egypt. From two plants also fruits were investigated (A. nilotica and A. farnesiana). One of the objectives was to determine the total soluble polyphenols and the soluble condensed tannins of these plants. Furthermore the assumed antimicrobial effect of A. nilotica and A. farnesiana leaves and their extracts on C. perfringens, E. coli and S. typhimurium was studied "in-vitro" at dilutions of 0.5% and 0.05%. The tests were carried out in physiological saline solution and in rumen fluid medium (RFM). The results revealed that the total soluble polyphenols ranged from 10.27% to 35.46% and the condensed tannins from 0.5% to 8.28% on dry matter base. The antimicrobial effect of the plant material was only observed on C. perfringens but not on E. coli and S. typhimurium. A. nilotica leaves destroyed the suspension of C. perfringens immediately after being added. Leaves from A. farnesiana showed a delayed affect. Plant extracts were less effective than the raw plant material. In RFM A. nilotica leaves destroyed the bacterial suspension after 10 minutes only at the concentration of 0.5%, but not at 0.05%. With A. farnesiana at a concentration of 0.5% only a reduction was observed. The concentration of 0.05% had no influence. The presence of other proteins than bacterial suspension in rumen fluid (rumen bacteria, protozoa and plant proteins) inhibits the antimicrobial effect of the plant material in a concentration of 0.05%, but not at 0.5%.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****JOURNAL OF ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY***** Nath D Sethi N Singh RK Jain AK Commonly used Indian abortifacient plants with special reference to their teratologic effects in rats. In: J Ethnopharmacol (1992 Apr) 36(2):147-54 ISSN: 0378-8741 A survey programme was organised in Lucknow and Farrukhabad, two towns of Uttar Pradesh, from March 1987 to July 1987. During the survey, the common folk medicine plants used by women were recorded and Ayurvedic and Unani drug encyclopedias were consulted for the antireproductive potential of these plants. Aqueous or 90% ethanol extracts of the plants of interest were studied in rats orally dosed for 10 days after insemination with special reference to effects on foetal development. Leaf extracts of Moringa oleifera and Adhatoda vasica were 100% abortive at doses equivalent to 175 mg/kg of starting dry material. Only the flowers of Acacia arabica and Hibiscus rosa-sinensis appeared to lack teratologic potential at the doses tested. REGISTRY NUMBERS: 64-17-5 (Alcohol, Ethyl) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****JPMA. JOURNAL OF THE PAKISTAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION***** Wadood A Wadood N Shah SA Effects of Acacia arabica and Caralluma edulis on blood glucose levels of normal and alloxan diabetic rabbits. In: JPMA J Pak Med Assoc (1989 Aug) 39(8):208-12 ISSN: 0030-9982 The powdered seeds of Acacia arabica and roots of Caralluma edulis were administered in doses of 2, 3 and 4 gm/kg body-weight to normal and alloxan-diabetic rabbits. The blood glucose levels were estimated before and 2, 4, 6 and 8 hours after the administration of plant suspension. The powdered seeds of Acacia arabica exerted a significant (P less than 0.05) hypoglycemic effect in normal rabbits. The hypoglycemic effect was not significant (P greater than 0.01) in alloxan diabetic rabbits. The powdered roots of Caralluma edulis did not produce any significant (P greater than 0.01) hypoglycaemic effect in normal as well as in alloxan diabetic rabbits. The doses used did not show any acute toxicity and behavioural changes. From this study it may be concluded that the powdered seeds of Acacia arabica act by initiating the release of insulin from pancreatic beta cells of normal rabbits. Moreover, Caralluma edulis did not show any hypoglycaemic effect in normal as well as in diabetic rabbits. REGISTRY NUMBERS: 9000-01-5 (Gum Arabic) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****PHYTOCHEMISTRY***** Polya GM Foo LY Inhibition of eukaryote signal-regulated protein kinases by plant- derived catechin-related compounds. In: Phytochemistry (1994 Apr) 35(6):1399-405 ISSN: 0031-9422 The cladodes of Phyllocladus trichomanoides, the bark of Pseudotsuga menziesii and the heartwood of Acacia melanoxylon contain catechin derivatives that are potent inhibitors of rat brain protein kinase C. Most of these compounds are also inhibitors of bovine heart cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit and wheat Ca(2+)- dependent protein kinase. However, these compounds are either not inhibitors or are relatively poor inhibitors of avian myosin light chain kinase. The most potent protein kinase inhibitors are the procyanidin dimer, trimer and tetramer from the bark of Pseudotsuga menziesii. These compounds are among the most potent plant-derived protein kinase inhibitors yet found. REGISTRY NUMBERS: EC 2.7.1.- (calcium-dependent protein kinase) EC 2.7.1.- (Proto-Oncogene Protein pp60(c-src)) EC 2.7.1.117 (Myosin-Light-Chain Kinase) EC 2.7.1.37 (Protein Kinases) EC 2.7.10.- (Cyclic AMP-Dependent Protein Kinases) 154-23-4 (Catechin) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ Anderson DM Wang WP Composition of the gum from Combretum paniculatum and four other gums which are not permitted food additives. In: Phytochemistry (1990) 29(4):1193-5 ISSN: 0031-9422 Only three gum exudates are permitted for pharmaceutical and food use by international regulatory authorities, viz. gum tragacanth (Asiatic Astragalus spp.), gum karaya (Sterculia spp.) and gum arabic [Acacia senegal (L.) Willd.], but a wide range of other tree exudates is used for a variety of uses in their countries of origin. This paper presents analytical data for the gum exudates from Atalaya hemiglauca, Cassine aethiopica, Combretum paniculatum, Sclerocarya birrea, and Pseudocedrela kotschyi. These gums may have local technological applications, but are not recommended for addition to foodstuffs. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€