€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****BERLINER UND MUNCHENER TIERARZTLICHE WOCHENSCHRIFT***** Schutte A [Is research in veterinary homeopathy justified? Thoughts concerning principles and synopsis of 5 years of research on the subject, "Use of homeopathy in domestic animals," at the branch of the Free University of Berlin in Schwarzenbek] Ist Forschung in der Veterinarhomoopathie gerechtfertigt? Grundsatzgedanken und eine Zusammenschau uber 5 Jahre Forschung zum Thema "Anwendung der Homoopathie bei Nutztieren" an der Aussenstelle der Freien Universitat Berlin in Schwarzenbek. In: Berl Munch Tierarztl Wochenschr (1994 Jul) 107(7):229-36 ISSN: 0005-9366 (Published in German) Supported by the Karl- and Veronica-Carstens-Stiftung and Deutsche Homoopathische Union (DHU) in summer '87 a project dealing with homoeopathic treatment of domestic animals was initialized at the field station of the Freie Universitat Berlin in Schwarzenbek. After a period of five years the studies have been completed in summer '92 and the following results were achieved: 1) Homoeopathic drugs (considering the similarity) are suitable to reduce the morbidity rate of newly housed fattening pigs effectively by metaphylactic treatments. 2) The efficiency of the combination Lachesis, Pyrogenium, Echinacea and Chlorophyll (Laseptal) for curing respiratory infections is comparable to the one of Oxytetrazycline and the combination of Sulfadimidin and Trimethoprim. 3) A significant therapeutical effect was achieved by homoeopathic treatment in dairy herds so that the use of allopathic drugs can be reduced considerably. 4) Homoeopathic drugs, including nosodes, show hardly or do not at all show a positive influence on chronic mastitis in cows, especially increased cell counts combined with latent infections of pathogenic micro-organisms. 5) Drying off cows with Phytolacca D1 only does not reduce the milk quantity or prevent the occurrence of mastitis during the non-lactating period. 6) The combination Sabina, Pulsatilla, Lachesis and Pyrogenium (proposed to improve the puerperal period after placental retention) compared with standard allopathic treatment is not suitable to improve the puerperal period or fertility after retention of placenta.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****HNO***** Friese KH Kruse S Moeller H [Acute otitis media in children. Comparison between conventional and homeopathic therapy] Otitis media acuta bei Kindern. Vergleich zwischen konventioneller und homoopathischer Therapie. In: HNO (1996 Aug) 44(8):462-6 ISSN: 0017-6192 (Published in German) Within a prospective group study of five practicing otorhinolaryngologists, conventional therapy of acute otitis media in children was compared with homeopathic treatments. Group A (103 children) was primarily treated with homeopathic single remedies (Aconitum napellus, Apis mellifica, Belladonna, Capsicum, Chamomilla, Kalium bichromicum, Lachesis, Lycopodium, Mercurius solubilis, Okoubaka, Pulsatilla, Silicea). Group B (28 children) was treated by decongestant nose-drops, antibiotics, secretolytics and/or antipyretics. Comparisons were done by symptoms, physical findings, duration of therapy and number of relapses. The children of the study were between 1 and 11 years of age. The difference in numbers was explained by the children with otitis media being primarily treated by pediatricians using conventional methods. The median duration of pain in group A was 2 days and in group B 3 days. Median therapy in group A lasted 4 days and in group B 10 days. Antibiotics were given over a period of 8-10 days, while homeopathic treatments were stopped after healing. In group A 70.7% of the patients were free of relapses within 1 years and 29.3% had a maximum of three relapses. Group B had 56.5% without relapses and 43.5% a maximum of six relapses. Five children in group A were given antibiotics and 98 responded solely to homeopathic treatments. No side effects of treatment were found in either group. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****JOURNAL OF ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY***** Martin ML Ortiz de Urbina AV Montero MJ Carron R San Roman L Pharmacologic effects of lactones isolated from Pulsatilla alpina subsp. apiifolia. In: J Ethnopharmacol (1988 Dec) 24(2-3):185-91 ISSN: 0378-8741 Two lactone compounds, protoanemonin and anemonin, were determined in the flowering aerial parts of P. alpina subsp. apiifolia. Anemonin is the primary compound responsible for the antipyretic activity and both anemonin and protoanemonin participate in the sedating effect. Registry Numbers: 108-28-1 (protoanemonin) 508-44-1 (anemonin) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR EVOLUTION***** Hoot SB Palmer JD Structural rearrangements, including parallel inversions, within the chloroplast genome of Anemone and related genera. In: J Mol Evol (1994 Mar) 38(3):274-81 ISSN: 0022-2844 Chloroplast DNA cleavage sites for 10 restriction enzymes were mapped for 46 species representing all sections of Anemone, four closely related genera (Clematis, Pulsatilla, Hepatica, and Knowltonia), and three more distantly related outgroups (Caltha, Ranunculus, and Adonis). Comparison of the maps revealed that the chloroplast genomes of Anemone and related genera have sustained an unusual number and variety of rearrangements. A single inversion of a 42-kb segment was found in the large single-copy region of Adonis aestivalis. Two types of rearrangements were found in the chloroplast genome of Clematis, Anemone, Pulsatilla, Hepatica, and Knowltonia: An approximately 4-kb expansion of the inverted repeat and four inversions within the large single-copy region. These rearrangements support the monophyletic status of these genera, clearly separating them from Caltha, Ranunculus, and Adonis. Two further inversions were found in two Clematis species and three Anemone species. While appearing to support a monophyletic grouping for these taxa, these two inversions conflict with data from both chloroplast restriction sites and morphology and are better interpreted as having occurred twice independently. These are the first two documented cases of homoplastic inversions in chloroplast DNA. Finally, the second intron of the chloroplast rps 12 gene was shown to have been lost in the common ancestor of the same three Anemone species that feature the two homoplastic inversions. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****PHYTOCHEMISTRY***** Wang MK Wu FE Chen YZ Triterpenoid saponins from Anemone hupehensis. In: Phytochemistry (1997 Jan) 44(2):333-5 ISSN: 0031-9422 Two new triterpenoid saponins, named hupehensis saponin F and G, were isolated from the water soluble part of Anemone hupehensis Lemoine. By chemical and spectroscopic evidence, their structures were elucidated as 3-O-beta-D-ribopyranosyl(1-->3)-alpha-L- rhamnopyranosyl(1--> 2)-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl hederagennin-28-O- alpha-rhamnopyranosyl(1--> 4)-beta-D-glucopyranosyl(1-->6)-beta-D- glucopyranosyl(1--> 3)-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl(1-->4)-beta- glucopyranosyl(1--> 6)-beta-D-glucopyranoside and 3-O-beta-D-ribopyranosyl(1-->3)-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl (1--> 2)-alpha-L- arabinopyranosyl hederagenin-28-O-beta-glucopyranosyl(1-->3)-alpha- rhamnopyranosyl( 1--> 4)-beta-D-glucopyranosyl(1-->6)-beta-D- glucopyranosyl(1--> 3)-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl(1-->4)-beta-D- glucopyranosyl(1--> 6)-beta-D-glucopyranoside, respectively. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ Ye WC Ou BX Ji NN Zhao SX Ye T McKervey MA Stevenson P Patensin, a saponin from Pulsatilla patens var. multifida. In: Phytochemistry (1995 Jul) 39(4):937-9 ISSN: 0031-9422 Patensin, a new triterpenoid glycoside, was isolated from the ethanolic extraction of the roots of Pulsatilla patens var. multifida. Its structure was established as hederagenin 3-O-beta-D- galactopyranosyl-(1-->2)-beta-D- glucopyranoside on the basis of hydrolysis and spectral evidence including 1D and 2D NMR techniques. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ Ye WC Ji NN Zhao SX Liu JH Ye T McKervey MA Stevenson P Triterpenoids from Pulsatilla chinensis. In: Phytochemistry (1996 Jun) 42(3):799-802 ISSN: 0031-9422 A new lupane type triterpenic acid, pulsatillic acid, and two new lupane type triterpenoid glycosides, pulsatilloside A and B, along with the known 23-hydroxybetulinic acid were isolated from the roots of Pulsatilla chinensis. Their structures were characterized as 3-oxo- 23-hydroxy-lup-20(29)-en-28-oic acid, 3 beta, 23-dihydroxy-lup-20(29)- en-28-oic acid 3-O-alpha-L-arabinopyranoside and 3 beta, 23-dihydroxy- lup-20(29)-en-28-oic acid 28-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->6)-beta-D- glucopyranoside on the basis of hydrolysis and spectral evidence including two-dimensional relay HOHAHA, one-dimensional multiple relay COSY and ROESY NMR techniques. Pulsatillic acid exhibited cytotoxic activities against P-388, Lewis lung carcinoma and human large-cell lung carcinoma. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****PLANTA MEDICA***** Martin ML San Roman L Dominguez A In vitro activity of protoanemonin, an antifungal agent. In: Planta Med (1990 Feb) 56(1):66-9 ISSN: 0032-0943 Protoanemonin, the lactone of gamma-hydroxy-vinylacrylic acid, isolated from Pulsatilla alpina has in vitro activity against fungi. The MIC is 15 micrograms/ml and RNA inhibition seems to be the first target of the drug. The LD50 of protoanemonin in male Swiss albino mice was 190 mg/kg. Registry Numbers: 108-28-1 (protoanemonin) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****PROCEEDINGS / ANNUAL MEETING OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR***** Kim S Mo SH Jang EM Choi JY Yun WJ Chun EG Jo DY Park WJ Kim SB Antitumor effects of extracts of Pulsatilla koreana (SB-31) in vitro (Meeting abstract). In: Proc Annu Meet Am Assoc Cancer Res (1994) 35:A2430 ISSN: 0197-016X Extracts of P koreana (SB-31) have been tried as an antitumor agent by traditional medicine practitioners in Korea for the past 30 years. It is a specially prepared extract of P koreana whose fractions lose efficacy compared to the original mixture. Lee observed substantial antitumor effects and minimal toxicity of SB-31 in sarcoma 180 animal tumor models (unpublished data). For the past 5 years, there have been dramatic though anecdotal therapeutic outcomes with SB-31 in some advanced stage cancer patients. We evaluated the in vitro antitumor effects of SB-31 against 3 kinds of gastric cancer cells, A549, HeLa and Caski, MCF-7, HepG2 and Hep3B and normal mononuclear cells. Cytotoxicity was evaluated with the tetrazolium-based colorimetric assay (MTT) after incubation of cancer cells with SB-31. Results: in 3 gastric cancer cells, ID50 of SB-31 were 0.16, 0.34 and 0.53 mg/ml. Most effective tumor cell kill was achieved after 96 hr of incubation with SB-31. The ID50 values of SB-31 on various cancer cell lines are shown in a table. Keeping SB-31 ampul in room temperature up to 4 days did not effect the efficacy but the activity decreased after more than 4 days in the ambient temperature. It is concluded that SB-31 is an active antitumor agent without significant toxicity. The mechanism of action of SB-31 should be unravelled, including its action as an apoptosis inducer. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****YAO HSUEH HSUEH PAO [ACTA PHARMACEUTICA SINICA]***** Zhang XQ Liu AR Xu LX [Determination of ranunculin in Pulsatilla chinensis and synthetic ranunculin by reversed phase HPLC] In: Yao Hsueh Hsueh Pao (1990) 25(12):932-5 ISSN: 0513-4870 (Published in Chinese) A method for the determination of ranunculin in Pulsatilla chinensis and synthetic ranunculin by reversed phase HPLC using betamethasone as internal standard is described. The column employed was a 10 micron LiChrosorb RP-18 (230 x 14 mm), the eluting solvent consisted of methanol-water (40:10, V/V) and the effluent was monitored at 225 nm. The advantages of this method are simple, rapid and accurate. The coefficients of variation are less than 1%. Registry Numbers: 644-69-9 (ranunculin) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€