Annual Research & Review in Biology

Various solvents (distilled water, methanol, ethanol, acetone and chloroform) extracts of Daucus carota were scanned with UV – Visible spectrophotometer (Thermo - spectronic) and Perkin – Elmer FT – IR model (Spectrum BX) infra – red spectrometer. All the extracts though with different pH showed typical orange colour with more polar solvent (H₂O) giving the lighter hue. The UV – Visible spectra analyses of the extracts revealed a good absorption between 202 – 452 nm and λmax range of 272 – 340 nm. The IR spectrometry revealed various functional groups such as alcohol, arenes, alkanes and particularly, the conjugated dienes. These functional groups obviously are attributable to the structural chemistry of the Daucus carota plant pigment.

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a common metabolic disorder with disruption of glucose and lipid metabolism. Many herbal extracts are used for treatment of diabetes. Allium sativum, (garlic), is one of a plant that is routinely used in Iranian population. In this study we investigated the effects of aqueous garlic extract on biochemical parameters and oxidative stress status in the serum of diabetic rats.

Materials and Methods: Thirty-six male Wistar rats were divided into six groups: control rats (C), normal rats that received aqueous garlic extract (C-AGE), STZ-induced diabetic rats (DM1), DM1 treated with garlic (DM1+AGE), STZ+niacinamide-induced diabetic rats (DM2), DM2 treated with garlic (DM2+AGE). At the end of the treatment time, biochemical and oxidative stress parameters were measured in the serum of rats.

Results: The level of glucose, triglycerides, cholesterol and bilirubin increased in diabetic rats compared with control rats. Whereas, they decreased in DM+AGE groups compared with DM rats. The increase in oxidative parameters and decrease in antioxidant parameters were shown in the serum of diabetic rats. Whereas, oral administration of garlic extract, caused that they were normalized.

Conclusions: Aqueous extract of garlic extract can reduce glucose and lipids levels near to normal range and decreased oxidative stress. Therefore it has hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic and antioxidant effects in STZ- and STZ+niacinamide-induced diabetic rats.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of African Mistletoe leaf meal (AMLM) as a feed additive for broiler chickens. 200 day-old chicks were randomly allotted into five treatments in a complete randomized design. Each group was further subdivided into five replicates of 8 birds per replicate. Five experimental diets were formulated and AMLM was incorporated into the diets at different concentrations (0% with 0.05% antibiotics, 2.5%, 5.0%, 7.5% and 0% without antibiotics (negative control). There were no significant differences observed for packed cell volume, haemoglobin, red blood cell counts, monocytes, eosinophils, basophils, platelets while the values obtained for other MLM-supplemented diets for other haematological parameters were statistically similar to the values obtained for the control diets. The observations made from liver histology ranged from no visible lesion (T₁), diffused mild thinning hepatic cords, severe congestion of central vein and Hepatic sinusoids + Necrosis + foci inflammation of cell infiltrate, mild vascular congestion of central veins to severe diffused vascular degeneration of hepatocytes. Viscum albium leaf meal did not have any deleterious effects on most of the haematological parameters when compared with the control.

Aims: Currently, there has been extensive interest in the study of medicinal plants owing to minor, less frequent side effects and potential therapeutic activity. Therefore the aim of the present study was to evaluate the thrombolytic and membrane stabilizing activities of crude ethanolic extract of leaves and stems of Alternanthera paronychioides (A. paronychioides) and Vernonia patula (V. patula).

Study Design: Each part of the plant was extracted with ethanol and concentrated to generate crude extracts. Then thrombolytic and membrane stabilizing activities of crude extracts were determined using standard methods.

Place  and  Duration  of  Study:  Department  of  Pharmacy,  Southeast  University,  Dhaka, Bangladesh, from the month of April to June 2015.

Methodology: To observe the thrombolytic potential of the plant extracts, streptokinase was used as standard. Membrane stabilizing activity was assessed by using hypotonic solution induced human erythrocyte lysis model considering acetyl salicylic acid as standard.

Results: Among the plant extracts highest (30.922±0.886%, P < 0.001) thrombolytic activity was possessed by leaves extracts of the A. paronychioides with respect to negative control.  On the other hand leaves extracts of the V. patula produced maximum, (44.474±2.368%, P < 0.001) of stabilization of erythrocyte membrane compared to negative control.

Conclusion: From the findings, it was reported that the ethanolic leaves extract of the plants revealed remarkable activities. Therefore leaves extract of the A. paronychioides and V. patula could be consider as potential source of compound(s) with thrombolytic and membrane stabilizing activities.

Aims: Soybean which was more frequently used in Egypt for edible oil production and meal for animal feeding was chosen as oil seed. The study targeted to reduce the aflatoxins toxicity, improving safety using natural treatment.

Study Design: The toxicity of aflatoxins on rat’s tissues and blood serum biochemical was studied to identify its hazardous effect.

Place of Study: Samples were collected from local stored area, Egypt, analysis were done in Food Toxicology and Contaminants Department, National Research Centre, between 2014 and 2016. 

Methodology: The biological toxic effect of soybean containing aflatoxins was studied. Soybean seeds were contaminated by aflatoxin B1 at 50 μg/kg and fed by male albino rats. After 35 days of feeding the blood serum and liver and kidney tissues were collected and biochemically and histopathological investigated. The contaminated soybean was exposed to ozone at two levels of 20 and 40 mg/30 minutes to study ozone reducing or removal properties on aflatoxin toxicity. The aflatoxin residues were estimated along with biologically investigated of contaminated seeds which treated by ozone to investigate ozone removal aflatoxin toxicity ability.

Results: The results exhibited that the soybean containing aflatoxins have great hazard effect on all tested items of serum biochemical. The liver cells were damaged and necrotized and further the renal glomerular and tubules were more inversely affected by aflatoxin. Using of ozone, either at low or high doses, had a reasonable effect on reducing of aflatoxins at levels of 84% and 100% for 20 and 40 mg/30 minutes of ozone exposure, respectively.

Conclusion: The improvement of effect of soybean treated with ozone was also biochemically and histopathological tested. The better use of ozone in removal of aflatoxins was recorded for 40 mg/30 min, which resulted comparable of all tested serum biochemical and screening of liver and kidney tissues as that obtained by soybean control.