R. N. Chopra

Bio: R. N. Chopra is an academic researcher from Calcutta School of Tropical Medicine. The author has contributed to research in topic(s): Malaria & Holarrhena. The author has an hindex of 8, co-authored 61 publication(s) receiving 6823 citation(s).

Indigenous Drugs Of India

Abstract: The practical science of dietetics has lagged rather painfully behind the advance of the laboratory worker. In the latter half of the nineteenth century the role of the three foodstuffs was determined and the quantitative aspect of diet generally agreed, but the qualitative aspect was not really studied until the second decade of the present century. Consequently the simultaneous introduction of margarine in its original form and of the roller-milling of cereals may be said to be chiefly responsible for a dark page in the nation's dietary history the cause of which was Inot then appreciated. In disease, as Sir William Roberts complained more than half a century ago, dietetic restrictions were imposed which were traditional rather than scientific. To-day there is no excuse for such things, and the Textbook of Dietetics by Prof. Stanley Davidson and Dr. I. A. Anderson provides an admirable guide to the science and practice of the subject. Two special characteristics enhance its value: in the first place everything is referred back to first principles ; and, in the second, tradition unsupported by evidence is swept remorselessly aside for rational schemes based on those principles and on personal experience. Mention should also be made of the very useful diet sheets constructed by Sister Mary Thomson, which occupy sixty-six pages and which are full of practical wisdom. The keynote of the book is struck in the preface in these words: " No dietetic -estriction should be imposed that cannot be justified on biochemical, physiological, or clinical grounds. To withhold much-desired food on no better sanction than fashion or tradition not only discredits the practice of dietetics but may inflict misery and harm." The plan of the book is to deal with (1) a survey of diets at various income levels; (2) the physiology of nutrition; (3) diet in health, particUlarl.y in periods of stress; (4) dietetic treatment of disease. The profession is already much indebted to Prof. Stanley Davidson for his discovery of the high vitamin content of halibut oil and his demonstration that the majority of women in the poorer classes live on the verge of an easily remediable iron starvation. The characteristics of his earlier work are also manifest here. There is the same careful collection of facts, freshness of outlook, common sense, and lucid exposition. We might specify the chapter on the treatment of nephritis as an outstanding example of his method. It is of particular interest to note the way in which the newer knowledge is brought to the explanation of well-known clinical facts. Thus the danger of haemorrhage in operations on patients with obstructive jaundice has long been recognized. Now we know that the failure to absorb fat which is typical of jaundice brings with it a failure to absorb the fat-soluble vitamin K; consequently the level of prothrombin in the blood falls and a haemorrhagic tendency develops. We are clearly shown the responsibility of hypovitaminosis for vague states of illhealth, and the recently recognized danger of treating chronic diseases by necessarily restricted diets without reference to this factor. On the other hand, it is reassuring to be told that the idea that vitamin D is toxic if given in large doses is erroneous,.being based on the use of crude products containing toxic substances allied to vitamin D but having no a.ntirachitic properties. We were a little surprised, however, to find no mention of the value of vitamin A in the prophylaxis of renal calculus; indeed, in view of Swift Joly's dictum that diet is the most important single aetiological factor in calculus formation, the discussion of this subject seems the only one that is not quite adequate. The whole subject of mineral metabolism in disease, another qualitative aspect of increasing importance, is, on the other hand, fully and helpfully discussed. To read this book is to realize how fundamentally our ideas on diet in health and disease have been modified in the last twenty years, thanks to co-operation between pure chemists, biochemists, and clinicians. SUch co-operation is not only essential in these days of increasing specialism, but is fruitful in itself. Here that fruit is attractively displayed; to fail to read this book is to miss an interesting experience and to lose a valuable guide to the complexities of dietetic treatment.

Chronic Ulcerative Colitis.

Abstract: P. N. RAY, b.a., m.b. (Cal.), f.r.c.s. (Eng.) Additional Surgeon, Medical College Hospitals, Calcutta The problem of ulcerative colitis remains unsolved; medical opinion has oscillated between e extremes of optimism and pessimism. There are some, notably Bargen (1935) and Buie I. \"37), who would class it among the conquered ^seases, while others, Hetenyi (1935) for ^stance, would classify it equally emphatically among the incurable diseases. The significance ?*. such startling divergence of authoritative ?Pmion will be missed unless we take into consideration the geographical distribution of the disease and the changes in dietetics and habits, tticluced by the complexities of modern civiliza??n. The consensus of medical opinion is more lnyined to regard it in the same light as Pulmonary tuberculosis; the disease can only be arrested by prolonged treatment, involving rest ^ bed and maintenance of mental peace. Spontaneous intermissions are not uncommon, but intercurrent infections and emotional disurbances have marked deleterious effects on the Pr?greSS of the disease. This paper is based on the study and statisical survey of 120 cases of ulcerative colitis under our care in the Medical College Hospitals the Carmichael Hospital for Tropical ?diseases. The present investigation was undertaken as a supplement to our previous work p1} ' Amcebiasis and Appendicitis' (Banerji, ^?hopra and Ray, 1936), wherein it was observed hat the incidence of non-specific colitis in a small series of cases for sigmoidoscopy was as 1as .43 per cent. -Definition.?Chronic ulcerative colitis may be r??arded as a disease of the large intestines taring the second and third decades of life with characteristic clinical and pathological features ut without any specific bacteriological infection.

Medicinal plants of India with anti-diabetic potential.

Abstract: Since ancient times, plants have been an exemplary source of medicine. Ayurveda and other Indian literature mention the use of plants in treatment of various human ailments. India has about 45 000 plant species and among them, several thousands have been claimed to possess medicinal properties. Research conducted in last few decades on plants mentioned in ancient literature or used traditionally for diabetes have shown anti-diabetic property. The present paper reviews 45 such plants and their products (active, natural principles and crude extracts) that have been mentioned/used in the Indian traditional system of medicine and have shown experimental or clinical anti-diabetic activity. Indian plants which are most effective and the most commonly studied in relation to diabetes and their complications are: Allium cepa, Allium sativum, Aloe vera, Cajanus cajan, Coccinia indica, Caesalpinia bonducella, Ficus bengalenesis, Gymnema sylvestre, Momordica charantia, Ocimum sanctum, Pterocarpus marsupium, Swertia chirayita, Syzigium cumini, Tinospora cordifolia and Trigonella foenum graecum. Among these we have evaluated M. charantia, Eugenia jambolana, Mucuna pruriens, T. cordifolia, T. foenum graecum, O. sanctum, P. marsupium, Murraya koeingii and Brassica juncea. All plants have shown varying degree of hypoglycemic and anti-hyperglycemic activity.

Antimicrobial and phytochemical studies on 45 Indian medicinal plants against multi-drug resistant human pathogens

Abstract: Ethanolic extracts of 45 Indian medicinal plants traditionally used in medicine were studied for their antimicrobial activity against certain drug-resistant bacteria and a yeast Candida albicans of clinical origin. Of these, 40 plant extracts showed varied levels of antimicrobial activity against one or more test bacteria. Anticandidal activity was detected in 24 plant extracts. Overall, broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity was observed in 12 plants (L. inermis, Eucalyptus sp., H. antidysentrica, H. indicus, C. equistifolia. T. belerica, T. chebula, E. officinalis, C. sinensis, S. aromaticum and P. granatum). No correlation was observed between susceptibility of test strains with plant extracts and antibiotic resistance behaviour of the microbial strains (Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella paratyphi, Shigella dysenteriae, Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Candida albicans). Qualitative phytochemical tests, thin layer chromatography and TLC-bioautography of certain active extracts demonstrated the presence of common phytocompounds in the plant extracts including phenols, tannins and flavonoids as major active constituents.

Screening of some Indian medicinal plants for their antimicrobial properties

Abstract: A total of 82 Indian medicinal plants traditionally used in medicines were subjected to preliminary antibacterial screening against several pathogenic and opportunistic microorganisms. Aqueous, hexane and alcoholic extracts of each plant were tested for their antibacterial activity using agar well diffusion method at sample concentration of 200 mg/ml. The results indicated that out of 82 plants, 56 exhibited antibacterial activity against one or more test pathogens. Interestingly, extracts of five plants showed strong and broad spectrum activity as compared to rest of 51 plant extracts which demonstrated moderate activity. On the whole the alcoholic extracts showed greater activity than their corresponding aqueous and hexane extracts. Among various extracts, only alcoholic extracts of Emblica officinalis, Terminalia chebula, Terminalia belerica, Plumbago zeylanica and Holarrhena antidysenterica were found to show potentially interesting activity against test bacteria. These active crude alcoholic extracts were also assayed for cellular toxicity to fresh sheep erythrocytes and found to have no cellular toxicity.

Biological activities and medicinal properties of neem (Azadirachta indica)

Abstract: Neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss) is perhaps the most useful traditional medicinal plant in India. Each part of the neem tree has some medicinal property and is thus commercially exploitable. During the last five decades, apart from the chemistry of the neem compounds, considerable progress has been achieved regarding the biological activity and medicinal applications of neem. It is now considered as a valuable source of unique natural products for development of medicines against various diseases and also for the development of industrial products. This review gives a bird’s eye view mainly on the biological activities of some of the neem compounds isolated, pharmacological actions of the neem extracts, clinical studies and plausible medicinal applications of neem along with their safety evaluation. MEDICINAL plants are part and parcel of human society to combat diseases, from the dawn of civilization. Azadirachta indica A. Juss (syn. Melia azadirachta) is well known in India and its neighbouring countries for more than 2000 years as one of the most versatile medicinal plants having a wide spectrum of biological activity. A. indica A. Juss and M. azedarach are two closely related species of Meliaceae. The former is popularly known as Indian neem (margosa tree) or Indian lilac, and the latter as the Persian lilac. Neem is an evergreen tree, cultivated in various parts of the Indian subcontinent. Every part of the tree has been used as traditional medicine for household remedy against various human ailments, from antiquity 1–6 . Neem has been extensively used in ayurveda, unani and homoeopathic medicine and has become a cynosure of modern medicine. The sanskrit name of the neem tree is ‘Arishtha’ meaning ‘reliever of sickness’ and hence is considered as ‘Sarbaroganib arini’. The tree is still regarded as ‘village dispensary’ in India. The importance of the neem tree has been recognized by the US National Academy of Sciences, which published a report in 1992 entitled ‘Neem – a tree for solving global problems’. The advancement of neem research has earlier been documented 7,8