University of Peradeniya

About: University of Peradeniya is a education organization based out in Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Poison control. The organization has 5970 authors who have published 7388 publications receiving 197002 citations.

The use of complementary and alternative medicines (CAMs) in the treatment of diabetes mellitus: is continued use safe and effective?

Abstract: Diabetes mellitus is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, with a prevalence of 347 million in 2013. Complementary and Alternative Medicines (CAM) are a group of remedies that is fast gaining acceptance among individuals. Cinnamon, Bitter gourd (Momordica charantia) and Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) are 3 widely used CAMs used worldwide for the treatment of diabetes. Data on safety and efficacy is limited, but the consumption is wide. Crepe ginger (Costus speciosus) and Ivy gourd (Coccinia grandis) are 2 plants used widely in the Asian region for their presumed hypoglycaemic properties. In this review, we analyzed the available evidence for the 5 CAMs mentioned above in terms of in-vitro studies, animal studies sand clinical trials. We also describe the mechanisms of hypoglycaemia and safety concerns where there is available evidence. Clinical trials that studied the hypoglycaemic effects of Cinnamon, bitter gourd, fenugreek and ivy gourd showed conflicting results. Direct comparison between studies remains a challenge in view of the baseline heterogeneity of subjects, differences in substrate preparation, variable end points and poor trial design. Short durations of study and small number of subjects studied is universal. Crepe ginger has not been studied adequately in humans to draw conclusions. In view of the high prevalence of use and safety and efficacy issues, there is an urgent need to study their hypoglycaemic and adverse effects in well-designed long-term clinical trials.

Enhancing adsorption capacity of toxic malachite green dye through chemically modified breadnut peel: equilibrium, thermodynamics, kinetics and regeneration studies

Abstract: Breadnut skin, in both its unmodified (KS) and base-modified (BM-KS) forms, was investigated for its potential use as a low-cost adsorbent for the removal of toxic dye, malachite green (MG). Characterization of the adsorbents was carried out using scanning electron microscope, X-ray fluorescence and Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy. Batch adsorption experiments, carried out under optimized conditions, for the adsorption of MG were fitted using five isotherm models (Langmuir, Freundlich, Dubinin-Radushkevich, Temkin and Sips) and six error functions to determine the best-fit model. The adsorption capacity was greatly enhanced when breadnut skin was chemically modified with NaOH, leading to an adsorption capacity of 353.0 mg g−1, that was far superior to most reported adsorbents for the removal of MG. Thermodynamics studies indicated that the adsorption of MG was spontaneous on KS and BM-KS, and the reactions were endothermic and exothermic, respectively. Kinetics studies showed that both followed t...

An inclusive and adaptive framework for measuring social resilience to disasters

Abstract: Resilience is a multifaceted phenomenon, and approaches to measure resilience across disciplines have produced wide-ranging methods. This paper presents an inclusive and adaptive ‘5S’ social resilience framework that was developed based on the critical review of existing social resilience frameworks discussed in the literature. The proposed social resilience framework consists of five sub-dimensions of social resilience, namely, social structure, social capital, social mechanisms, social equity, and social belief, a set of 16 characteristics, and corresponding 46 indicators. While the key social resilience characteristics are integrated within a single framework, it is flexible enough for adapting to a specific context as needed. Key challenges in resilience measurement approaches developed in disaster management context are also highlighted in this paper. The direct measures of social resilience are resource intensive. Hence, proxy measures have been widely used using data available in the public domain which often result in inadequate measurement of social resilience. It is imperative to explore use of surrogates in measuring social resilience characteristics that are complex and not easily measurable directly.

Malaria vectors in a traditional dry zone village in Sri Lanka.

Abstract: Malaria transmission by anopheline mosquitoes was studied in a traditional tank-irrigation-based rice-producing village in the malaria-endemic low country dry zone of northcentral Sri Lanka during the period August 1994-February 1997. Adult mosquitoes were collected from human and bovid bait catches, bovid-baited trap huts, indoor catches, and pit traps. Mosquito head-thoraces were tested for the presence of Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax, and blood-engorged abdomens for the presence of human blood by ELISAs. House surveys were done at two-day intervals to record cases of blood film-confirmed malaria among the villagers. A total of 7,823 female anophelines representing 14 species were collected. Trends in anopheline abundance were significantly correlated with rainfall of the preceding month in An. annularis, An. barbirostris, An. subpictus, An. vagus, and An. varuna, but were not significant in An. culicifacies and An. peditaeniatus. Malaria parasite infections were seen in seven mosquito species, with 75% of the positive mosquitoes containing P. falciparum and 25% P. vivax. Polymorph PV247 was recorded from a vector (i.e., An. varuna) for the first time in Sri Lanka. Computations of mean number of infective vector (MIV) rates using abundance, circumsporozoite (CS) protein rate, and human blood index (HBI) showed the highest rate in An. culicifacies. A malaria outbreak occurred from October 1994 to January 1995 in which 45.5% of village residents experienced at least a single disease episode. Thereafter, malaria incidence remained low. Anopheles culicifacies abundance lagged by one month correlated positively with monthly malaria incidence during the outbreak period, and although this species ranked fifth in terms of abundance, infection was associated with a high MIV rate due to a high CS protein rate and HBI. Abundance trends in other species did not correlate significantly with malaria. It was concluded that An. culicifacies was epidemiologically the most important vector in the study area.