Alternative & Integrative Medicine

Alternative medicine coupled with conventional and psychosocial therapies has been shown to be greatly effective in treating chronic alcoholism with positive treatment outcomes. Herbs like Kudzu, Tangerine Peel, Gentian and Bupleurum have been used efficaciously to treat chronic alcoholism and reduce liver toxicity. This article reviews the herbs Kudzu, Tangerine Peel, Gentian and Bupleurum with respect to their actions on the enzymes alcohol and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase. We further explore the genetic and pathophysiological basis of alcoholism while unraveling genetic polymorphisms in the genes involved in metabolic and effector action pathways that have an important bearing on why some individuals are addicted to alcohol, have severe withdrawal response and increased tendency to relapse. In this article we mainly discuss the role of alternative medicine, specifically in context with the above mentioned herbs for their role in inhibiting production of acetaldehyde dehydrogenase, suppressing craving, regulating blood glucose balance and reducing hepatotoxicity in chronic alcoholics.

Primitive Medicines; Ayurvedic Herbal and other treatment therapy are the oldest way of treatment in eastern philosophy and now it is classified Complementary and the Alternative Medicine (CAM). In Nepal they have been very famous since last century. There was high utilization in mid and far western region of Nepal in the past. So it is necessary to explore their use in that territory. Objectives: The main objective of this study was to explore the available herbs product and their utilization as therapeutic. Methodology: A cross sectional study was done within Kailali district in Nepal.The respondents were selected in systematic random sampling and the clusters were selected in PPS having 27% in household base. Pretested questionnaire were used for the study. Ethical Approved was taken from Nepal health research council and informed consent was taken from respondents. Epi data 3.1 version was used to entry the data and SPSS 20 was used for the data analysis. Chi Square test was used to show the association between different variable and CAM utilization. Results: During the study 24 types of herbs were found in practice. About 1/4th (23.7%) used the herbs as therapeutic use, Narayanpur used least proportion (10%), and the people who had misconception of food used the herbs. More than 1/3rd (37%) used those herbs for cough and respiratory symptoms. The person who had information about the cause of disease and the knowledge of preventive ways with the application of herbs were statistically significant (p<0.0001). Conclusion: The behavior of using CAM is very old practice and very effective of some illness even now. The utilization of therapy is done together with current allopathic treatment system and there is limited research of CAM utilization with comparative study. A comparative study should be necessary to find the implication of herbs with the modern allopathic system and economic aspects. If their application can be updated and used with research, it will have good result for the treatment.

Aim and objective: Although the clinical significance of tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) has been elucidated, primary or acquired resistance to TRAIL limits its efficacy in cancer patients. This study aimed to investigate bufadienolides as promising candidates to combine with TRAIL and to determine the pathway involved in overcoming TRAIL resistance in breast cancer cells. Methods: The effects of bufadienolides, cinobufagin and cinobufotalin, in combination with TRAIL were examined in TRAIL-sensitive and TRAIL-resistant breast cancer, MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-468 cells, respectively. Cell viability was determined using count and viability assays. Apoptotic cell death was detected by annexin-V/7-AAD staining. Silencing of MCL-1 expression was established using MCL-1 siRNA and protein expression was assessed by Western blot analysis. STAT3 localization was determined using immunofluorescence staining. Results: The combination of bufadienolides with TRAIL significantly reduced cell viability in both TRAIL-sensitive and TRAIL-resistant breast cancer cells in vitro. Bufadienolides overcame TRAIL resistance by downregulating MCL- 1, an anti-apoptotic protein, through the JAK-STAT pathway. The combination of TRAIL with knock down of MCL-1 or JAK-STAT inhibitor, JSI-124, could synergistically induce apoptosis similar to bufadienolides. Conclusion: Bufadienolides enhance TRAIL-induced apoptosis in breast cancer cells through Mcl-1 downregulation via JAK-STAT pathway. Targeting MCL-1 or JAK2 could be one of the strategies to overcome breast cancer cell resistance to TRAIL. Bufadienolides, through JAK2/STAT3/MCL-1 inhibition, could be considered as promising cancer therapy agents in combination with TRAIL.

V-Heal is a innovative and transformational system of healing. This system of healing does not have any dependence on any of the existing systems of healing. It is based on vibrations/cosmic energies. Delivery of vibrational energy is based on vedic methods. V-Heal is a personalized health solution. It is based on each individual’s unique energy field. V-Heal is non-intrusive. A vedic device viz., V-Heal is designed based on each individual’s energy field. The victim just needs to wear it. Within a short span of three to four months, significant changes in medical condition of the victim can be observed. This system of healing does not require any changes in existing life style. V-Heal is highly efficacious. We have successfully treated people with diabetes, psoriasis, migraine, lower back pain to name a few. The therapy is truly holistic as well as integrative in nature. Besides disease alleviation, V-Heal increases immunity and vitality of the person. In other words, it balances and harmonizes the entire body. The victim can also continue with other methods of treatment.

Abri cantongnesis in combination with herbs are used for treatment of diseases. However, the detail of its pharmacological activities is lacking. In this study, the chemoprotective effects of the active fraction of Abri cantongnesis on toxicant-induced liver toxicity in rats were studied. The Abri cantongnesis extract was orally administered to SD rats for three days before treatment of rats with trichloroethylene once for two days. Rat urines and hepatic enzymes were collected for analysis. The results showed that CYP 1A and CYP 2E1 and glutathione transferase increased over 45% while the activity of diaphorase increased by 30%. These enzyme activities were increased with the extract concentration. However, only UGT showed a decrease in activity upon treatment with Abri cantongnesis. The treatment of rats with Abri cantongnesis caused an increase in catalytic activities of CYP 1A and CYP 2E1, GST and diaphorase in the rat. The results show that Abri cantongnesis enhanced elimination of trichloroethylene and its metabolites; thus the treatment of Abri cantongnesis can reduce liver toxicity in rats. The findings suggest that Abri cantongnesis has chemopreventive effects on toxicants-induced hepatotoxicity in rats. The Abri cantongnesis can be used as a chemo-protective agent for the liver.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the in vitro activity of aqueous and methanolic extracts of Cassia alata leaves on the development of Plasmodium falciparum field isolates. Method: The Trager and Jensen method with slight modifications was used. For the culture, RPMI 1640 and Albumax were used to replace human serum. The extracts as well as the reference drug (chloroquine) were diluted using RPMI medium. The P. falciparum field isolates were incubated with 8 concentrations ranging from 128 to 1 μg/ml in a 96-well microplate and incubated for 48 h in a candle jar. RPMI and 1% DMSO were used as negative controls. Result: The extraction yields of C. alata were 7.96 and 13.23% for aqueous and methanolic extracts respectively. RPMI and DMSO didn’t have any harmful effect on the growth of P. falciparum. On the other hand, in the wells treated with extracts of C. alata leaves, inhibition of P. falciparum growth was registered with increasing concentrations of extracts. The inhibitory effect of the methanolic extract was stronger and we obtained the maximum mean inhibition rate of 100 ± 0.00% and 99.87 ± 0.62% at the concentrations 128 and 64 μg/ml respectively. As for the aqueous extract, it yielded a mean inhibitory rate of 99.2 ± 0.76% at the concentration of 128 μg/ml. Given the IC50 obtained that is 0.48 ± 0.02; 0.67 ± 0.11 and 0.77 ± 0.08 μg/ml for methanolic extract, aqueous extract and chloroquine respectively. The extracts of C. alata may be classified as active. This activity may be due to the presence of terpenes and tannins in the extracts.

Background: In modern times people have to cope daily with various challenges that can leave an impact on their body flexibility. Physical inactivity is one of the reasons for the diminishment of our natural body flexibility. The consequence of physical inactivity is decreased flexibility of soft tissues surrounding joints. Simple yoga techniques including body postures and breathing techniques can restore natural body flexibility. Methods: Our study involved 9 young healthy females (mean age 23.8 ± 2.9 years). The training program was held twice a week over a period of five months. The program included therapeutic yoga exercises, with the aim of increasing joint mobility as well as stretching shortened skeletal muscles. We used goniometric measurement procedures for measuring joint mobility (for shoulder, hip and ankle joints), linear measurement procedures for measuring the active mobility of the thoracolumbar part of the spine and specific assessing tests for evaluating skeletal muscle shortness. Measurements of body flexibility were taken three times over the five months period. Results: The results obtained by measuring joint mobility showed significant increase of mobility in elevation through abduction, shoulder retroflexion, hip flexion, internal and external hip rotation, dorsal flexion and inversion of the ankle. The mobility of the thoracolumbar part of the spine was increased in all the measured movements: flexion, extension, lateral flexion and rotation of the spine. There was also a significant improvement in the flexibility of m. Soleus, m. Gastrocnemius, m. Rectus femoris, knee flexors and m. Pectoralis major. A significant improvement in body flexibility was also confirmed by the “Back Scratch Test” and the “Sit and Reach Test”. Conclusion: Improved body flexibility is one of the most obvious and quickly achieved effects of regular hatha yoga practice. The results of this study confirm that regular practice of yoga has a significant effect on body flexibility in young healthy women, which is particularly obvious in measurements of the increase of the flexibility of skeletal muscles.