Browsing by Author "Neha Arora"

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Celastrus paniculatus, an endangered Indian medicinal plant with miraculous cognitive and other therapeutic properties: An overview
(2012) Neha Arora; Shashi Pandey-Rai
Celastrus paniculatus is an Indian medicinal plant which has been used for thousands of years in the traditional Ayurvedic system of medicine. It is fast gaining importance in the primary healthcare systems as well as in herbal drug formulations. Oil obtained from the seeds of the plant is reported to be highly beneficial in stimulating intellect and sharpening the memory. It also acts as a potential nervine tonic, rejuvenator and an anti-depressant. Moreover, the plant possesses a strong antioxidant as well as free radical scavenging activity. C. paniculatus has also been exploited for its potential role in the management of neurodegenerative diseases and other neuronal disorders such as Alzheimer's disease. Oil being a powerful stimulant for neuromuscular system is also used for the treatment of rheumatism, gout and paralysis. This review aims at exploring the detailed phytochemical composition, pharmacological properties as well as therapeutic applications of different parts of C. paniculatus.
GC-MS analysis of the essential oil of Celastrus paniculatus Willd: Seeds and antioxidant, anti-inflammatory study of its various solvent extracts
(Elsevier, 2014) Neha Arora; Shashi Pandey-Rai
Celastrus paniculatus Willd., an important medicinal plant widely used in Ayurveda, is enriched with remarkable nervine, cognition enhancing, and other therapeutic properties. However, the chemical constituents of the essential oil of the plant have not been reported yet. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the essential oil composition of C. paniculatus seeds, analyzed through gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The oil yield was found to be 0.09% (v/w). A total of 56 constituents were identified, comprising of 99.2% of the total oil. The major component was palmitic acid with maximum composition of 38.61%, followed by phytol (11.72%), erucic acid (6.99%), trans-beta-copaene (4.78%), and linalool (3.97%). Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of the aqueous, methanolic, and chloroform extracts of C. paniculatus seeds were also evaluated using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay, Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), Ferric reducing antioxidant power assay (FRAP), and lipoxygenase inhibition assay, respectively. Total phenolic content was also determined in the study. Almost all the assays suggested chloroform extract to have the strongest antioxidant property and the highest phenolic content. However, aqueous extract showed maximum anti-inflammatory activity. The major components identified in the essential oil, being strongly antioxidant in nature, reveal the possible cause of C. paniculatus being highly efficacious in cognition enhancement. The study also suggests that the essential oil from the seeds of the plant could be used as another potential source for new drug development in treating various disorders caused by extreme oxidative stress. © 2014 Elsevier B.V.
Inhibition of imiquimod-induced psoriasis-like dermatitis in mice by herbal extracts from some Indian medicinal plants
(Springer-Verlag Wien, 2016) Neha Arora; Kavita Shah; Shashi Pandey-Rai
Psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune human skin disorder that is characterized by excessive proliferation of keratinocytes, scaly plaques, severe inflammation and erythema. The pathophysiology of psoriasis involves interplay between epidermal keratinocytes, T lymphocytes, leukocytes and vascular endothelium. Increased leukocyte recruitment and elevated levels of cytokines, growth factors and genetic factors like interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, IL-17, IL-22, IL-23, tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interferon (IFN)-γ, transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, toll-like receptor (TLR)-2, signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT-3), 15-lipoxygenase (LOX)-2, coiled-coil alpha-helical rod protein 1 (CCHCR1), steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR) and vitamin D receptor (VDR) are the most critical factors governing the exacerbation of psoriasis. In the present study, an attempt was made to elucidate the preventive role of herbal extracts of four dermo-protective Ayurvedic plants, Tinospora cordifolia (TC), Curcuma longa (CL), Celastrus paniculatus (CP) and Aloe vera (AV), against psoriasis-like dermatitis. Parkes (P) strain mice were initially induced with psoriasis-like dermatitis using topical application of imiquimod (IMQ, 5 %), followed by subsequent treatment with the herbal extracts to examine their curative effect on the psoriasis-like dermatitis-induced mice. The extracts were orally/topically administered to mice according to their ED/LD50 doses. Phenotypical observations, histological examinations, and semi-quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR) analyses of the skin and blood samples of the control, IMQ-treated and herbal extract-treated psoriasis-like dermatitis-induced mice lead to the conclusion that the combination extract from all the plants was instrumental in downregulating the overexpressed cytokines, which was followed by the CL extract. Moreover, lesser yet positive response was evident from CP and TC extracts. The results suggest that these plants can prove to have tremendous preventive potential against the disease and can open the way to new therapeutic strategies for psoriasis treatment. © 2015, Springer-Verlag Wien.
Nutraceutical enriched vegetables: Molecular approaches for crop improvement
(2012) Sanjay Kumar Rai; Neha Arora; Neha Pandey; Ram Prasad Meena; Kavita Shah; Shashi Pandey-Rai
Nutraceuticals have been explored recently as sustainable alternatives for the control and prevention of large number of diseases. They have received considerable attention because they are safe, efficacious and have potential nutritional value as well as therapeutic effects. Among natural dietary supplements, vegetables being low in calories are packed with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytochemicals. They play an important part in the human diet and are a major source of biologically active nutraceuticals. Some popular phyto-nutraceuticals include lycopene from tomato, curcumin from turmeric, carotenoids from carrot etc. Majority of the vegetable originated nutraceuticals are claimed to possess multiple therapeutic benefits; though substantial evidence for their benefits as well as unwanted effects is lacking. The present review has been devoted towards better understanding of the phyto-nutraceuticals from different vegetables based on their disease specific indications and enhancing nutraceutical qualities of vegetables through biotechnological/molecular approaches.