Ever since the discovery of the element iodine by Courtois (1) in 1812 and the first clinical uses of this substance in the treatment of goiter by Prout (2) in 1816 and by Coindet (3) in 1820, almost continuous researches on the relationship of iodine to thyroid function have been in progress. The greatest obstacle in the way of these investigations has been the lack of a reliable method for th...

Six medicinal plants Helichrysum italicum (Roth) G. Don, Angelica archangelica L., Lavandula officinalis L., Salvia officinalis L., Melilotus officinalis L., and Ruta graveolens L. were used. The aim of the study was to compare their extracts obtained by Soxhlet (hexane) extraction, maceration with ethanol (EtOH), and supercritical CO2 extraction (SC-CO2) targeted on coumarin content (by high p...

A plasmodium of acellular slime mould Physarum polycephalum is a large single cell with many nuclei. Presented to a configuration of attracting and repelling stimuli a plasmodium optimizes its growth pattern and spans the attractants, while avoiding repellents, with efficient network of protoplasmic tubes. Such behaviour is interpreted as computation and the plasmodium as an amorphous growing b...

The aim of the study was to estimate the influence of soil pH on the uptake of copper, zinc, and manganese by Valeriana officinalis. Preliminary studies involved soil analyses to determine acidity, organic matter content, and copper, zinc, and manganese total and bioavailable forms. The study involved atomic absorption spectrometry to determine the concentration of the elements, and mineral soi...

Medicinal plants used during the plague described in Herbarium of Simon Syrenius (1613) Before effective methods treatment and prevention infections all other infectious diseases were known, attempts made to treat them with natural means. The blight, among others considered following plants: angelica (Angelica archangelica), valerian (Valeriana officinalis), pimpinella, (Pimpinella sp.) common ...