Historical reviews of the field of non-Mendelian genetics and many other publications credit Erwin Baur and Carl Correns equally for the development of the theory of plastid inheritance. However, a study of the original literature indicates that this conclusion is not correct. Analysis of the relevant articles leads to the conclusion that Baur alone deserves credit for the theory of plastid inh...

AIMS To determine whether essential oil (EO) vapours could reduce surface and airborne levels of bacteria including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). METHODS AND RESULTS The antibacterial activity of geranium and lemongrass EO individually and blended were evaluated over a range of concentrations by direct contact and vapour diffusion. The EO were tested in vitro against a s...

1,3-Dimethylamylamine (DMAA) is a stimulant existing in various pre-workout supplements and often labelled as part of geranium plants. The safety and origin of DMAA in these supplements is the subject of intense debate. In this study, the enantiomeric and diastereomeric ratios of two different known synthetic DMAA compounds, as well as the total concentrations of DMAA and its stereoisomeric rat...

BACKGROUND The aim of this review was to systematically assess the literature on herbal medicine for cough as a symptom of upper respiratory tract infections and common cold. METHODS The Cochrane Library, Scopus, MEDLINE/PubMed, and Embase were searched through March 2012 for RCTs testing the effects of herbal medicine for cough. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane tool. RESULTS 34...

Enterococci are able to survive endodontic procedures and contribute to the failure of endodontic therapy. Thus, it is essential to identify novel ways of eradicating them from infected root canals. One such approach may be the use of antimicrobials such as plant essential oils. Enterococcal strains were isolated from endodontically treated teeth by standard microbiological methods. Susceptibil...

An extract of Ruta graveolens was found to be cytotoxic to Dalton's lymphoma ascites (DLA), Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC) and L929 cells in culture (IC100=16 mg/ml) and also to increase the lifespan of tumour bearing animals. The extract further decreased solid tumours developing from DLA and EAC cells when given simultaneously with elongation of the lifespan of tumour-bearing animals. A home...

BACKGROUND Apium graveolens L. is a traditional Chinese medicine prescribed as a treatment for hypertension, gout, and diabetes. This study aimed to determine the neuroprotective effects of A. graveolens extract against a Parkinson's disease (PD) model induced by 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) in C57BL/6 mice. METHODS Male C57BL/6 mice treated with MPTP were orally dosed ...

BACKGROUND To evaluate the antibacterial activity of 21 plant essential oils against six bacterial species. METHODS The selected essential oils were screened against four gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus vulgaris) and two gram-positive bacteria Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus at four different concentrations (1:1, 1:5...