Nepal is an important source of wild medicinal plants in the world. Nepalese especially rural people have a long tradition of folk practices for utilization of medicinal plants for various purposes. This paper examines the traditional uses and management practices of such plants in the locality. Therefore, a case study was conducted during MarchApril 2012 in Daman Village Development Committee ...

Elevated levels of beta-amyloid (Abeta) in the brains being a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD) have been believed to play a critical role in the cognitive dysfunction that occurs in AD. Recent evidence suggests that Abeta induces neuronal apoptosis in the brain and in primary neuronal cultures. In this study, we investigated the effects of beta-asarone, the major ingredient of Acorus Tatari...

Acorus calamus rhizome, Pongamia glabra leaves, Aegle marmelos unripe fruit and Psidium guajava root-bark have been reported to be extensively used in the Indian ayurveda system of medicine for the treatment of diarrhoea and dysentery. However, the traditional claims need to be validated by a suitable experimental model. Therefore, the present study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of meth...

A rapid and efficient in vitro propagation protocol of Acorus calamus L. an important endangered medicinal plant has been developed. Naturally grown rhizome segments were used as explants for initial culture. Surface sterilized rhizome segments were cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with various concentrations (0.5 mg l 3.0 mg l ) of cytokinins (BAP, Kn) and auxins (IAA, ...

Aim. Test the activity of selected medicinal plant extracts on multiplication of Mycobacterium tuberculosis under reduced oxygen concentration which represents nonreplicating conditions. Material and Methods. Acetone, ethanol and aqueous extracts of the plants Acorus calamus L. (rhizome), Ocimum sanctum L. (leaf), Piper nigrum L. (seed), and Pueraria tuberosa DC. (tuber) were tested on Mycobact...

Acori Tatarinowii Rhizoma (ATR), the rhizome of Acorus tatarinowii Schott, is being used clinically to treat neurological disorders. The volatile oil of ATR is being considered as an active ingredient. Here, α-asarone and β-asarone, accounting about 95% of ATR oil, were evaluated for its function in stimulating neurogenesis. In cultured PC12 cells, application of ATR volatile oil, α-asarone or ...

The problem of house fly has become more acute everywhere especially in poultry and piggery farms. They act as potential vector for many viral, bacterial, helminthic and protozoan diseases and as nuisance pests. The control of fly is very much effected by the use of synthetic organic insecticides. These drugs, even though efficacious, can be detrimental to the mankind and environment and also l...

The β-asarone was a major component of Acorus tatarinowii Schott which had significant pharmacological effects on the central nervous system (CNS). We have reported that β-asarone can pass through the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and then go into the brain tissues in the 2002. However, the β-asarone in the brain blood was not excluded, which might lead to a false positive result. In this study, we...

Kai Xin San is a Chinese herbal formula composed of Radix Ginseng, Poria, Radix Polygalae and Acorus Tatarinowii Rhizome. It has been used in China for many years for treating amnesia. Kai Xin San ameliorates amyloid-β (Aβ)-induced cognitive dysfunction and is neuroprotective in vivo, but its precise mechanism remains unclear. Expression of insulin-degrading enzyme (IDE), which degrades Aβ, is ...