Samples of two spice plants; Aframomum melegueta and Piper guineese were analyzed for phytochemical composition. The result of the phytochemical screening of the two seeds reveals the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, saponin, steroids, cardiac glycosides and terpenes. The percentage of alkaloids in Aframomum melegueta 2.17% was higher than that in Piper guineense which contained 1.67...

Prostate cancer possesses its unique feature of low proliferation rate and slow growth. Ca(2+)-induced apoptosis is not dependent on cell cycle progression and targeting this pathway could circumvent the problems encountered using current cytotoxic chemotherapies for prostate cancer. Hypoxia-inducible factor 1alpha (HIF-1alpha) is another novel cancer drug target and inhibitors of hypoxia-respo...

The administration of digitalis glycosides causes a variety of extracardiac effects. In both normal human subjects and in other species, digitalis increases smooth muscle tone of resistance and capacitance vessels. The vasoconstriction is mediated, in part, by a direct action of these glycosides on smooth muscle and, in part, by an increase in alpha-adrenergic tone. Constriction of coronary and...

'fhis review article provides a comprehensive description of various studies, carried out on Thevetia neriifoiia which is a source of several cardioactive glycosides, since early 20th century. The article provides an overview of various other medicinal herbs containing cardiac glycosides and discusses in depth various com[pounds isolated so far from this medicinal herb and their pharmacology. A...

Newborn rats are more sensitive to the toxic effects of cardiac glycosides than are adult rats. This is associated with a decreased ability to remove cardiac glycosides from blood into the liver. Pregnenolone-16alpha-carbonitrile (PCN), a prototypical rodent CYP3A inducer and pregnane-X-receptor (PXR) ligand, stimulates the hepatic clearance of cardiac glycosides in newborn rats, which results ...