Neuropathic pain is still an extremely important problem in today's medicine because opioids, which are commonly used to reduce pain, have limited efficacy in this type of pathology. Therefore, complementary therapy is needed. Our experiments were performed in rats to evaluate the contribution of the purinergic system, especially P2X4 receptor (P2X4R), in the modulation of glia activation and, ...

Taro (ColocasiaesculentaL. Schott) is a perennial root crop that belongs to Araceace family. It is widely cultivated as a staple food in Africa, Asia and pacific Islands. Despite its importance, there is limited information on many aspects of the crop. In order to obtain data that can support improved and sustainable taro production, a field trial was conducted to study the effects of ...

Objective: Taro (Colocasia esculenta L. Schott) is a perennial root crop that belongs to Araceace family.  It is widely cultivated as a staple food in Africa, Asia and pacific Islands. Despite its importance, there is limited information on many aspects of the crop. In order to obtain data that can support improved and sustainable taro production, a field trial was conducted to study t...

Explants of leaves, petals, anthers, styles and ovaries of C. speciosus, C. cancellatus, C. gilanicus and C. almehensis were cultured on LS media with three different combinations of NAA and BAP in the dark. Callus and neoformant organs (leaf and corm-like structure and ordinary and contractileroots) were fomd on some of these explants. Corm explants from these species were also cultured on...

Arisaema speciosum is a wild lily of family Araceae. This paper reports anti-inflammatory properties of the ethanolic extract of the corm of Arisaema speciosum .The ethanolic extract of corm of Arisaema speciosum showed in vitro cytotoxic effect against Ehrlich ascitic cells. When the extract was injected in tumour bearing mice, tumour disappeared in 40% animals. Injection of ethanolic extract ...

BACKGROUND Guaiacol peroxidases (GP) are haem-containing enzymes participating in many physiological processes in plants. The expression pattern of these enzymes is organ-specific and developmentally regulated. METHODS The presence of GP activity in extract samples, prepared from Crocus sativus L. corms that were either dormant or rooting for 3, 6 and 10 days, was investigated. RESULTS Kine...

Nephrotoxicity is one of the main side effects caused by cisplatin (CP), a widely used antineoplastic agent. Here, we examined the effect of a novel water-soluble carbon monoxide-releasing molecule (CORM-3) on CP-mediated cytotoxicity in renal epithelial cells and explored the potential therapeutic benefits of carbon monoxide in CP-induced nephrotoxicity in vivo. Exposure of LLC-PK(1) cells to ...

Abstract—Gladiolus is an important cash crop and is grown mainly for its elegant spikes. Traditionally the gladiolus corms are planted manually which is very tedious, time consuming and labor intensive operation. So far, there is no planter available for planting of gladiolus corms. With a view to mechanize the planting operation of this horticultural crop, a prototype of 4-row gladiolus plante...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects and potential mechanisms of preconditioning of tricarbonyldichlororuthenium (III) dimer (CORM-2)-liberated CO on LPS-induced activation of endothelial cells (HUVEC). METHODS HUVEC were pretreated with CORM-2 at the concentration of 50 or 100 microM for 2 hrs, washed and stimulated with LPS (10 microg/ml) for additional 4 hrs. Activation (oxidative stress) ...