The aim of this review is to present an update about the current status of probiotics in the field of dentistry. Oral infections are the most common forms of infections. It is necessary to understand the role of the ecology and microbiology of the oral cavity in better understanding of the pathogenesis of various oral diseases. The concept of bacteriotherapy has been an emerging field in dentistry. The use of health-beneficial micro-organisms to heal diseases or support immune function was first introduced in the beginning of the 20 ^th century. Probiotics are dietary supplements containing potentially beneficial bacteria or yeasts and it has been found to be beneficial to the host health. In medicine, probiotics are used mainly in support therapy for gastro-intestinal diseases. In recent years, probiotics have been used as a treatment to promote oral health. This approach has shown promising results in the oral cavity with respect to control of chronic diseases such as dental caries, periodontitis, and recurring problems such as halitosis and candidal infections. Despite the immense potential of probiotics, data are still deficient on the probiotic action in the oral cavity, which further mandates randomized trials before any concrete clinical recommendations can be arrived.

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To compare amlodipine with cilnidipine on antihypertensive efficacy and incidence of pedal edema in hypertensive individuals. This was a three months prospective, observational study done at the tertiary care center of Karnataka, India. A total number of 60 (n = 60) newly diagnosed hypertensives (≥140/90) of either gender, attending outpatient department of medicine, were included in the study. Out of 60 patients, 30 patients who have been prescribed tablet amlodipine 5-10 mg/day and the other 30 who have been prescribed tablet cilnidipine 10-20 mg/day orally by the consulting physician, depending upon the severity of hypertension were followed every fortnight, screened for the presence of pedal edema and blood pressure control over a period of 3 months. Antihypertensive efficacy between two groups was compared by unpaired t-test and incidence of pedal edema was compared by Fisher's exact test. Of 30 patients in the amlodipine group, 19 patients presented with pedal edema (63.3%) and 2 patients (6.66%) in cilnidipine group presented with pedal edema during the study period. There was a significant difference in the incidence of pedal edema between amlodipine and cilnidipine group (P < 0.05), but no significant difference was found in the antihypertensive efficacy of amlodipine and cilnidipine (P > 0.05). Both amlodipine and cilnidipine have shown equal efficacy in reducing blood pressure in hypertensive individuals. But cilnidipine being N-type and L-type calcium channel blocker, associated with lower incidence of pedal edema compared to only L-type channel blocked by amlodipine.

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Medicinal plants have curative properties due to the presence of various complex chemical substance of different composition, which are found as secondary plant metabolites in one or more parts of these plants. Mangifera indica Linn (MI L.) is a species of mango in the Anacardiaceae family. Phytoconstituents in the seed extracts may be responsible for the antimicrobial activity of the plant. The purpose of the study was to formulate and evaluate the antimicrobial herbal ointment and cream from extracts of the seeds of mango (MI L.) The formulated ointments containing oleaginous-based showed the best formulation compared to the emulsion water in oil type, the ointment and cream bases in different concentration 1%, 5% and 10%. The formulated ointment and cream of MI L. were subjected to evaluation of Uniformity of Weight, measurement of pH, viscosity, Spreadability, Acute skin irritation study, stability study and antimicrobial activity. Our study shows that MI has high potential as an antimicrobial agent when formulated as ointment and creams for topical use. Thus, the present study concludes that the formulated formulations of the MI are safe and efficient carriers, with potent antimicrobial activity.

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The objective of the present research work was to prepare and evaluate sustained release subcutaneous (s.c.) nanoparticles of low molecular weight heparin (LMWH). The nanoparticles were prepared by water-in-oil in-water (w/o/w) emulsion and evaporation method using different grades of polylactide co-glycolide (50:50, 85:15), and different concentrations of polyvinyl alcohol (0.1%, 0.5%, 1%) aqueous solution as surfactant. The fabricated nanoparticles were evaluated for size, shape, zeta potential, encapsulation efficiency, in vitro drug release, and in vivo biological activity (anti-factor Xa activity) using the standard kit. The drug and excipient compatibility was analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies. The formation of nanoparticles was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy; nanoparticles were spherical in shape. The size of prepared nanoparticles was found between 195 nm and 251 nm. The encapsulation efficiency of the nanoparticles was found between 46% and 70%. In vitro drug, release was about 16-38% for 10 days. In vivo drug, release shows the sustained release of drug for 10 days in rats. FTIR studies indicated that there was no loss in chemical integrity of the drug upon fabrication into nanoparticles. DSC and XRD results demonstrated that the drug was changed from the crystalline form to the amorphous form in the formulation during the fabrication process. The results of this study revealed that the s.c. nanoparticles were suitable candidates for sustained delivery of LMWH.

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Punicalagins, a pair of anomeric ellagitannins, present in Punica granatum (Pomegranates) are known to possess excellent antioxidant activity in vitro, but poor oral bioavailability. The reasons cited for poor bioavailability are their large molecular size, poor lipophilicity, and degradation by colonic microflora into less active metabolites. The objective of the present research work was to complex the standardized pomegranate extract (SPE) with phospholipid to formulate standardized pomegranate extract-phospholipid complex (SPEPC), characterize it and check its permeability through an ex vivo everted gut sac experiment. SPEPC was prepared by mixing SPE (30% punicalagins) and soya phosphatidylcholine (PC) in 1:1 v/v mixture of methanol and dioxane and spray-drying the mixture. The complex was characterized by infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy. It was evaluated for its octanol solubility, dissolution, and permeability by everted the gut sac technique. The characterization methods confirmed the formation of complex. Increased n-octanol solubility of the complex proved its increased lipophilicity. Dissolution studies revealed that the phospholipid covering may prevent the punicalagins to be released in gastro-intestinal tract, thus preventing their colonic microbial degradation. SPEPC showed better apparent permeability than SPE in an everted gut sac technique. Hence, it could be concluded that phospholipid complex of SPE may be of potential use in increasing the permeability and hence the bioavailability of punicalagins.

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Clerodendrum paniculatum L. (Family Verbenaceae) has been used as an antipyretic and anti-inflammatory drug in traditional Thai medicine. This present study investigated the in vitro anti-inflammatory, mutagenic and antimutagenic activities of the ethanolic extract of C. paniculatum (CPE) dried root collected from Sa Kaeo Province of Thailand. Murine macrophage J774A.1 cells were stimulated by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to evaluate nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and prostaglandin E ₂ (PGE ₂ ) production in the anti-inflammatory test while the mutagenic and antimutagenic potential was performed by the Ames test. The outcome of this study displayed that the CPE root significantly inhibited LPS-induced NO, TNF-α, and PGE ₂ production in macrophage cell line. In addition, the CPE root was not mutagenic toward Salmonella typhimurium strain TA98 and TA100 with and without nitrite treatment. Moreover, it inhibited the mutagenicity of nitrite treated 1-aminopyrene on both strains. The findings suggested the anti-inflammatory and antimutagenic potentials of CPE root.

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Patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) are prescribed first-line antiepileptic drugs and surgery to the management of this disorder. Unfortunately, the surgical treatment has been shown to be beneficial for the selected patients but fails to provide a seizure-free outcome in 20-30% of TLE patients. In our present study, we investigate the possibilities of marketed antiepileptic drugs in a different manner to improve the present situation in TLE. Molecular docking simulation study and various open source computational tools were used to perform the study. AutoDock 4.2 MGL tools, Pymol visualize tools, Patch dock server, and Swarm Dock servers (protein-protein docking) were used to perform the molecular modeling. FTsite and computed atlas of surface topography of protein open source server were used to understand the pocket and ligand binding information respectively. Toxtree application was used to determine the toxicity profile of the drug by Cramers rule. The obtained molecular docking models (Caspase 3, Procaspase 8, and Fas-associated death domain [FADD]) with selected compounds (Clonazepam, Clobazepam, and Retigabine) showed promising trio blocking event of FADD, Caspase 3, and Procaspase 8 (−6.66 kcal, −8.1 kcal, 6.46 kcal) by Clonazepam respectively. Protein-protein interaction study (Swarm Dock, Patch Dock server) indicated promising results that helped to establish our hypothesis. Toxtree showed a quantitative structure toxicity relationship report that helps to clarify the toxicity of the selected compounds. Clonazepam showed a trio inhibition property that may lead to develop a new era of the new generation benzodiazepine prototype drugs in the future. Filtered compounds will further process for higher in vitro, in vivo models for better understanding of the mechanism.

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