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Background:Stevia rebaudiana regulates blood sugar, prevents hypertension and tooth decay. Other studies have shown that it has antibacterial as well as antiviral property.Methods:Preliminary phytochemical screening of aqueous, ether and methanolic extracts of S. rebaudiana was done. Acute and sub-acute toxicity were conducted on twenty four Albino rats, divided into one control (Group I) and three treatment groups viz. aqueous extract (Group II), ether extract (Group III) and methanolic extract (Group IV). For the study of antidiabetic effect of S. rebaudiana rats were divided into seven groups (n=6). Diabetes was induced by a single dose of 5% alloxan monohydrate (125 mg/kg, i.p.) after 24 hour fasting.Blood samples were analysed on day 0, 1, 5, 7, 14 and 28.Results:Phytochemical tests showed presence of different kinds of phyto-constituents in aqueous, ether and methanol extract of Stevia rebaudiana leaves. Daily single dose (2.0 g/kg) administration of aqueous extract (A.E.) , ether extract (E.E.) and methanol extract (M.E.) for 28 days of S. rebaudiana could not show any significant change in ALT and AST levels in rats. Blood sugar level was found to be decreased on day 28 in groups of rats treated with A.E., E.E. and M.E. of S. rebaudiana.Conclusion:The extracts of Stevioside rebaudiana could decrease the blood glucose level in diabetic rats in time dependent manner.

Aim: The present study was undertaken to determine the physico-chemical properties and heavy metals in drinking water samples collected from different sources in and around Ranchi, Jharkhand, India. Materials and Methods:A total number of 100 water samples were collected from different sources like hand pumps (44), wells (27), taps (20), rivers (3) and ponds (6). The gross appearance, taste, odour, temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, alkalinity, conductivity, total dissolved solid, salinity and the concentration of lead and cadmium were analyzed.

Introduction: There are two mechanisms proposed for the greater urinary albumin excretion (UAE) in patients with essential hypertension: increased glomerular hydrostatic pressure or increased selectivity of the glomerular basement membrane. In hemodynamic mechanism regulation of the glomerular hydrostatic pressure is regulated by the relative vasoconstriction vasodilatation of the afferent and efferent glomerular arterioles. Hypertension is one of the major public health problems in the world. In India the prevalence of hypertension is about 25% in urban and 10-15% in rural, adult population as compared to west which is 30%. Essential hypertension is responsible for producing clinical proteinuria and a significant reduction in renal function in 5-15% of patients. Several studies have shown that proteinuria and microalbuminuria are independent predictors of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients with hypertension. Some data suggest that reduction of albumin excretion rate reduces the risk of adverse renal and cardiovascular events (CVEs). Material and Methods: Patients, who had high blood pressure based on JNC 8 (Joint National Commission 8) criteria during three subsequent visits to the outpatient clinic and a creatinine clearance greater than 80 ml/min/1.73 m2, were included in the study. A total of 546 essential hypertensive patients whose BP was> 140/90 mm Hg in nondiabetics and BP >130/85 mm Hg in diabetic patients were included in the study. Blood pressure monitoring was done according to the WHO guidelines. Demographic data, age, sex, weight, associated cardiovascular disease, albuminuria, and clinical parameters were all recorded. All routine biochemical tests and microalbuminuria tests were performed by the laboratory. Blood and urine creatinine were measured using an autoanalyzer. Results: There were 322 (58.97%) male and 224 (41.02%) female included in the study. Left ventricular hypertrophy was observed in 267 (48.9%) of the patients, retinopathy was seen in 54 (9.89%) and microalbimunira was observed in 297(54.4%) of hypertensive patients. 129 (23.63%) were smokers. Statistical significance was observed renal parameters except serum uric acid levels. Conclusion: Prevalence of microalbuminuria in hypertensive patients warns that screening for microalbuminuria is essential for intervention and prevention of complications and renal diseases. Also it is necessary to screen the patients for early nephropathy to halt the disease progression.

For acceptance of any chemical agent as an endogenous chemical mediator of inflammation, the agent in question must fulfill some biological requirements which are (a) it should be ubiquitously present in tissues in inactive form, (b) it should be activated during process of inflammation whose increase should be identifiable, (c) it should induce or amplify some events of inflammation, (d) there must be some natural inhibitor of such active form in tissues, (e) it should be able to induce inflammatory reaction after exogenous injection, (f) such reaction should be inhibited by exogenous use of their antagonists, and (g) it should be amplified by use of agonists. Copper in its protein free or protein bound form are reported to act as pathogenic factor in inflammatory processes due to oxidative stress. But their role as endogenous chemical mediator of inflammation does not appear to be investigated thoroughly in light of abovementioned biological criterion of mediator. Present study aims at thorough exploration on role of free copper as endogenous chemical mediator of inflammation in light of above facts. It was done by estimation of total copper, protein-bound copper, and free copper along with estimation of free radical generation, increase in vascular permeability, and cellular infiltration during acute inflammatory reaction induced by carrageenan and concanavalin using chicken skin as test model. It was further evaluated by use of exogenous free copper in experimental model and their subsequent inhibition and amplification by chemical chelators of copper. Present study confirms that free copper fulfilled all the biological requirements for accepting it as an endogenous chemical mediator of inflammation.