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Post No. 8614

Date uploaded in London – –2 SEPTEMBER 2020   

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HERBAL MEDICINE WILL KILL CHINESE VIRUS (Post No.8614)

TWO GOOD NEWS ITEMS

TWO GOOD NEWS ITEMS HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED IN NEW INDIAN EXPRESS AND HINDUSTAN TIMES NEWSPAPERS THIS WEEK.

1.ONE FARMER FAMILY CULTIVATED TEASEL GOURD INSTEAD OF ARECA NUT AND MADE MORE MONEY. THE INTERESTING BIT IN THE NEWS ITEM IS THAT IT IS PUT IN THE HUNDI OF BALAJI TEMPLE IN TIRUPATI- TIRUMALAI.

2.THE SECOND NEWS ITEM IS ABOUT MAKOI (MANA THAKKAALI IN TAMIL) WHICH PROMISES SOME CURE FROM CHINESE VIRUS ATTACKS.

HERE ARE THE IMPORTANT PARTS FROM THE NEWS ITEMS:

SHIVAMOGGA: Anyone who has visited the Malnad region will remember its green hills and arecanut palms — and the heavy rains if they’ve been there in the monsoon. The monsoons have become increasingly unpredictable in recent years, threatening the region’s agrarian economy and prompting many to seek alternatives to arecanut. And now, they are turning to the spiny wonder.

One such person is HC Shankaramurthy, a BCom graduate who worked as a stock broker in Shivamogga city for 20 years and decided to call it quits to return to his agricultural roots and look after his family land in Kuppalli village, Shivamogga district, full time. But that choice was fraught with uncertainties and calculated risks, says Shankaramurthy.

“Profits from arecanut are only once a year. That too is uncertain because of disease and the threat from ban on gutka (which has arecanut).

But teasel gourd creepers have a cycle of one-and-a-half months from planting to harvest,” he said. “I planted the Assam variety in mid-February, on the guidance of horticulture scientist Dr Bharathi. By the first week of April, I had a yield. During the lockdown, I went around wherever there was local demand and sold my produce. Between April and the second week of August, I sold 200kg,” Shankaramurthy told The New Sunday Express.

Each kilo fetched him between Rs 150 and Rs 200 – much higher than returns on other vegetable crops.

GOD BALAJI LIKES IT

Devotees commonly put seeds of the teasel gourd into the hundi at the Tirumala Temple, believing that cash donations will not reach the God, but the seeds will. Powdered teasel gourd seeds are ground into the ‘tilaka’ that is applied to the idol of Balaji.

Teasel gourd the vegetable, he had known his whole life —  it is popular among the Konkani-speaking community, it is used in festivals celebrated by Brahmins in the region, and there are stories about Balaji of Tirupati associated with the small, spiky vegetable.

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MAKOI- MANATHAKKALI மண தக்காளி KILLS CHINESE VIRUS

A team of pharmacologists and researchers in search of plant compounds that could help with Covid-19 treatment (CHINESE VIRUS) has found an edible weed that showed promise in lab studies. Researchers from Delhi Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research University found it in Delhi’s Aravalli Biodiversity Park, which they have been visiting since March.

In molecular docking studies conducted recently, Solanum nigrum (black nightshade; Makoy in Hindi மணித்தக்காளி IN TAMIL), a weed and a vegetable commonly consumed in many parts of the country, the team says they found remarkable results.

Their research showed its constituents bind with ACE 2 (an enzyme the Sars-Cov-2 virus uses to enter the body) and have the potential to inhibit viral replication; cytokine storm and inflammation.

We wanted to develop a phytopharmaceutical drug. Professor CR Babu (Professor Emeritus, Delhi University) who developed the Aravalli Biodiversity Park had guided us through the park and helped us collect samples from eight potential plants. At that time, we didn’t know much about the pathogenesis of the disease, so my team and I first worked on that and wrote a paper on how the disease impacts the body,” said Professor Ramesh K Goyal, Vice Chancellor of the University.

PURE PLANT EXTRACTS AND NOT HERBS

Phytochemicals are compounds that are produced by plants (“phyto” means “plant”). They are found in fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, and other plants. Some of these phytochemicals are believed to protect cells from damage that could lead to cancer.

The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is also in the process of developing a phytopharmaceutical drug for Covid-19.. Its safety is demonstrated. We believe ACQH to be antiviral,” said Shekhar C Mande, director general, CSIR.

“Phytopharmaceuticals work slightly differently from one cause-one purified compound theory of modern medicine. This involves extract of a compound which has a signature. But this is different from Ayurveda. It follows the same guidelines as modern medicine,” Mande added.

“Phytochemicals are coming up in a big way. They provide hope in supportive or palliative care but will take a long time in becoming a therapeutic solution. Docking studies are done on a computer but we have to see how they work on the body.

Researchers are studying anti-viral agents of all kinds but my personal feeling is that it will be a long way because the virus multiplies very rapidly,” said Dr Shobha Broor, former head, department of microbiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi

“Some phytopharmaceutical drugs for Covid-19 are already undergoing trials. They are different from Ayurveda or those specified in classical texts. These are purified and well characterised extracts from plants which are then standardised trough chemical, animal and clinical trials,” said Dr VG Somani, Drugs Controller General of India.

Source – NEW INDIAN EXPRESS, HINDUSTAN TIMES

TAGS –   SOLANUM NIGRUM, TEASEL GOURD, herbal medicine,

—–subham—-