Medicinal value of TEA TREE OIL (TTO)

Tea tree is a member of the Myrtaceae family. Tea tree oil (TTO), is an essential oil.  It is extracted from the leaves of the Melaleuca alternifolia,therefore its  also known as melaleuca oil,  which is native to Southeast Queensland and the Northeast coast of New South Wales, Australia. Other Names: Ti Tree Oil,  Australian Tea-Tree Oil. 

 

 Composition of Tea Tree Oil 

 There are over 100 components in tea tree oil, but it is mostly made up of terpene hydrocarbons: monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes,And Various alcohols.  Light, heat, exposure to air, and moisture can affect TTO's stability, so always its better  to place it in an airtight container and store it in a dark, cool and dry place. 

characteristics of tea tree oil : Tea tree oil is defined by the International Standard ISO 4730 ("Oil of Melaleuca, Terpinen-4-ol type"), which specifies levels of 15 components which are needed to define the oil as "tea tree oil." . It has a powerful medicinal smell,like a fresh camphoraceous odor. 

Color of Tea-Tree Oil ( Melaleuca alternifolia)

The oil may be pale yellow or almost colorless.

Properties of Tea-Tree Oil ( Melaleuca alternifolia)

Antifungal, antiseptic, anti-infectuous, anit-inflammatory, antiviral, bactericidal, balsamic, cicatrisant, diaphoretic, expectorant, fungicidal, immono-stimulant, parasiticide, vulnerary.  
 An outstanding property of tea tree oil is its anti-infectious action. 

Applications of Tea-Tree Oil ( Melaleuca alternifolia)

Tea tree oil has a wide range of applications.

§  An outstanding property of tea tree oil is its anti-infectious action. its  active against all three categories of infectious organisms: bacteria, fungi and viruses.

§  Its a very powerful immuno-stimulant, as it increases the immunity of the body against bacteria, fungi and viruses. This property is very useful in the treatment of debilitating illnesses such as glandular fever, and for people who repeatedly succumb to infections or who are very slow to recover from any illness. It is one of the most important oils for helping people who are HIV positive. 

§  It has a significant effect in ameliorating patients' acne.

§  Tea tree oil is valuable for colds, influenza and the infectious illnesses in children. It will fight  against the infection rather than suppress it like some of the cold medicines do.Its also  an effective treatment for cold sores.

§   Fortunately tea tree oil is an effective anti-fungal oil. 

§  Tea tree oil is an effective remedy for fungal infections such as:

	Ringworm
	Athlete's foot
	Candida albicans

§  It  helps to control the fungal infections by reducing the rate at which the organism reproduce and by strengthening the body's ability to resist them.

§  It is use to cure shingles and chickenpox. 

§  It’s a great remedy for clearing painful spots on the skin preceding menstruation. 

Some women get large, inflamed and often painful spots around the nose and chin in the days preceding menstruation. A single drop of Ti-tree dabbed on each spot rapidly reduces the heat and pain and clears the spot up quite quickly.  

§  It is used for verrucae and warts.  Wart is a small, hard, benign growth on the skin, caused by a virus. Verrucae is a contagious and usually painful wart on the sole of the foot.  

§   It may take several weeks to see any result. But it is effective in the long run. 

§  Tea tree oil has been used to build up the strength of patients before surgery and after surgery to reduce the post-operative shock. 

§   Its used for catarrh and Sinusitis. Catarrh is excessive discharge or build-up of mucus in the nose or throat, associated with inflammation of the mucous membrane Origin. Sinusitis is an inflammation, or swelling, of the tissue lining the sinuses.

  §  Its very effective remedy at times of epidemics to prevent from catching it. It strengthens your immune system and help body fight the invaders. Epidemics is  a widespread occurrence of an infectious disease in a community at a particular time.   

§  Its used in many cosmetics, beauty products and oil for hair growth. 

                               

How To Take Tea-Tree Oil ( Melaleuca alternifolia) 

There are several ways in which you can take tea tree oil. Bath is one.You can apply it directly to the skin. You can use inhalations in burners and vaporisers. It can be used mixed in a protective cream for diaper rash. There is a wide range of commercial products based on Ti-tree oil: lozenges, toothpastes, lotions, creams, etc. 

§  Caution : For most people, the oil can be used directly on the skin. However, people with sensitive skins should use Ti-tree cautiously at first. Use a diluted form.  

References

 ^{1. [unreliable source?]}"Directory of Essential Oils for Aromatherapy: Tea-Tree Oil (Melaleuca alternifolia)". Holistics Online.

2. "Tea tree oil". National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH). Retrieved 30 May 2016.  

3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_tree_oil

 

:  4.eijppr.com/api/uploads/2013/December/article/229%202013%20Manu-16.pdf

5. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov › NCBI › Literature › PubMed Central (PMC)

Medicinal value and Drug obtain from POPPY

Poppy, White

POISON!  

Many people think that poppy is a drug which is poison but here are some medicinal properties and uses of the drug obtained from poppy. 

A poppy is a flowering plant in the subfamily Papaveroideae of the family Papaveraceae. Poppies are herbaceous plants, often grown for their colorful flowers. One species of poppy, Papaver somniferum, is the source of the crude drug opium which contains powerful medicinal alkaloids such as morphine.It is commonly called as HERB OF HEAVEN OR HELL. -The Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum, var. album) is indigenous to Asia Minor, and is cultivated largely in European and Asiatic Turkey, Persia, India and China for the production of Opium. The word opium is derived from the Greek opos which means juice.   

 

Constituents---The most important constituents of opium are the alkaloids, whichconstitute in good opium about one-fifth of the weight of the drug. No fewer than twenty-one have been reported.
The principal alkaloid, both as regards its medicinal importance, and the quantity in which it exists, is Morphine. Next to this, Narcotine and Codeine are of secondary importance. Among the numerous remaining alkaloids, amounting in all to about 1 per cent of the drug, are Thebaine, Narceine, Papaverine, Codamine and Rhoeadine. 

Meconic acid exists to the extent of about 5 per cent combined with morphine. This acid is easily identified, and is important in toxicological investigation, as corroborative of the presence of opium. 

 

-Medicinal Action and Uses-

It is probable that the physicians of the Arabian school introduced the drug into India, as well as into Europe. It was originally used only as a medicine, the practice of opium eating having first arisen, probably in Persia.

 

• Poppy is widely used for medicinal purposes, in the form of poppy-based drugs like morphine, codeine, narcotine, laudenine, papaverine and other alkaloids.
• Poppy-based medicines are considered the most effective way of relieving severe pain.
• It is a stimulant that induces euphoria and helps get rid of anxieties, tensions, fears and inhibitions.
• Poppy seeds contain cough suppressant and analgesic properties and are often recommended to relieve minor pains.
• The plant is used to treat intestinal stomach spasms and respiratory spasms triggered by asthma attacks.

It is used to remedy bladder, bruises, cancer, cold, catarrh, colic, conjunctivitis, diarrhea, dysentery, enteritis, fever, flux, headache, hemicrania, hypertension, hypochondria, hysteria, inflammation, insomnia, malaria, mania, melancholy, nausea, neuralgia, otitis, prolapse, rheumatism, snakebites, sprains, swelling, toothaches, tumors, ulcers and warts.  

 

• Opium poppy is used to treat cancers of the skin, stomach, tongue, uterus, spleen, breast, ear, nose and vagina.
• It is frequently administered to relieve pain and calm excitement.
• The plant provides two main food ingredients, namely, poppy seed and poppy seed oil.
• The seeds do not contain opium and are extensively used in baking and sprinkling on rolls and bread.
• Poppy seeds are a source of a drying oil that is used for manufacturing paints, varnishes and soaps.
• Its oil cakes serve as a fodder for cattle.
• Vision Health: As we age, our eyes naturally begin to fail us, but there are certain things we can do to stop this process. Antioxidant compounds are one great way to protect our eyes, but so is zinc, found in significant quantities in poppy, which can reduce the occurrence of macular degeneration and keep our vision strong.
• Digestive Help: If you are suffering from constipation or diarrhea, you need fiber in your diet. Poppy seeds have a surprisingly high level of dietary fiber, which can help to bulk up stool or promote peristaltic motion to regulate your bowel movements. Poppy seeds have been directly linked to soothing inflammation and pain, thereby promoting normal functioning in your gut.

Nerve Function: Many people fail to realize the many roles that calcium plays in our body, but when it comes to the functioning of our nervous system, few minerals are more essential. The high levels of calcium found in poppy make it a very impressive nerve tonic and can help prevent nervous disorders and promote healthy function.  

 

Caution

A high dose of opium poppy is highly addictive and can decrease respiration. Use of poppy and its seeds is banned/restricted by some countries such as UAE, Dubai, and Saudi Arabia so one should  consult  health specialist before use.

REFERENCE:

1. www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/p/popwhi64.html

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poppy

3. www.iloveindia.com › Indian Herbs

4. www.drugs.com › Professionals › Natural Products (Pro)   

5. https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/herbs-and-spices/poppy.html 

Role of PSEUDOMONAS in Bioremediation

Role of PSEUDOMONAS in Bioremediation - A Weapon to Tackle Oil Spills 

Oil spills: An oil spill is a leakage from oceangoing tankers, pipelines or other oil sources. It occurs very frequently and causes enormous ecological harm.

 Oil spill occurs due to the intentional or unintentional release of petroleum hydrocarbons of any form into the environment due to human activity. It is considered as a form of pollution and often refers to oil spills in marine ecosystem or coastal areas. 

 

The spill can originate from oil tankers, off-shore platforms, oil rigs and even the heavier fuels and refined petroleum products.

 The spilling of oil in the oceans destroys not only the earth’s ecosystem but also an extremely negative impact or living organisms. The toxic substances, in fact, threaten the mere existence of  marine life. 

 

Unfortunately, oil spilled by tankers during loading/unloading, discharging, ballasting, tank cleaning, or near offshore platforms, from transportation, construction, to processes in chemical industries drilling rigs and wells, are the foremost causes responsible for ocean pollution. Fundamentally,an oil spill is the release of liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment on account of human activity. 

Spillage takes place mostly from ships, posing hazards to the aquatic life to a large extent. Oceans get polluted with harmful chemicals due to seepage of oil (including petrol, diesel and other types of hydrocarbons) from ship wrecks, mishandling and accidents.

 

Micro-organisms are known to use several substrates as their source of energy and play a major role in the natural degradation processes that take place around us. This helps to break down the waste materials and convert it into less toxic forms which will mostly be in sync with the environment. This process is generally termed as biodegradation. Bioremediation is defined as the process in which microbes are deliberately used to clean up the environment and degrade waste or chemicals that are hazardous to the environment and can affect the different life forms in the immediate ecosystem.

 

The process of removing the toxic compounds from oceans and soil is quite tedious and expensive at the same time. Bioremediation is one such effective method of cleaning oils from soil  and water, thereby making them safe for aquatic and terrestrial species.

Bioremediation can be used by bacterial species, plant species this process is called phytoremediation and by fungal species is called mycoremediation.

Using bacterial species:

Pseudomonas species are potent bacteria that are capable of degrading hydrocarbons from petrol and diesel, thereby reducing the impact of oil spills.  P. alcaligenes  is capable of breaking down polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons while P. mendocina and P. putida can remove toluene.

P. veronii can degrade large number of aromatic organic compounds. These oil based compounds are eaten up by the bacteria as  they utilize them as substrates for carrying out metabolism. These microorganisms occur in abundance in water bodies and soil and are effective in cleansing oil spills. 

With an increase in density of these microorganisms, the process of bioremediation is also accentuated. Other Bacteria that help in bioremediation are Achromobacter, Flavobacterium, Acinetobacter, etc. 

 

The activities of a bacterial specie  Pseudomonas putida is found to have the dominant role in marine ecosystems. 


Pseudomonas putida: Pseudomonas putida is a Gram-negative, rod-shaped, saprotrophic soil bacterium. It has a very diverse metabolism, including the ability to degrade organic solvents such as toluene. This ability has been put to use in bioremediation, or the use of microorganisms to biodegrade oil. 

   

Use of P. putida is preferable to some other Pseudomonas species capable of such degradation, as it is a safe species of bacteria, unlike P. aeruginosa, for example, which is an opportunistic human pathogen. Pseudomonas putida has the ability to degrade and remove toluene and other monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, e.g. benzene and xylene.  

  

REFERENCES:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudomonas_putida
2. www.biotecharticles.com/.../Bioremediation-A-Weapon-to-Tackle-Oil-Spills-619.html
3.http://www.researchgate.net/publication/221847539_Industrial_biotechnology_of_Pseudomonas_putida_and_related_species
  

Medicinal properties of PERIWINKLE

Periwinkle

An Invaluable Medicinal Plant 

Periwinkle is a common ornamental plant grown in the gardens of residential and official compounds. It is scientifically known as Catharanthus roseus synonym Vinca rosea and belongs to the Apocynaceae family of flowering plants. Periwinkle is native of South-eastern and eastern Madagascar found growing as wild plant species in rain forest.

 The other common name of the plant includes Madagascar periwinkle, Rosy periwinkle, Cape periwinkle, Rose periwinkle and “Old-maid”. 

   

In India periwinkle is known with different names. In Hindi it is known as Sadabahaar, in Bengali as Nayantara, in Marathi as Sadaphuli, in Malayalam as Shavam Naari and in Tamil as Nityhakalyani. 

Chemical constituents

Rosinidin is an anthocyanidin pigment found in the flowers of C. roseus.  
Vinca rosea contains 2 classes of active compounds, the alkaloids and the tannins. More than 100 alkaloids have been found in this plant of which vincristine and vinblastine are most notable for their medicinal benefits.
Vincristine and vinblastine, chemotherapy medications used to treat a number of types of cancers, are also found in the plant.  

  

Medicinal attributes:

Periwinkle is a plant of immense medicinal value. 

 All part of the plant is medicinally important, however alkaloids are mostly concentrated in the root bark. These include three important alkaloids of Rauvolfia group i.e. ajmalicine, reserpine and serpentine. 

In addition to these, the other important alkaloids found are vindoline, vincristine and vinblastin.

Some of the health benefits of Sadabahar, periwinkle or vinca rosea plant are : 

    

The leaves and stems are a source of alkaloids that have anti tumor and anti cancer properties.

The leaves are used to control diabetes and high blood pressure.

The alkaloids also offer sedative and tranquilizing properties. 

It relieves muscle pain and depression. 

Because of its property of detoxification and counteracting poison it is used to relieve wasp stings. 

Sadabahar controls nosebleeds, bleeding gums, mouth ulcers and sore throats. 

It is useful in treating gastritis, cystitis, enteritis, diarrhea, diabetes, etc when taken internally. 

 

The vinca rosea plant ensures brain health. Its active ingredients improve blood supply to the brain, increase the level of oxygen that the brain can utilize. It also raises serotonin levels and prevents abnormal coagulation of blood.  

The alkaloid vincamine keeps the blood thin and has memory enhancing properties. It is therefore useful in preventing dementia, especially vascular dementia. periwinkle leaves and flowers are very effective in treating diabetes.

 

Periwinkle has traditionally been used as a folk remedy for diabetes in South Africa while in traditional Chinese medicine the extracts of the plant have been used against malaria.  

REFERENCES

1. Sahelian R. Alkaloid substances in plants, information on vinca, ergot and ephedra alkaloid compounds. [Cited on 2011 Jul 9];

2. Brogan C. Alkaloids cancer treatments. 2010. Jun 7, [Cited on 2010 Sep 23]. Available from: http://www.Vinca alkaloids\AlkaloidsCancer Treatment Livestrong_com.mh .

3. Kufe DW, Pollock RE, Weichselbaum RR, Bast RC, Gansler TS, Holland JF, et al. 6th ed. Hamilton (ON): BC Decker Inc; 2003. Holland-Frei cancer medicine. 

4. Gidding CE, Kellie SJ, Kamps WA, de Graaf SS. Vincristine revisited. Crit Rev Oncol Hematol. 1999;29:267–87. [PubMed]

5. Bennouna J, Delord JP, Campone M, Nguyen L. Vinflunine: A new microtubule inhibitor agent. Clin Cancer Res. 2008;14:1625–32. [PubMed]

6.www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov › NCBI › Literature › PubMed Central (PMC).

7.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3113361/

8.http://www.technoayurveda.com/Sadabahar.html

9.http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/20/7/1016.full.pdf

10.http://www.ehow.com/list_6577188_uses-vinca-rosea.html