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The time-tested Ayurvedic medicinal food, Chyawanprash, has been a part of the Indian diet since ancient times. It is an extremely concentrated mixture of extracts from medicinal herbs and processed minerals, known for its immunity boosting, rejuvenating, and anti-oxidative effects. In this study, we have evaluated the anti-inflammatory potential of Patanjali Special Chyawanprash (PSCP) using the zebrafish model of inflammation. Zebrafish were fed on PSCP-infused pellets at stipulated doses for 13 days before inducing inflammation through lipopolysaccharide (LPS) injection. The test subjects were monitored for inflammatory pathologies like behavioral fever, hyperventilation, skin hemorrhage, locomotory agility, and morphological anomaly. PSCP exerted a strong prophylactic effect on the zebrafish that efficiently protected them from inflammatory manifestations at a human equivalent dose. Expression levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, like interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), were also reduced in the LPS-stimulated zebrafish fed on PSCP-infused pellets. Skin hemorrhage, hyperventilation, and loss of caudal fins are characteristics of LPS-induced inflammation in zebrafish. PSCP prophylactically ameliorated skin hemorrhage, restored normal respiration, and prevented loss of caudal fin in inflamed zebrafish. Under in vitro conditions, PSCP reduced IL-6 and TNF-α secretion by THP-1 macrophages in a dose-dependent manner by targeting NF-κB signaling, as evident from the secreted embryonic alkaline phosphatase (SEAP) reporter assay. These medicinal benefits of PSCP can be attributed to its constitutional bioactive components. Taken together, these observations provide in vivo validation of the anti-inflammatory property and in vitro insight into the mode-of-action of Chyawanprash, a traditionally described medicinal food.

The widely used cancer treatment, chemotherapy, causes severe long-term neuropathic pain in 30–40% cases, the condition clinically known as chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN). Approved conventional analgesics are sometimes ineffective, while others like opioids have undesirable side effects like addiction, seizures, and respiratory malfunctioning. Tricyclic antidepressants and anticonvulsants, although exhibit anti-allodynic effects in neuropathy, also have unpleasant side effects. Thus, alternative medicines are being explored for CIPN treatment. Despite scattered reports on different extracts from different plants having potential anti-allodynic effects against CIPN, no established medicine or formulation of herbal origin exists. In this study, efficacy of an herbal decoction, formulated based on ancient medicinal principles and protocols for treating neuropathic pain, Divya-Peedantak-Kwath (DPK), has been evaluated in a paclitaxel (PTX)-induced peripheral neuropathic mouse model. We observed that DPK has prominent anti-allodynic and anti-hyperalgesic effects and acts as a nociceptive modulator for CIPN. With exhibited antioxidative effects, DPK restored the redox potential of the sciatic nerves to the normal. On histopathological evaluation, DPK prevented the PTX-induced lesions in the sciatic nerve, in a dose-dependent manner. It also prevented inflammation by modulating the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines involved in CIPN pathogenesis. Our observations evinced that DPK can alleviate CIPN by attenuating oxidative stress and concomitant neuroinflammation through immune modulation.

Asthma is a chronic allergic respiratory disease with limited therapeutic options. Here we validated the potential anti-inflammatory, anti-asthmatic and immunomodulatory therapeutic properties of calcio-herbal ayurvedic formulation, Divya-Swasari-Ras (DSR) in-vivo, using mouse model of ovalbumin (OVA) induced allergic asthma. HPLC analysis identified the presence of various bioactive indicating molecules and ICP-OES recognized the presence of Ca mineral in the DSR formulation. Here we show that DSR treatment significantly reduced cardinal features of allergic asthma including inflammatory cell accumulation, specifically lymphocytes and eosinophils in the Broncho-Alveolar Lavage (BAL) fluids, airway inflammation, airway remodelling, and pro-inflammatory molecules expression. Conversely, number of macrophages recoverable by BAL were increased upon DSR treatment. Histology analysis of mice lungs revealed that DSR attenuates inflammatory cell infiltration in lungs and thickening of bronchial epithelium. PAS staining confirmed the decrease in OVA-induced mucus secretion at the mucosal epithelium; and trichrome staining confirmed the decrease in peribronchial collagen deposition upon DSR treatment. DSR reduced the OVA-induced pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-1β and TNF-α) levels in BALF and whole lung steady state mRNA levels (IL-4, -5, -33, IFN-γ, IL-6 and IL-1β). Biochemical assays for markers of oxidative stress and antioxidant defence mechanism confirmed that DSR increases the activity of SOD, Catalase, GPx, GSH, GSH/GSSG ratio and decreases the levels of MDA activity, GSSG, EPO and Nitrite levels in whole lungs. Collectively, present study suggests that, DSR effectively protects against allergic airway inflammation and possess potential therapeutic option for allergic asthma management.

Background Pathological stress can lead to the development of cardiac hypertrophy (CH) through induction of oxidative stress and tissue remodeling. Initiation of CH is associated with increase in cardiac myocyte size, generation of reactive oxygen species and expressional changes in fetal cardiac genes. Ayurveda has prescribed several herbo-mineral formulations that can benefit during cardiac morbidities, including CH. Purpose In this study, we analyzed the efficacy of traditional Ayurveda-based medicines Divya-Arjuna-Kwath (bark extract of Terminalia arjuna; TAE), and Divya-HridyAmrit-Vati (HAV) in attenuating Isoproterenol (ISP)-stimulated CH in murine cardiomyocytes (H9c2). Methods H9c2 cells were exposed to varying concentrations of ISP, TAE and HAV for cytosafety assessment. An inhibition concentration of 50% for ISP was observed at 145.2 µM in H9c2 cells. H9c2 cells were stimulated with 50 µM of ISP and studied for the CH-modulating efficacy of TAE and HAV at cellular, biochemical, and molecular levels. Results ISP-induced CH in H9c2 cells through an increase in cellular protein content, cell size increase, escalation in intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and reduced antioxidant levels. ISP-stimulated an over-expression of CH-biomarker genes for oxidative stress (LOX-1, COX-2, NOX-2, and NOX-4), fetal cardiac remodeling (ACTC-1, and ANF), and cardiac injury (TNNI, TNNT, and CRLS-1). Co-treatment of ISP-stimulated H9c2 cells with TAE or HAV modulated the cellular redox state through inhibition of ROS, MMP, and rebalancing antioxidant levels. TAE and HAV reduced the over-expression of ISP-stimulated CH-biomarker genes in H9c2 cells. HPLC-based phytochemicals analysis of TAE and HAV showed the presence of ellagic acid, quercetin, catechin, gallocatechin, arjunic acid, arjungenin, gallic acid, and vanillic acid reported to have antioxidant properties. Conclusion Taken together, Divya-Arjuna-Kwath and Divya-HridyAmrit-Vati showed substantial pharmacological effects in the intonation of ISP-stimulated oxidative stress in the H9c2 cardiomyocytes; and could be considered as the complementary Ayurveda-based formulation for curing cardiac ailments like hypertrophy.