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Mineral content of medicinal plants used in the treatment of diseases resulting from urinary tract disorders
AppL Radiat. lsot. Vol.49, No. 7, pp. 773-776, 1998 © 1998Publishedby ElsevierScienceLtd. All rights reserved Printed in Great Britain PIh S0969-8043(97)00296-0 0969-8043/98 $19.00+ 0.00
Pergamon
Mineral Content of Medicinal Plants used in the Treatment of Diseases Resulting from Urinary Tract Disorders N. S. R A J U R K A R *
a n d M. M. D A M A M E
Department of Chemistry, University of Pune, Pune 411 007, India
(Received 17 February 1997; in revised form 3 June 1997) Elemental composition of some Ayurvedic medicinal plants used for healing urinary tract disorders has been studied by nondestructive neutron activation analysis with a 252Cfsource and atomic absorption spectroscopy. In total, 14 elements have been estimated in different plants; among these Cu, Cr, Co and Cd are found to be present at the trace level; Mn, Pb, Zn, Ni, Na, Fe and Hg at minor level and K, Ca and C1 at major level. The differences in the concentration of the elements are attributed to soil composition and the climate in which the plant grows. The importance of some elements in diseases related to renal disorders is also briefly discussed. © 1998 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved
Introduction
Elemental analysis by NAA technique
The kidney is the main part of the urinary tract. Drinking too much or too little water, alcohol, administration of diuretic drugs, antibiotics as well as excess consumption of calcium or oxalic acid causes a weakening of the kidneys resulting in renal disorders. When the kidneys are not filtering the blood properly, toxins accumulate causing lower back pain, sciatic pain, kidney stones, bladder stones, painful or difficult urination, urinary tract infection, diabetes, edema, etc. (Frawley, 1995). These types of disorders in the renal system can be treated with Ayurveda, an indigenous system of medicine in India. In Ayurveda, single plant or combinations of different plants are used in the treatment. The present work was undertaken to analyze the various medicinal plants, used in the control and healing of renal disorders, for their elemental content by NAA and AAS techniques.
Experimental Medicinal plants in the form of leaves, bark, root, fruit, seed used in the treatment of renal disorders, were purchased from Ayurvedic medicinal shops in the dried form. All these samples were first cleaned, dried well and then powdered using a grinder. These powders were then weighed and used for NAA and AAS analysis. *To whom all correspondence should be addressed.
A minimum of three different weights of each sample in the powdered form were taken and packed in an air-tight polythene capsules for irradiation. These samples were irradiated in a z52Cf source for 24/48 h, in order to get measurable activity. All the standards, AR grade powders of the elements of interest, were also irradiated under identical conditions. After irradiation the samples and standards were counted for their gamma activity at suitable time intervals. The "/-activity of Z4Na, 42K, 56Mn and 3sCl was measured at 1369, 1525, 847 and 1647 keV, respectively. The analysis was done using a 8 K multichannel analyzer (MCA) coupled to a high purity germanium detector (HPGe) and interfaced with an IBM PC-XT. The concentration of the various elements were determined from the calibration curves prepared using the standards.
Elemental analysis by A A S technique All the samples in the powdered form were weighed and digested in HNO3 + HC1 mixture. This solution was heated gently and then filtered and diluted suitably with distilled water. The solutions thus obtained were analysed for the elements of interest on a Perkin Elmer 3100 atomic absorption spectrometer using suitable hollow cathode lamps. The concentrations of the different elements in these samples were determined using the corresponding standard calibration curves obtained by using standard AR grade solutions of the elements of interest.
773
N . S. R a j u r k a r a n d M . M . D a m a n e
774
Table 1. Botanical names and uses of various medicinal plants in the treatment of urinary tract disorders Common name of plant
Botanical name of plant
Part used and its use in urinary tract disorders
1 Ashvagandha (Winter cherry) 2 Bhuringni 3 Bor (Jujube fruit) 4 Dalimb (Pomegranate) 5 Jatamansi (Musk root) 6 Kapila (Indian kamala) 7 Karanja (Indian beech) 8 Nivadi (Clearing nut tree) 9 Palasa (Bastard teak) 10 Phalsa 11 Pittapapada 12 Saware (Silk cotton) 13 Sonchapha (Golden champa) 14 Talimkhana 15 Umber (Cluster fig) 16 Undirkani 17 Uplate (Costus)
Withania somn(fera Solanum xanthocarpum Zizyphus jojoba Punica granatum Nordostachys jatamanasi Mallotus philippiennsis Pongamia glabra Strychnos potatorum Butea monosperma Grewia asiatica Fumaria parviflora Salmalia malabarica Michelia champak Asteracantha longifolia Ficus racemosa lpomoea fren(formis Saussurea Luppa
Root: Diuretic Root, Fruit: Difficult urination, kidney stone Leaves: Diabetes Rind of fruit: Painful micturation Root: Remove sugar and salt in the urine Glandular hairs of the fruit: Urinary stone Seed: Urinary diseases Seed: Diuretic Flower: Painful mieturation Fruit: Blood in the urine Stem, leaves: Kidney stone Bark: Diuretic Flower: Renal diseases Root: Bladder stone Bark: Swelling of urinary tract Whole plant: Urinary atflication Root: Urinary disorders
R e s u l t s and D i s c u s s i o n
Table 1 presents the list of the various plants analysed along with their common name, botanical name and part of the plant used for the type of urinary tract disease (Chopra et al., 1982; Desai, 1975; Sivarajan and Balchandran, 1994). The results of the elemental analysis of the above mentioned plants by N A A and AAS techniques are recorded in Tables 2-4; these values are averages of three independent measurements having a precision of ~ _ 1%. Concentration of various elements analysed in the present work decreases in the order: K > Ca > C1 > Na>Fe>Hg>Zn>Mn>Ni>Pb>Co>Cr > Cd > Cu with few exceptions wherein either Fe < Hg or Cr < Cd. Among the various elements Cu, Cr, Co, Cd are found to be present at the trace level. Mn, Pb, Zn, Ni, Na, Fe and Hg are at the minor level and K, Ca, CI are at the major levels. The differences in the concentration of the various elements within the different plants is attributed to the preferential absorbability of a particular plant for the corresponding element and the mineral composition of the soil in which the plant grows as well as its surrounding climatological conditions.
Herbs are used in many different ways. However; the ultimate objective of their use is that they should interact directly with our body chemistry. They may be used in various forms like food, medicines, cosmetic or as aromatics, but in all cases, their active constituents must be absorbed into the b o d y for deriving the required benefits. Once they are absorbed in the blood stream, they circulate and influence our whole system. The chemical constituents present in plants are responsible for their medicinal as well as toxic properties which include vegetable bases comprising of alkaloids and amines, glycosides, essential oils responsible for their characteristic odour, toxic substances known as toxalbumin, resins and antibiotics. Whereby the trace elements play a very important role in the formation of these compounds. One important factor for the formation of active constituents in medicinal plants are the trace elements because they are known to play an important role in plant metabolism and active constituents of medicinal plants are metabolic products of plant cells. Although there are reports in the literature on the trace element content in plants, we are still far from the point of knowing exactly the mechanisms of
Table 2. Analysis of Mn, Na, K and CI in some medicinal plants by N A A Concentration of element (mg/g) Common name of plant 1 Ashwagandha 2 Bhuringni 3 Boar 4 Dalimb 5 Jatamansi 6 Kapila 7 Karanja 8 Nivadi 9 Palasa 10 Phalsa 11 Pittapapada 12 Sawar 13 Sonchapha 14 Talimkhana 15 Umber 16 Undirkani 17 Uplate
Mn (10 -z)
N a (10-')
K
C1
3.562 1.165 3.177 5.407 9.201 1.574 2.801 1.03 0.38 1.324 7.812 0.378 1.452 1.161 6.701 3.143 0.657
5.28 4.844 1.141 1.559 0.327 4.743 0.505 0.981 4.81 1.063 5.043 1.529 1.952 1.548 2.864 1.378 1.014
3.241 9.95 -19.20 2.85 9.82 6.44 5.184 I0.24 7.81 2.04 6.11 5.27 10.69 -5.112 --
1.1012 3.01 2.227 5.77 ---0,289 1.006 3.01 0,290 --4.037 ----
Mineral contents of medicinal plants
775
Table 3. Analysis of Ca, Cr, Co, Cu and Fe in some medicinal plants by AAS Concentration of element (mg/g) Common name of plant
Ca
1 Ashwagandha 2 Bhuringni 3 Bore 4 Dalimb 5 Jatamansi 6 Kapila 7 Karanja 8 Nivadi 9 Palasa 10 Phalsa 11 Pittapapada 12 Saware 13 Sonchapha 14 Talimkhana 15 Umber 16 Undirkani 17 Uplate
0.499 1.098 -
-
0.739 0,829 0,038 0.346 1.08 1.356 1,162 2.200 3.789 0.538 0.789 -15.56 0.399
Cr (10 -~)
Co (10 -3)
Cu (1074)
Fe (!0 -~)
6.782 0.198 0.198 10.691 14.099 8,496 2.198 8.849 -7.50 4.386 9.298 0.596 11.786 0,097 4.254 4.491
63.7 1.586 84.16 10,392 10.598 18.992 13.687 -12.18 6.32 5.782 14.297 11.538 11.386 8.025 11.119 8.782
5.628 9.909 28.218 8.493 13.697 29.388 21.682 6.459 7;684 6.841 14.754 6.799 37,697 30.463 5,608 20.496 12.5
1.79 1.262 3.368 0.729 2.679 1,687 9.890 0.542 1.50 0.953 2.412 1.219 0.816 3.266 1.219 2.804 1.996
action and the formation of active constituents for each medicinal plant. Even though a direct link between elemental content and its curative capability is yet to be established, the data on major, minor and trace elemental contents in plants is of vital importance to understand the pharmacological action of the herbs. It is interesting to note that comparison of the elemental contents of these medicinal herbs with that of usual plants (non-medicinal) viz. Rice (Tran Van and Teherani, 1988a, 1988b), tomato, radish, Field bean and edible bitter herb (Khan et al., 1989) shows that, medicinal plants are more rich in elemental content than usual plants with a few exceptions, e.g. Cu. Among the various elements estimated, the sodium and potassium ions play an important role in the diseases related to renal disorder. Potassium and sodium salts are partially responsible for the diuretical action of some drugs. Potassium is readily excreted by the kidneys both by glomerular filtration and by tubular excretion. Potassium salts act as osmotic diuretics (Govinda Rao, 1973) and deficiency of potassium causes diabetic acidosis (Krause and Mohan, 1984). Calcium ion (Shils and Young, 1988)
concentration also plays an important role in the urinary tract system. Hypercalcemia causes renal failure and calcium stones in the urinary tract. Iron deficiency is common in uremic patients, it causes substantial blood losses. Iron may bind to the dialyzer membrane. Some reports indicate that dysgeusia, poor food intake, and impaired sexual function, which are common problems of uremic patients, may be improved by zinc supplements (Shils and Young, 1988) Patients with chronic renal failure, including those undergoing maintenance dialysis therapy, usually have an increased dietary calcium requirement because they have both vitamin D deficiency and resistance to the action of vitamin D. While nondialyzed chronically uremic patients usually require 1200-1600 mg/day of calcium for neutral or positive calcium balance. Recommended nutrient intake for nondialyzed patients with chronic renal failure for the elements sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron and zinc is 1000-3000, 40-70, 1400-1600, 200-300, >10-18 and 15 mg/day, respectively (Krause and Mohan, 1984; Shils and Young, 1988).
Table 4. Analysis of Pb, Zn, Ni, Cd, Hg in some medicinal plants by AAS Concentration of element (mg/g) Common name of plant 1 Ashwagandha 2 Bhuringni 3 Bore 4 Dalimb 5 Jatamansi 6 Kapila 7 Karanja 8 Nivadi 9 Palasa 10 Phalsa 11 Pittapapada 12 Saware 13 Sonchapha 14 Talimkhana 15 Umber 16 Undirkani 17 Uplate
Pb (10 -2)
Zn (10 -5)
Ni (10 -2)
Cd (10 -3)
Hg (10-')
0.605 1.189 1.683 0.992 0.999 1,799 9.890 1.327 1.277 0.843 2.093 0.799 0.099 0.4994 -1.644 1.497
1.823 6,818 4.307 4.386 15.957 4.638 1.599 1.142 2.348 2.56 6.211 3.429 7.708 10.969 6.635 3.084 1,397
1.0002 0.158 1.812 0.469 2.519 7.167 6.404 0.204 2.218 1.348 1.71 3.159 1.621 t.838 8.3150 0.658 3,443
1,341 1,387 5,545 0,699 1,499 2,399 5.815 -6.48 1,384 8,673 1.099 16.213 1,298 8.0 2.901 t.197
--2.465 2.398 2.999 6.497 4.796 -1.45 -0.528 1.499 -1.698 -3.288 1.896
N. S. Rajurkar and M. M. Damane
776
The data obtained on elemental concentration of the medicinal plants studied will be useful in deciding the dosage of the ayurvedic drugs prepared from these plant materials.
References Chopra, R. N., Chopra, I. C., Handa, K. L. and Kapur, L. D. (1982) Indigenous Drugs o f India, 2nd edn. Academic Publishers, Calcutta. Desai, V. M. (1975) Aushadhisangraha. Shree Gajanan Book Depo, Bombay. Frawley, D. (1995) Ayurvedie Healing. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers.
Govinda, Rao, A. R. (1973) The Pharmaco-therapeutics, 2rid edn. Current technical Literature Co. Khan, A. H., Tarafdar, S. A., Ali, M., Biswas, S. K., Akhter, S., Saha, D. K., Islam, A., Billah, M., Hadi, D. A. and Maroof, F. B. (1989). J. Radioanal. Nuel. Chem., Articles 134, 367. Krause, M. V. and Mohan, K. L. (1984) Food Nutrition and Diet Therapy. W.B. Saunders. Shils, M. E. and Young, V. R. (1988) Modern Nutrition in Health and Diseases, 7th edn. K.M. Verghese Co. Sivarajan, V. V. and Balchandran, I. (1994) Ayurvedie Drugs and their Plant Sources. Oxford and IBH publishing, New Delhi. Tran Van, L. and Teherani, D. K. (1988a). J. Radioanal. Nuel. Chem., Letters 128, 35. Tran Van, L. and Teherani, D. K. (1988b). J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., Lett. 128, 43.
Pergamon
Mineral Content of Medicinal Plants used in the Treatment of Diseases Resulting from Urinary Tract Disorders N. S. R A J U R K A R *
a n d M. M. D A M A M E
Department of Chemistry, University of Pune, Pune 411 007, India
(Received 17 February 1997; in revised form 3 June 1997) Elemental composition of some Ayurvedic medicinal plants used for healing urinary tract disorders has been studied by nondestructive neutron activation analysis with a 252Cfsource and atomic absorption spectroscopy. In total, 14 elements have been estimated in different plants; among these Cu, Cr, Co and Cd are found to be present at the trace level; Mn, Pb, Zn, Ni, Na, Fe and Hg at minor level and K, Ca and C1 at major level. The differences in the concentration of the elements are attributed to soil composition and the climate in which the plant grows. The importance of some elements in diseases related to renal disorders is also briefly discussed. © 1998 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved
Introduction
Elemental analysis by NAA technique
The kidney is the main part of the urinary tract. Drinking too much or too little water, alcohol, administration of diuretic drugs, antibiotics as well as excess consumption of calcium or oxalic acid causes a weakening of the kidneys resulting in renal disorders. When the kidneys are not filtering the blood properly, toxins accumulate causing lower back pain, sciatic pain, kidney stones, bladder stones, painful or difficult urination, urinary tract infection, diabetes, edema, etc. (Frawley, 1995). These types of disorders in the renal system can be treated with Ayurveda, an indigenous system of medicine in India. In Ayurveda, single plant or combinations of different plants are used in the treatment. The present work was undertaken to analyze the various medicinal plants, used in the control and healing of renal disorders, for their elemental content by NAA and AAS techniques.
Experimental Medicinal plants in the form of leaves, bark, root, fruit, seed used in the treatment of renal disorders, were purchased from Ayurvedic medicinal shops in the dried form. All these samples were first cleaned, dried well and then powdered using a grinder. These powders were then weighed and used for NAA and AAS analysis. *To whom all correspondence should be addressed.
A minimum of three different weights of each sample in the powdered form were taken and packed in an air-tight polythene capsules for irradiation. These samples were irradiated in a z52Cf source for 24/48 h, in order to get measurable activity. All the standards, AR grade powders of the elements of interest, were also irradiated under identical conditions. After irradiation the samples and standards were counted for their gamma activity at suitable time intervals. The "/-activity of Z4Na, 42K, 56Mn and 3sCl was measured at 1369, 1525, 847 and 1647 keV, respectively. The analysis was done using a 8 K multichannel analyzer (MCA) coupled to a high purity germanium detector (HPGe) and interfaced with an IBM PC-XT. The concentration of the various elements were determined from the calibration curves prepared using the standards.
Elemental analysis by A A S technique All the samples in the powdered form were weighed and digested in HNO3 + HC1 mixture. This solution was heated gently and then filtered and diluted suitably with distilled water. The solutions thus obtained were analysed for the elements of interest on a Perkin Elmer 3100 atomic absorption spectrometer using suitable hollow cathode lamps. The concentrations of the different elements in these samples were determined using the corresponding standard calibration curves obtained by using standard AR grade solutions of the elements of interest.
773
N . S. R a j u r k a r a n d M . M . D a m a n e
774
Table 1. Botanical names and uses of various medicinal plants in the treatment of urinary tract disorders Common name of plant
Botanical name of plant
Part used and its use in urinary tract disorders
1 Ashvagandha (Winter cherry) 2 Bhuringni 3 Bor (Jujube fruit) 4 Dalimb (Pomegranate) 5 Jatamansi (Musk root) 6 Kapila (Indian kamala) 7 Karanja (Indian beech) 8 Nivadi (Clearing nut tree) 9 Palasa (Bastard teak) 10 Phalsa 11 Pittapapada 12 Saware (Silk cotton) 13 Sonchapha (Golden champa) 14 Talimkhana 15 Umber (Cluster fig) 16 Undirkani 17 Uplate (Costus)
Withania somn(fera Solanum xanthocarpum Zizyphus jojoba Punica granatum Nordostachys jatamanasi Mallotus philippiennsis Pongamia glabra Strychnos potatorum Butea monosperma Grewia asiatica Fumaria parviflora Salmalia malabarica Michelia champak Asteracantha longifolia Ficus racemosa lpomoea fren(formis Saussurea Luppa
Root: Diuretic Root, Fruit: Difficult urination, kidney stone Leaves: Diabetes Rind of fruit: Painful micturation Root: Remove sugar and salt in the urine Glandular hairs of the fruit: Urinary stone Seed: Urinary diseases Seed: Diuretic Flower: Painful mieturation Fruit: Blood in the urine Stem, leaves: Kidney stone Bark: Diuretic Flower: Renal diseases Root: Bladder stone Bark: Swelling of urinary tract Whole plant: Urinary atflication Root: Urinary disorders
R e s u l t s and D i s c u s s i o n
Table 1 presents the list of the various plants analysed along with their common name, botanical name and part of the plant used for the type of urinary tract disease (Chopra et al., 1982; Desai, 1975; Sivarajan and Balchandran, 1994). The results of the elemental analysis of the above mentioned plants by N A A and AAS techniques are recorded in Tables 2-4; these values are averages of three independent measurements having a precision of ~ _ 1%. Concentration of various elements analysed in the present work decreases in the order: K > Ca > C1 > Na>Fe>Hg>Zn>Mn>Ni>Pb>Co>Cr > Cd > Cu with few exceptions wherein either Fe < Hg or Cr < Cd. Among the various elements Cu, Cr, Co, Cd are found to be present at the trace level. Mn, Pb, Zn, Ni, Na, Fe and Hg are at the minor level and K, Ca, CI are at the major levels. The differences in the concentration of the various elements within the different plants is attributed to the preferential absorbability of a particular plant for the corresponding element and the mineral composition of the soil in which the plant grows as well as its surrounding climatological conditions.
Herbs are used in many different ways. However; the ultimate objective of their use is that they should interact directly with our body chemistry. They may be used in various forms like food, medicines, cosmetic or as aromatics, but in all cases, their active constituents must be absorbed into the b o d y for deriving the required benefits. Once they are absorbed in the blood stream, they circulate and influence our whole system. The chemical constituents present in plants are responsible for their medicinal as well as toxic properties which include vegetable bases comprising of alkaloids and amines, glycosides, essential oils responsible for their characteristic odour, toxic substances known as toxalbumin, resins and antibiotics. Whereby the trace elements play a very important role in the formation of these compounds. One important factor for the formation of active constituents in medicinal plants are the trace elements because they are known to play an important role in plant metabolism and active constituents of medicinal plants are metabolic products of plant cells. Although there are reports in the literature on the trace element content in plants, we are still far from the point of knowing exactly the mechanisms of
Table 2. Analysis of Mn, Na, K and CI in some medicinal plants by N A A Concentration of element (mg/g) Common name of plant 1 Ashwagandha 2 Bhuringni 3 Boar 4 Dalimb 5 Jatamansi 6 Kapila 7 Karanja 8 Nivadi 9 Palasa 10 Phalsa 11 Pittapapada 12 Sawar 13 Sonchapha 14 Talimkhana 15 Umber 16 Undirkani 17 Uplate
Mn (10 -z)
N a (10-')
K
C1
3.562 1.165 3.177 5.407 9.201 1.574 2.801 1.03 0.38 1.324 7.812 0.378 1.452 1.161 6.701 3.143 0.657
5.28 4.844 1.141 1.559 0.327 4.743 0.505 0.981 4.81 1.063 5.043 1.529 1.952 1.548 2.864 1.378 1.014
3.241 9.95 -19.20 2.85 9.82 6.44 5.184 I0.24 7.81 2.04 6.11 5.27 10.69 -5.112 --
1.1012 3.01 2.227 5.77 ---0,289 1.006 3.01 0,290 --4.037 ----
Mineral contents of medicinal plants
775
Table 3. Analysis of Ca, Cr, Co, Cu and Fe in some medicinal plants by AAS Concentration of element (mg/g) Common name of plant
Ca
1 Ashwagandha 2 Bhuringni 3 Bore 4 Dalimb 5 Jatamansi 6 Kapila 7 Karanja 8 Nivadi 9 Palasa 10 Phalsa 11 Pittapapada 12 Saware 13 Sonchapha 14 Talimkhana 15 Umber 16 Undirkani 17 Uplate
0.499 1.098 -
-
0.739 0,829 0,038 0.346 1.08 1.356 1,162 2.200 3.789 0.538 0.789 -15.56 0.399
Cr (10 -~)
Co (10 -3)
Cu (1074)
Fe (!0 -~)
6.782 0.198 0.198 10.691 14.099 8,496 2.198 8.849 -7.50 4.386 9.298 0.596 11.786 0,097 4.254 4.491
63.7 1.586 84.16 10,392 10.598 18.992 13.687 -12.18 6.32 5.782 14.297 11.538 11.386 8.025 11.119 8.782
5.628 9.909 28.218 8.493 13.697 29.388 21.682 6.459 7;684 6.841 14.754 6.799 37,697 30.463 5,608 20.496 12.5
1.79 1.262 3.368 0.729 2.679 1,687 9.890 0.542 1.50 0.953 2.412 1.219 0.816 3.266 1.219 2.804 1.996
action and the formation of active constituents for each medicinal plant. Even though a direct link between elemental content and its curative capability is yet to be established, the data on major, minor and trace elemental contents in plants is of vital importance to understand the pharmacological action of the herbs. It is interesting to note that comparison of the elemental contents of these medicinal herbs with that of usual plants (non-medicinal) viz. Rice (Tran Van and Teherani, 1988a, 1988b), tomato, radish, Field bean and edible bitter herb (Khan et al., 1989) shows that, medicinal plants are more rich in elemental content than usual plants with a few exceptions, e.g. Cu. Among the various elements estimated, the sodium and potassium ions play an important role in the diseases related to renal disorder. Potassium and sodium salts are partially responsible for the diuretical action of some drugs. Potassium is readily excreted by the kidneys both by glomerular filtration and by tubular excretion. Potassium salts act as osmotic diuretics (Govinda Rao, 1973) and deficiency of potassium causes diabetic acidosis (Krause and Mohan, 1984). Calcium ion (Shils and Young, 1988)
concentration also plays an important role in the urinary tract system. Hypercalcemia causes renal failure and calcium stones in the urinary tract. Iron deficiency is common in uremic patients, it causes substantial blood losses. Iron may bind to the dialyzer membrane. Some reports indicate that dysgeusia, poor food intake, and impaired sexual function, which are common problems of uremic patients, may be improved by zinc supplements (Shils and Young, 1988) Patients with chronic renal failure, including those undergoing maintenance dialysis therapy, usually have an increased dietary calcium requirement because they have both vitamin D deficiency and resistance to the action of vitamin D. While nondialyzed chronically uremic patients usually require 1200-1600 mg/day of calcium for neutral or positive calcium balance. Recommended nutrient intake for nondialyzed patients with chronic renal failure for the elements sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron and zinc is 1000-3000, 40-70, 1400-1600, 200-300, >10-18 and 15 mg/day, respectively (Krause and Mohan, 1984; Shils and Young, 1988).
Table 4. Analysis of Pb, Zn, Ni, Cd, Hg in some medicinal plants by AAS Concentration of element (mg/g) Common name of plant 1 Ashwagandha 2 Bhuringni 3 Bore 4 Dalimb 5 Jatamansi 6 Kapila 7 Karanja 8 Nivadi 9 Palasa 10 Phalsa 11 Pittapapada 12 Saware 13 Sonchapha 14 Talimkhana 15 Umber 16 Undirkani 17 Uplate
Pb (10 -2)
Zn (10 -5)
Ni (10 -2)
Cd (10 -3)
Hg (10-')
0.605 1.189 1.683 0.992 0.999 1,799 9.890 1.327 1.277 0.843 2.093 0.799 0.099 0.4994 -1.644 1.497
1.823 6,818 4.307 4.386 15.957 4.638 1.599 1.142 2.348 2.56 6.211 3.429 7.708 10.969 6.635 3.084 1,397
1.0002 0.158 1.812 0.469 2.519 7.167 6.404 0.204 2.218 1.348 1.71 3.159 1.621 t.838 8.3150 0.658 3,443
1,341 1,387 5,545 0,699 1,499 2,399 5.815 -6.48 1,384 8,673 1.099 16.213 1,298 8.0 2.901 t.197
--2.465 2.398 2.999 6.497 4.796 -1.45 -0.528 1.499 -1.698 -3.288 1.896
N. S. Rajurkar and M. M. Damane
776
The data obtained on elemental concentration of the medicinal plants studied will be useful in deciding the dosage of the ayurvedic drugs prepared from these plant materials.
References Chopra, R. N., Chopra, I. C., Handa, K. L. and Kapur, L. D. (1982) Indigenous Drugs o f India, 2nd edn. Academic Publishers, Calcutta. Desai, V. M. (1975) Aushadhisangraha. Shree Gajanan Book Depo, Bombay. Frawley, D. (1995) Ayurvedie Healing. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers.
Govinda, Rao, A. R. (1973) The Pharmaco-therapeutics, 2rid edn. Current technical Literature Co. Khan, A. H., Tarafdar, S. A., Ali, M., Biswas, S. K., Akhter, S., Saha, D. K., Islam, A., Billah, M., Hadi, D. A. and Maroof, F. B. (1989). J. Radioanal. Nuel. Chem., Articles 134, 367. Krause, M. V. and Mohan, K. L. (1984) Food Nutrition and Diet Therapy. W.B. Saunders. Shils, M. E. and Young, V. R. (1988) Modern Nutrition in Health and Diseases, 7th edn. K.M. Verghese Co. Sivarajan, V. V. and Balchandran, I. (1994) Ayurvedie Drugs and their Plant Sources. Oxford and IBH publishing, New Delhi. Tran Van, L. and Teherani, D. K. (1988a). J. Radioanal. Nuel. Chem., Letters 128, 35. Tran Van, L. and Teherani, D. K. (1988b). J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., Lett. 128, 43.