Bioassay Health Dictionary

Bioassay: From 2 Different Sources


Assessment of the efficacy and persistence of an insecticidal treatment by exposing mosquitoes of known susceptibility to a treated surface or area for a standard period of time.
Health Source: Dictionary of Tropical Medicine
Author: Health Dictionary
n. estimation of the activity or potency of a drug or other substance by comparing its effects on living organisms with effects of a preparation of known strength. Bioassay is used to determine the strength of preparations of hormones or other material of biological origin when other physical or chemical methods are not available.
Health Source: Oxford | Concise Colour Medical Dictionary
Author: Jonathan Law, Elizabeth Martin

Assay

Analysis or measurement of a substance to determine its presence or effects. Biological assays (bioassays) measure the responses of an animal or organ to particular substances. They can be used to assess the effects of a drug or to measure hormone levels. (See also immunoassay; radioimmunoassay.)... assay

Ficus Religiosa

Linn.

Family: Moraceae.

Habitat: Sub-Himalayan tracts, West Bengal, Central and South India; planted throughout India as an avenue tree.

English: Peepal, Bot-tree.

Ayurvedic: Ashvattha, Bodhidru, Bodhivrkisha, Sebya, Chalapa- tra, Gajabhaksha, Kshiradruma, Peeppal.

Unani: Peepal.

Siddha/Tamil: Arasu, Ashvatham.

Action: Bark—astringent, antiseptic, alterative, laxative, haemostatic, vaginal disinfectant (used in diabetes, diarrhoea, leucorrhoea, menorrhagia, nervous disorders; also in skin diseases.) Applied externally on unhealthy ulcers and wounds. Leaves and twigs— laxative.

The bark contains beta-sitosteryl-D- glucoside. Vitamin K, n-octacosanol, methyl oleanolate, lanosterol, stigmas- terol, lupen-3-one are reported from the stem bark.

A hypoglycaemic response is reported for beta-sitosterol-D-glucoside obtained from the bark.

Aerial roots are given to women, also used in prescriptions, for inducing conception. The dried fruits are used as a uterine tonic.

The fruits contain 4.9% protein having the essential amino acids, isoleu- cine and phenylalanine. The chloroform extract of fruits exhibited anti- tumour and antibacterial activities in bioassays.

Various plant parts are included in formulations used for menorrha- gia, metrorrhagia, blood dysentery, bleeding piles, haematuria and haemorrhages.

Dosage: Bark, fruit—50-100 ml decoction. (CCRAS.)... ficus religiosa

Radioimmunoassay

A technique introduced in 1960 which enables the minute quantities of natural substances in the blood such as HORMONES to be measured. A radioimmunoassay depends upon the ability of an unlabelled hormone to inhibit, by simple competition, the binding of isotopically labelled hormone by speci?c ANTIBODIES. The requirements for a radioimmunoassay include adequate amounts of the hormone; a method for labelling the hormone with a radioactive isotope; the production of satisfactory antibodies; and a technique for separating antibody-bound from free hormone. Radioimmunoassay is more sensitive than the best bioassay for a given hormone, and the most sensitive radioimmunoassays permit the detection of picogram (pg = 10?12g) and femtogram (fg = 10?15g) amounts of material.... radioimmunoassay



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