Effect of prepared herbal mouthwash in maintaining the oral health of school children: A single-blind randomised control trial

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Oral health is a vital indicator of overall well-being, quality of life, and general health, with historical roots in Unani medicine (i.e. preventive measures, oral hygiene, and treatment). This study aims to assess the efficacy and safety of prepared herbal mouthwash in maintaining oral health among school children.

EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE

110 schoolchildren were randomly assigned to the test group (treated with herbal mouthwash -Anacyclus pyrenthrum DC, Punica granutum (pericarp), Capparis spinosa (root bark), and Quercus infectoria Oliv (galls)) and the control group (treated with 0.2 % Chlorhexidine Mouthwash) for 30-days. The response was assessed by DMFT, Salivary pH, Oral hygiene index-simplified (OHI-S), Plaque index (Loe & Silness) (PI), Plaque index simplified (O'Leary et al., 1972) (PI-S), Gingival Index (Löe-Silness) (GI), and Bleeding on probing (BOP) on baseline and 30th day GI and PI were further assessed on 60th, 90th and 120th days to determine the sustainable effect of the intervention.

RESULTS

After treatment, Mean OHI-S, PI, PI-S, GI and BOP significantly reduced on the 30th day from baseline (p ≤ 0.001) in both groups. After discontinuing intervention, both groups showed significantly lower PI and GI scores on the 120th day from baseline. (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

This study revealed that prepared mouthwash is safe and significantly effective in maintaining oral health, and it could be used as an adjunct to mechanical oral hygiene measures.

Evaluation of the antibacterial effect of hydroalcoholic extract of the galls of Quercus infectoria on Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans

Background

Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (Aa) plays a vital role in some destructive forms of periodontitis. While mechanical and chemical plaque control is the first step in periodontitis treatment, side effects of adjunctive chemical agents such as chlorhexidine (CHX) mouthwash have led to the application of natural alternatives with minimal side effects. Therefore, this study evaluated the antibacterial effect of the hydroalcoholic extract of Quercus infectoria (Qi) galls on Aa in vitro.

Methods

The hydroalcoholic extract of Qi was obtained by the maceration method, and Aa bacterial strain was cultured. The inhibition zone diameter was measured through the agar well diffusion method. Also, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values were determined by the broth microdilution method. All the experiments were repeated three times. 0.2% CHX was used as a control.

Results

The inhibition zone diameter of Aa increased with increasing concentration of Qi extract. While MIC and MBC values for CHX were 0.0039 and 0.0078 mg/mL, respectively, both MIC and MBC values of the Qi extract for this bacterium were similar, i.e., 2.5 mg/mL, which was significantly higherd.

Conclusion

Since other in vivo studies have confirmed the other properties of this extract and its safety in terms of cytotoxicity and mutagenicity, hydroalcoholic extract of Qi may be used in mouthwashes or local delivery systems to affect periodontal biofilm.

The relevance of folkloric usage of plant galls as medicines: Finding the scientific rationale

Galls, the abnormal growths in plants, induced by virus, bacteria, fungi, nematodes, arthropods, or even other plants, are akin to cancers in fauna. The galls which occur in a myriad of forms are phytochemically-distinct from the normal plant tissues, for these are the sites of tug-of-war, just like the granuloma in animals. To counter the stressors, in the form of the effector proteins of the invaders, the host plants elaborate a large repertoire of metabolites, which they normally will not produce. Perturbation of the jasmonic acid pathway, and the overexpression of auxin, and cytokinin, promote the tissue proliferation and the resultant galls. Though the plant family characteristics and the attackers determine the gall biochemistry, most of the galls are rich in bioactive phytochemicals such as phenolic acids, anthocyanins, purpurogallin, flavonoids, tannins, steroids, triterpenes, alkaloids, lipophilic components (tanshinone) etc. Throughout the long trajectory of evolution, humans have learned to use the galls as therapeutics, much like other plant parts. In diverse cultures, the evidence of folkloric usage of galls abound. Among others, galls from the plant genus like Rhus, Pistacia, Quercus, Terminalia etc. are popular as ethnomedicine. This review mines the literature on galling agents, and the medicinal relevance of galls.

Chemical composition of essential oils and in vitro antioxidant activity of fresh and dry leaves crude extracts of medicinal plant of Lactuca Sativa L. native to Sultanate of Oman

OBJECTIVE

To isolate and analyse the chemical composition in the essential oils and free radical scavenging activity of different crude extracts from the fresh and dry leaves of vegetable plants of Lactuca sativa L. (L. sativa).

METHODS

The essential oils and volatile chemical constituents were isolated from the fresh and dry leaves of L. sativa (lettuce) grown in Sultanate of Oman by hydro distillation method. The antioxidant activity of the crude extracts was carried out by well established free radical scavenging activity (DPPH) method.

RESULTS

About 20 chemical compounds of different concentration representing 83.07% and 79.88% respectively were isolated and identified by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy in the essential oils isolated from the fresh and dry leaves as α-pinene (5.11% and 4.05%), γ-cymene (2.07% and 1.92%), thymol (11.55% and 10.73%), durenol (52.00% and 49.79%), α-terpinene (1.66% and 1.34%), thymol acetate (0.99% and 0.67%), caryophyllene (2.11% and 1.98%), spathulenol (3.09% and 2.98%), camphene (4.11% and 3.65%), limonene (1.28% and 1.11%) representing these major chemical compounds. However, some other minor chemical constituents were also isolated and identified from the essential oil of lettuce including β-pinene, α-terpinolene, linalool, 4-terpineol, α-terpineol, o-methylthymol, L-alloaromadendrene and viridiflorene.

CONCLUSIONS

The chemical constituents in the essential oils from the locally grown lettuce were identified in the following classes or groups of chemical compounds such as monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes volatile organic compounds and their oxygenated hydrocarbons. Therefore, the essential oils and the crude extracts from Omani vegetable species of lettuce are active candidates which would be used as antioxidant, antifungal or antimicrobial agents in new drugs preparation for therapy of infectious diseases.