Ayurveda and other Indian system of medicine use metals, but their use is also amply described in Chinese and Egyptian civilization in 2500 B.C. Bhasma are unique ayurvedic metallic/minerals preparation, treated with herbal juice or decoction and exposed for Ayurveda, which are known in Indian subcontinent since 7 ^th century A.D. and widely recommended for treatment of a variety of chronic ailments. Animal's derivative such as horns, shells, feathers, metallic, nonmetallic and herbals are normally administered as Bhasma. A Bhasma means an ash obtained through incineration; the starter material undergoes an elaborate process of purification and this process is followed by the reaction phase, which involves incorporation of some other minerals and/or herbal extract. There are various importance of Bhasma like maintaining optimum alkalinity for optimum health, neutralizing harmful acids that lead to illness; because Bhasma do not get metabolized so they don't produce any harmful metabolite, rather it breakdowns heavy metals in the body. Methods including for Bhasma preparation are parpati, rasayoga, sindora, etc., Bhasma which contain Fe, Cu, S or other manufacturing process plays a specific role in the final product(s). Particle size (1-2 μ) reduced significantly, which may facilitate absorption and assimilation of the drug into the body system. Standardization of Bhasma is utmost necessary to confirm its identity and to determine its quality, purity safety, effectiveness and acceptability of the product. But the most important challenges faced by these formulations are the lack of complete standardization by physiochemical parameters.

Novel tamarind seed polysaccharide (TSP)-alginate mucoadhesive microspheres were prepared using TSP and alginate as blend in different ratios with different calcium chloride (CaCl₂) concentration as a cross linker by ionotropic gelation. The prepared microspheres were of spherical shape having rough surfaces, and average particle sizes within the range of 752.12 ± 6.42 to 948.49 ± 20.92 µm. The drug entrapment efficiency of these microspheres were within the range between 58.12 ± 2.42 to 82.78 ± 3.43% w/w. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) studies indicated that there were no reactions between gliclazide, and polymers (TSP, and sodium alginate) used. Different formulations of gliclazide loaded TSP-alginate microspheres showed prolonged in vitro release profiles of gliclazide over 12 hours in both stomach pH (pH 1.2), and intestinal pH (pH 7.4). It was found that the gliclazide release in gastric pH was comparatively slow and sustained than intestinal pH. These TSP-alginate microspheres also exhibited good mucoadhesivity. The in vivo studies on alloxan-induced diabetic rats (Animal Ethical Committee registration number: IFTM/837ac/0160) demonstrated the significant hypoglycemic effect of selected formulation of TSP-alginate mucoadhesive microspheres containing gliclazide on oral administration. This developed gliclazide loaded new TSP-alginate mucoadhesive microspheres may be very much useful for prolonged systemic absorption of gliclazide for proper maintaining blood glucose level and advanced patient compliance.

Cajanus cajan (L) Millsp. (Sanskrit: Adhaki, Hindi: Arhar, English: Pigeon pea, Bengali: Tur) (family: Fabaceae) is the most important grain legume crop of rain-fed agriculture in semi-arid tropics. It is both a food crop and a cover/forage crop with high levels of proteins and important amino acids like methionine, lysine and tryptophan. During the last few decades extensive studies have been carried out regarding the chemistry of C. cajan and considerable progress has been achieved regarding its biological activities and medicinal applications. This review article gives an overview on the biological activities of the compounds isolated, pharmacological actions and clinical studies of C. cajan extracts apart from its general details.