Amaranthus spinosus Linn. (Amaranthaceae), commonly known as "Mulluharivesoppu" in Kannada, is used in the Indian traditional system of medicine for the treatment of diabetes. The present study deals with the scientific evaluation of alpha amylase and the antioxidant potential of methanol extract of A. spinosus (MEAS). The aim of this study was to investigate in vitro alpha-amylase enzyme inhibition by CNPG3 (2-chloro-4-nitrophenol α-d-maltotrioside) and in vivo antioxidant potential of malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione (GSH), catalase (CAT) and total thiols (TT) in alloxan-induced diabetic rats of a methanolic extract of A. spinosus. Blood sugar was also determined in MEAS-treated alloxan-induced diabetic rats. MEAS showed significant inhibition of alpha-amylase activity and IC50 46.02 μg/ml. Oral administration of MEAS (200 and 400 mg/kg) for 15 days showed significant reduction in the elevated blood glucose, MDA and restores GSH, CAT and TT levels as compared with a diabetic control. The present study provides evidence that the methanolic extract of A. spinosus has potent alpha amylase, anti-diabetic and antioxidant activities.

The three plants presented in this study are Amaranthus spinosus, Amaranthus caudatus and Amaranthus viridis L. They belong to the Amaranthaceae family and are traditionally used as vermicides. Our aim was to investigate the anthelmintic activity of the three plants using earthworms (Pheretima posthuma). Methanol extracts of the three plants at different concentrations (10, 20, 40, 60, 80, 100 mg/ml) showed dose-dependent vermicidal activities. At concentrations of 80 and 100 mg/ml all three plant extracts caused paralysis (8.18, 5, 12.16, 5.75, 10.2, 7.8 min) and death (14.65, 9.12, 18.6, 8.5, 18.6, 12.7 min), respectively. Piperazine was used as a reference standard at a concentration of 10 mg/ml. Our study found that the three plants possess potent anthelmintic activity when compared to Piperazine.

The present study was aimed to investigate the α-amylase inhibition and antioxidant activities of methanolic extract of Amaranthus caudatus Linn (MeAc). Methanolic extract of Amaranthus caudatus was screened for α-amylase inhibition activity by CNPG3 method (2-chloro-p-nitrophenyl-α-D-maltotrioside) and antioxidant activity was evaluated by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazile (DPPH) free radical scavenging, superoxide dismutase (SOD) scavenging, hydroxyl free radical scavenging, nitric oxide (NO) radical scavenging, and 2.2'-azinobis-3-ethylbenzothiazole-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) radical scavenging assays. MeAc was also screened for non enzymatic hemoglycosylation. The methanolic extract of Amaranthus caudatus showed potent α-amylase inhibition activity (IC(50) 19.233 µg/ml). MeAc showed significant antioxidant activity in all the in vitro antioxidant models. Furthermore, the MeAc was found to be extremely effective in scavenging ABTS radical activity (IC(50) 48.75±1.1 µg/ml) when compared to DPPH (IC(50) 77.5±0.4 µg/ml), SOD (IC(50) 62.5±2.1 µg/ml), hydroxyl (IC(50) 88.50±1.8 µg/ml) and NO (IC(50) 67.5±2.2 µg/ml) scavenging activity. The methanolic extract of A. caudatus showed potent α-amylase inhibition and antioxidant activities.

Portulaca oleracea Linn, belongs to family Portulaceae and is a widely distributed weed. It has been used as a folk medicine in many countries as diuretics, febrifuge, antiseptic, antispasmodic and vermifuge. This paper deals with the microscopic study of leaf; stem and root of Portulaca oleracea, along with the physico-chemical and preliminary phytochemical analyses that were also studied