Globally, the psychological health of the people is being affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the fact that numerous systematic reviews already exist on yoga and mental health, it becomes vital to undertake an overview on the same. The objective of the overview was to summarise the evidence from different systematic reviews of distinct yoga interventions used to improve mental health and recommend yoga practices for the same. The protocol was registered on PROSPERO (CRD42020185221). MEDLINE via Pubmed, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and Google Scholar were searched for relevant literature. Search terms used were “Yoga practice, mental health and systematic review”. Reviews from earliest possible date till May 2020, including those examining the effects of any single or combination of yoga interventions on mental health reported on children, youth and adults were selected. The Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR) tool was used to evaluate the evidence of the included reviews. Out of the 90 reviews found, eight unique reviews were selected for the overview. Overall, 243 studies were analyzed, with an overlap of only 6 studies across the reviews. Out of 8 reviews, only 2 were of high quality and the rest were of moderate quality. Owing to heterogeneity of the included studies, only descriptive analysis was possible. The results of the review indicate moderate to positive effects of yoga on the mental health parameters. Practicing yoga (physical postures, Bhramary Pranayam , mindfulness meditation, s ahaj yoga and laughter therapy) can be beneficial to improve psychological health of the people during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Epidemiological data has proved the association of consumption of areca nut with the causation of oral submucous brosis (OSMF). OSMF is a chronic in ammatory disease with the potential for malignant transformation from 7% to 13%. The establishment of animal models makes it easier for researchers to focus on the therapeutic applications to combat this disease further. We developed and compared two areca nut extract (ANE) administration methods in male Swiss albino mice to establish OSMF. We used an invasive intra-buccal injection technique and compared it with a non-invasive oral droplet administration method. The duration of induction was around 12 weeks. Histopathological analysis was performed at regular intervals to assess the establishment of the disease. Our study showed that ANE administration through the oral droplet method was superior in all aspects compared to the intra-buccal injection technique. Through daily dosing, OSMF was established within 12 weeks, as evidenced by histopathological analysis. The non-invasive droplet method could simulate the absorption of areca nut seen in humans. The present study focuses on developing a novel droplet method and its comparison with the intrabuccal injection method of ANE administration to develop OSMF features in Swiss albino mice. Our results suggest that the oral droplet method is an e cient and non-invasive method to administer the ANE to develop OSMF. These ndings will aid the ine cient development of OSMF animal models for interventional studies, including screening novel drugs in the reversal of the OSMF.

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Vrudhadarak rasayan has been prepared in accordance with ayurvedic literature. Specifically, this formulation is based on Vrudhadarak rasayan developed by Chakradatta. The effect of Vrudhadarak rasayan on memory was evaluated using pre-clinical animal table with special reference to retention of memory. The present study provides details of preparation of Vrudhadarak rasayan and enlists its analytical characterization along with preclinical activity related to retention of memory in Wistar rats. The developed Vrudhadarak rasayan was evaluated for its organoleptic characteristics and analytical parameters. Furthermore, Vrudhadarak rasayan revealed its memory retention activity through two animal tables, namely working memory with “Y-maze” table and Spatial memory with “Y-maze-novel arm” table. Furthermore, in vivo table of Vrudhadarak rasayan showed prominent enhancement in retention of memory (*p<0.05) as compared to standard drug donepezil. In conclusion, the Vrudhadarak rasayan shows a promising activity in memory enhancement and/or retention of memory in rats. This research can be helpful in clinical testing of Vrudhadarak rasayan either adjuvant of monotherapy for treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.