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Background: Coronavirus has become a life- threatening disease and it is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). This new strain of coronavirus is not completely understood and to date, there is no treatment of coronavirus. Traditional ayurvedic medicines mainly essential oils and Chinese herbs have always played a vital role in the prevention and treatment of several epidemics and pandemics. In the meantime, guidelines of the ministry of AYUSH (Ayurveda, yoga, unani, siddha and homoepathy) include a traditional medicinal treatment for flu and fever and also recommended to boost immunity to prevent the spread of coronavirus. It is not possible to find which essential oil will offer the best level of protection. However, it is likely to assume that some essential oils are likely to offer a measurable level of defense in the same way they do with many other known viruses. Methods: Literature relevant to various essential oils having antiviral activity has been collected and compiled. Various nanocarriers of essential oils have also been stated. The database was collected using various search engines such as jgate, google scholar, scihub, pubmed, sciencedirect etc. Results: Essential oils contain active constituents such as phenolics compounds, terpenoids, alkaloids, phenyl propanoids etc., which are responsible for their biological properties such as antiviral, antibacterial, antimicrobial, antioxidant activities and many more. But the use of essential oils has always been limited due to poor solubility, solvent toxicity, volatility and low solubility. Many nanotechnology based carriers especially, liposomes, dendrimers, nanoparticles, nanoemulsion and microemulsion etc. have been evidenced to overcome limitations associated with essential oils. Conclusion: Several essential oils possess potent antiviral activity and are characterized by fewer side effects and are safe to human use. The nanocarrier systems of these oils have proved the potential to treat viral and bacterial infections.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Fungal urinary tract infections have become frequent, as a result of increased use of broad spectrum antibiotics, corticosteroids, immunosuppressive drugs and bladder catheters in acute care settings. The associated risk factors which are seen in cases of candiduria are: antibiotic therapy, female gender, urinary catheterization, surgical procedure and extended hospitalization. Candiduria has become a potential source of morbidity and mortality if untreated. We undertook a prospective study to note the incidence of non-Candida albicans in patients with urinary tract infection with special reference to speciation, antifungal susceptibility and the associated risk factors. METHODS: Candida species isolated from urine samples of patients with urinary tract infection were subjected to speciation using standard yeast identification protocol and CHROM agar. Antifungal Susceptibility testing was done by the disc diffusion method to amphotericin B and fluconazole. Clinical details and risk factors of the patients were noted down. RESULTS: Among the 60 culture positive cases, six Candida species which were isolated are : C.tropicalis (66.66%), C.albicans (13.33%), C.parapsilosis (8.33%), C.glabrata (6.66%), C.kefyr (3.33%) and C.guilliermondii (1.66%) The susceptibility pattern showed, that of the 60 isolates, 40% were resistant to fluconazole. No resistance was seen to amphotericin B. CONCLUSION: Isolation of non-Candida albicans species was more than Candida albicans. Candida tropicalis was the predominant isolate. The following risk factors were noted: 43.33 % of the patients had diabetes mellitus, 30%had history of prolonged antibiotics (cephalosporin and aminoglycosides), 16.66% had underlying renal pathology, 3.33% had post-renal transplant status, 1.66% were on steroids, 1.66%had pregnancy and 3.33% had no identifiable risk factors.20% patients had an indwelling catheter in them. The antifungal resistance was more in the non-Candida albicans species than in Candida albicans. Hence there is a need for speciation, susceptibility testing of Candida species.

Gums are naturally occurring segments in plants, which are cheap and abundant. Natural gums and their derivatives are widely used in a pharmaceutical dosage form. These natural materials possess several advantages over synthetic ones being chemically inert, non-toxic, low cost and biodegradable. However, quick degradation in the body, poor mechanical properties and low solubility are few disadvantages. To overcome these disadvantages, natural gums are modified by applying different chemical modification procedures. The modification of gums is done via various methods such as changing functional groups of gum, cross-linking with ions, grafting with polymers, sulfation, phosphorylation and thiolation. Modification of gums results in some superior properties which can be used in drug delivery applications. For example, change in crystallinity, improved solubility, stability, and improved mechanical properties are of use in development of modified drug delivery systems. Modified gums help to achieve pH dependent delivery and sustained delivery along with improved release kinetics of the drug. Current review covers various types of modifications in general and research literature on various medications of different gums (locust bean gum, cashew gum, moringa gum, xanthan gum, etc.). The modified natural gums and their derivatives can be the prospective carriers in the controlled drug delivery of drugs.

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