GUWAHATI, Oct 10 - A team of the Gauhati University (GU) Biotechnology Department researchers has found three indigenous plants of Assam as highly effective in protecting the kidneys and livers of the cancer patients, who are treated with cysplatin, in a Department of Biotechnology of the Union Government-sponsored research project done in collaboration with the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, and the North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NERGHRIMS), Shillong.
Prof MC Kalita, who is heading the team that has undertaken the Department of Biotechnology-sponsored project to find out cures for the cysplatin-induced nephro-toxicity, said that cysplatin is usually used to treat the cancer patients. But it contains platinum, which is dangerous for kidney and liver. Though it cures cancer, it causes severe damage to liver and kidney. Kidney, more particularly, faces much damaging impact of this drug.
To tackle this problem by providing a protective shield to kidney, this project has been undertaken in January 2014.
Under this project, based on traditional knowledge and animal model, seven plants have been selected for the purpose. The animal model used under the project for carrying out the experiments is Wistar albino rat.
Three plants have been found highly effective in this respect. The best among them has been identified and work is now on in this regard. The study of pure molecules of the best of the three plants is also going on, said Prof Kalita.
The GU researchers, who include Dr Kandarpa Kumar Saikia, Dr Ranjan Dutta Kalita and Anindita Talukdar, besides Prof Kalita, are working in collaboration with the Chandigarh-based PGIMER�s Dr Bikash Medhi and Ms Harjeet Kaur and the Shillong-based NERGHRIMS� Prof Anil Phukan, said Prof Kalita.
