Ayurvedic Herbal Preparations in Neurological Disorders

Dr. Muralidhara is Chief Scientist and former Head of the Department of Biochemistry and Nutrition at CSIR (Central Food Technological Research Institute). Having mentored 15 Doctoral candidates and 25 Master’s students, he has published 12 book chapters and 96 papers in peer-reviewed journals. A toxicologist by training, he has extensive research experience in the area of neurotoxicology with special reference to the neuromodulatory effects of Ayurvedic herbal plants, spice active principles, and nutraceuticals in cell models, Drosophila, and rodent models to understand underlyin molecular, biochemical, and oxidative stress mechanisms. He has worked primarily with three Ayurvedic plants (Bacopa monneri, Centella asiatica and Withania sominfera) in various preclinical models. His research has also looked at the modulatory potential of selected Ayurvedic herbal plants under experimentally induced hyperglycemic state in pregnant rats, and the protective effects of pro/prebiotics against toxicant-induced neuropathological conditions Dr. Rajini is Senior Principal Scientist at CSIR (Central Food Technological Research Institute). She has pioneered in the area of pesticide toxicology, amelioration of toxicity by dietary components, and developed small animal models (C. elegans and Drosophila) for studying mechanistic toxicology. Her research focus has been the identification of novel food/plant-based components for prophylactic and ameliorative strategies to combat xenobiotic toxicity and ensuing disease progression. Her studies have addressed causes and probable mitigation of hyperglycemia, neurological disorders (Parkinson’s disease in particular), hypertension, and gastrointestinal disorders. Dr. Rajini has mentored 14 Doctoral candidates and 15 Master’s students and has published 5 book chapters and 64 papers in peer reviewed journals.