The Genesis of Shi’ism in Islam

Like other major religions of the world, sectarian division took place in Islam too. The major cause of this sectarian division was political in its nature rather than religious. Immediately after the demise of the Holy Prophet (SAW), believers were divided over the question of succession to the Prophet (SAW) which later on culminated in the shape of two sectarian factions i.e. Sunni and Shi‘ah. The present paper will give a complete account of the genesis of Islamic sects including the events that directly intensified shi’ism  in Islam.

Development, Characterization and Non-Invasive in Vivo Evaluation of Cosmetic Emulgels Loaded With Strawberry, Blackberry and Raspberry Fruit Extracts

In recent era plant derived antioxidants have gained vital importance to cure various skin disorders such as, acne, hyper-pigmentation, inflammation, aging and dry skin. As synthetic antioxidants have many adverse effects, the current study aimed to develop and stabilizes a carrier system in the form of topical oil-in-water emulgels; loaded with various fruit extracts i.e. Strawberry, Blackberry and Raspberry; their in-vitro characterization and in-vivo evaluation on human volunteer‘s facial skin. Fruit extracts of Strawberry, Blackberry and Raspberry were effectively prepared. Free radical scavenging activities of three fruit extracts were determined by DPPH assay. Total flavonoids and phenolic contents of these extracts were also determined quantitatively. Stable antioxidant emulgels; E1 (Strawberry), E2 (Blackberry) and E3 (Raspberry); of oil-in-water type were formulated by using an appropriate combination of oily and aqueous phases loaded with fresh fruit extracts (4%) of Strawberry, Raspberry and (5%) of Blackberry and Base without extract. In-vitro characterization was based to observe the changes in physical stability (liquefaction, colour, conductivity, pH, SPF, centrifugation and rheological parameters) of all these active formulations and base which were kept at four different storage temperatures i.e. 8°C, 25°C, 40°C and 40°C+75%RH for a time period of 12 weeks to assess stability characteristics as per criteria of stability guidelines. In-vivo characteristics was based to evaluate the effects of active formulations (E1, E2, E3) on various skin parameters such as melanin, erythema, moisture contents, sebum contents, elasticity and surface evaluation of living skin (SELS) parameters on facial skin of human female volunteers for study period of 12 weeks. The study was controlled, single blinded with three groups (E1, E2, E3) having 13 volunteers each. Statistical tools of ANOVA technique at 5% level of significance and paired sample t-test were used to evaluate the results obtained. Antioxidant activities of Strawberry, Blackberry and Raspberry were 85%, 80% and 87% respectively. Active formulations (E1, E2, E3) containing fruit extracts 4%, 5% and 4% respectively as well as Base showed good pH, stability, conductivity, SPF and rheology, for three months in-vitro investigational period. Active formulations E1, E2 and E3 showed significant (P < 0.05) effects while Base showed insignificant (P > 0.05) changes in decrease of skin melanin, erythema and sebum while an increase in skin moisture content. Active formulations showed significant effects on SELS i.e. SEr (skin roughness), SEsc (skin scaliness), SEsm (skin smoothness) and SEw (skin wrinkles) parameters in comparison to base. SELS (SEr, SEsc and SEw) depicted significant decrease while SEsm (skin smoothness) showed significant increase after topical application of active formulations (E1, E2, and E3) in comparison to base. It can be concluded that final formula was appropriate for developing stable antioxidant emulgels E1, E2 and E3 containing fruit extracts of strawberry, blackberry and raspberry respectively; which remain cost effective and safe to use for human skin, improving patient compliance.