Jugni, Dhola and Mahiya: Comparing

Among the amazing variety of forms of poetic expression by the folk of the Punjab region, this essay has selected three genres: mahiya, dhola and jugni. The study is meant to compare these three genres of Punjabi folklore, in their evolution, structure, expression and themes. The study finds that the three genres are very old in time origin and tracing their exact origins in history is impossible, only few hints are available. Their structures are variable, as mahiya has a fixed structure, dhola has rather loose structure giving more freedom to the singer-poet, and jugni has a specific meter in certain lines, but it has freedom to repeat some lines for perfect expression of the melody. The structures in fact follow the tunes, distinct for each genre. Three genres have many themes common, but jugni has spirituality as dominant theme, dhola has expression of love as dominant them and mahiya has now become quite inclusive, but it originated as expression of love and it still retains that character in its core. The folk heart of Punjab has endeared these three genres so much that these are appreciated far and wide in original tunes, but new experiments of tunes and themes are also underway. Being a true mirror of simple unsophisticated villagers these folk songs would lose popularity if these villagers become sophisticated hence the need for their preservation is highlighted in this study.

Phytochemical and Pharmacological Investigations of Quercus Incana

The present study was aimed to extract, fractionate, isolate and standardize the chemical constituents from the plant, Quercus incana, in order to find out their phytochemical and pharmacological mode of action, so as to discover a new source for potentially active constituents used for the benefits of mankind. Quercus incana, which is a large evergreen tree belongs to family Fagaceae. The Fagaceae is a large plant family found in Asia, North America and Europe. Quercus incana has been used in different ailments such as diarrhea, neurosis, pyrexia, dysentery, pain, inflammation and burns healing in conventional medicines. It is also employed to treat gonorrhea and used as an astringent, diuretic, and various nervous disorders all over the world including Pakistan. In the present research work, the plant Quercus incana was explored for its chemical constituents using chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques for potentially new and therapeutically active agents. The bark portion was selected for isolation, on the basis of preliminary pharmacological activities and its common use by the local people and Hakims and Tabibs in different ailments. Some activities were performed on fruit extract also. Crude extract of bark and fruit of Quercus incana and the new compound isolated from bark were screened for various in-vitro and in-vivo biological activities like antibacterial, anti oxidant, analgesic, anti-inflammatory etc, inorder to give scientific background to various ethnomedicinal applications of the plant which will lead to safe, therapeutic, effective and economical way of treatment of different diseases and to examine and analyze the chemical composition of the plant. For the isolation of pure secondary metabolites, the ethyl acetate fraction (obtained from crude methanolic extract of the bark) was subjected to column chromatography. The structures of purified compounds were elucidated by using various sophisticated spectroscopic techniques i.e, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, COSY, NOESY, DEPT, HSQC, HMBC, UV, IR and EI-MS. The plant was found to be a new source of six compounds such as, betulinic acid, 9-octadecanoic acid methyl ester(z-form), gallic acid, gallic ester, b-sitosterol glucoside, and quercitin. Three known compounds like β-sitosterol, ursolic acid, and lupeol were also isolated. Quercuschin, which was a completely new compound was discovered for the first time from this plant source. Results of in-vivo biological studies reveal that the plant possesses very good property of producing peripheral and central analgesia. The data obtained from different experiments supports the use of the plant in relieving fever, and treating inflammatory conditions. The different in-vitro activities of new compound were conclusive of the fact that the plant is a good natural antioxidant and can be used to treat various bacterial and fungal infections. The isolation work done on the plant (bark) of Quercus incana yielded 10 compounds. In these 10 compounds, 7 were reported for first time from this plant species : THESE WERE , betulinic acid, 9-octadecenoic acid methyl ester(z-form), gallic acid, gallic ester, b-sitosterol glucoside,quercitin , and one compound NAMELY Quercuschin: was absolutely new and was never reported before from any source AND was discovered for the first time from this plant source. 3 compounds were KNOWN compounds: NAMELY β-sitosterol, ursolic acid, and lupeol, Findings of this research project, especially the biological activities of chemical constituents of the plant, strongly support the folkloric uses of the plant and its applications in traditional treatment. The isolated compounds strengthen these activities. However, further comprehensive research work on the crude extract as well as on isolated compounds is needed to explore and identify lead compounds of clinical effectiveness for the development of new drugs in order to strengthen the field of drug discovery.