CHENNAI: A tripartite agreement between Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and a private pharma company, Arvind Remedies, was signed last week to scientifically validate an Ayurvedic formulation to treat rheumatoid arthritis.

The DST, to scientifically validate an Ayurvedic poly-herbal formulation developed by the pharma company, has now sanctioned a sum of Rs.103 lakh to SRMC. The research will study, over three years, the safety and efficacy of the formula for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. SRMC Vice-Chancellor S.S.K. Marthandam, DST adviser Laxman Prasad and Arvind Remedies managing director, Arvind Shah, signed the MoU on May 27.

With the Centre paying great attention to validating formulations based on Indian Systems of Medicine in an effort to popularise them, several research institutions have now begun to concentrate on this activity. The World Health Organisation too has consistently recommended and encouraged the promotion of traditional remedies because of their low cost, comparative safety and cultural acceptance. However, it also recommends certain norms that the traditional formulations would have to adhere to, which meant they would have to be scientifically identified, standardised and put into rigorous evaluation in a systemic manner.

Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute here has been one of the numerous institutions that have ventured into herbal medicine research last year. What began with a workshop on standardisation of traditional medicines for global acceptance as per WHO guidelines, supported by the Department of Science and Technology, has now bloomed into full-fledged research relationships with pharma companies and the Government.

DST team visits

The Institute's first MoU was signed for work on a poly-herbal formula for the management of Diabetes Mellitus last year. To monitor the progress of the team working on this, a group from the drugs and pharmaceutical department of the DST visited SRMC's labs last week.

The research section, guided by G.P. Dubey, Professor Emeritus, Banaras University, which is solely dedicated for scientific validation of traditional Indian medicines, is equipped with sophisticated analytical equipment to facilitate basic authentication of herbal products, identification of chemical and biological markers, formulation standardisation, preclinical safety and efficacy studies, and at a later stage, clinical trials.

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