METHODS: Galactagogue activity was evaluated in terms of quantity of milk produced from the rats treated with petroleum ether, ethanol or water extracts of the flower. Lactating rats (n = 5) of Spraque Dawley with six pups each were administered with the extracts in the amount of 500 mg/kg body weight, while the control rats were given an equivalent amount of distilled water. The rats were daily administered via oral feeding starting from Day 5 until Day 14 and the performance of milk production was measured along the experimental period by weight-suckle-weight method. Results were statistically analyzed using SPSS by means of ANOVA at 0.05 and was expressed as their mean?standard deviation. The rates of pups' growth were measured as the weight gain along the experimental period.
RESULTS: The rats treated with aqueous extract produced higher milk than control and ethanol groups. Aqueous extract was identified to increase milk production by 25%, while petroleum ether extract by 18%. The mean of yields produced by the rats during suckling period for aqueous, petroleum ether, ethanol and control were 4.62±2.45, 4.37±1.93, 3.65±1.89 and 3.69±1.79, respectively. Growth rates of pups for the rats treated with control, aqueous, ethanol extract and petroleum ether were (1.85±0.49), (1.78±0.56), (1.65±0.46) and (1.56±0.42) g/pup, respectively.
CONCLUSIONS: The present study reveals the potential of M. x paradisiaca flower to enhance milk production of nursing mothers which could be exploited for commercialization of the isolated extract.
METHODS: Pollen dispersal patterns and male fecundity variation of Shorea leprosula and Shorea parvifolia ssp. parvifolia on Peninsular Malaysian were investigated during two general flowering seasons (2001 and 2002), using a neighbourhood model modified by including terms accounting for variation in male fecundity among individual trees to express heterogeneity in flowering.
KEY RESULTS: The pollen dispersal patterns of the two dipterocarp species were affected by differences in conspecific tree flowering density, and reductions in conspecific tree flowering density led to an increased selfing rate. Active pollen dispersal and a larger number of effective paternal parents were observed for both species in the season of greater magnitude of general flowering (2002).
CONCLUSIONS: The magnitude of general flowering, male fecundity variation, and distance between pollen donors and mother trees should be taken into account when attempting to predict the effects of management practices on the self-fertilization and genetic structure of key tree species in tropical forest, and also the sustainability of possible management strategies, especially selective logging regimes.