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  • Catharanthus roseus (L.)G.Don Apocynaceae. Madagascar Periwinkle Distribution: Madagascar. It is the source of vincristine and vinblastine, which impair cell multiplication by interfering with microtubule assembly, causing metaphase arrest and are effective medications for leukaemias, lymphomas and some solid tumours. The mortality from childhood leukaemia fell from 100% to 30% once it was introduced - not a drug that could ethically be tested by double-blind trials. These chemicals were initially discovered by investigators in 1958 who were looking for cures for diabetes so tested this plant which was being used in the West Indies to reduce blood sugar levels. There are 70 different alkaloids present in this plant, and some - catharanthine, leurosine sulphate, lochnerine, tetrahydroalstonine, vindoline and vindolinine - lower blood sugar levels. However, the toxicity of this plant is such that this is not a plant to try at home for diabetic management. The vincristine content of the plant is 0.0003%, so two kilograms of leaf are required to produce sufficient vincristine for a single course of treatment for a child (6gm). Fortunately it is a vigorous weed and easy to grow in the tropics. Artificial synthesis has now been achieved. Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Royal West India Mail Steamer 'Tyne'. Dr. Acland - a passenger wrote a long letter to the 'Oxford Herald' about this disaster.
  • Henry Addington as a medical practitioner bleeding the exhausted John Bull, assisted by other politicians; representing Britain's strength being sapped by nepotism in politics and by war with Napoleon. Coloured etching by J. Gillray, 1803.
  • A two-headed multi-legged creature above a a shattered pot with emanating rays with Hindi lettering relating to the shattering effects of AIDS; an advertisement by the Indian Committee of Youth Organizations. Colour lithograph, ca. 1995.
  • A pot, a two-headed multi-legged creature and smaller symbols relating to ways in which AIDS is not transmitted including mosquitoes, hands shaking and a hospital bed; an advertisement issued by the Indian Committee of Youth Organizations. Colour lithograph, ca. 1995.
  • A man carrying a blue sack tied around his shoulder and a grey pouch with a hut beyond in a rural setting; represention of a man leaving for another country to earn money not AIDS ; an advertisement by NGO-AIDS Cell, Centre for Community Medicine, AIIMS. Colour lithograph by Unesco/Aidthi Workshop, March 1995.
  • An Indian woman wearing an elaborate headscarf and pierced ear ornament hands a condom to a man in front of a door within a decorative leaf border; an advertisement for Nirodh condoms as a safe-sex and AIDS prevention advertisement by NGO-AIDS Cell, Centre for Community Medicine, AIIMS. Colour lithograph for Unesco/Aidthi Workshop, March 1995.
  • A man sitting with his arms around 2 women, the same man taking medication, then escorting his pregnant wife away from a rural health clinic [?] and then embracing their baby; a warning about the dangers of multiple partners and the importance of protection against AIDS by NGO-AIDS Cell, Centre for Community Medicine, AIIMS. Colour lithograph by Unesco/Aidthi Workshop, March 1995.
  • A fisherman who has AIDS hauling in a net of fish from his boat as his female partner stands holding a fish in one hand while balancing a large bowl of fish on her head within a red and turquoise dotted decorative border; with the message who will catch the fish (when he has died?); an AIDS prevention advertisement by NGO-AIDS Cell, Centre for Community Medicine, AIIMS. Colour lithograph for Unesco/Aidthi Workshop, March 1995.
  • An Indian woman between two other women wearing headscarves in front of 3 arches within a decorative border; with a message about how AIDS is not spread as an AIDS prevention advertisement by NGO-AIDS Cell, Centre for Community Medicine, AIIMS. Colour lithograph by Unesco/Aidthi Workshop, March 1995.
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