title: Preparation and characterization of a copper based Indian traditional drug: tamra bhasma.
abstract: The copper based Indian traditional drug 'tamra bhasma' is administered for various ailments since long. Its synthesis involves treating metallic copper with plant juices and then repeated calcination in presence of air so that the metallic state is transformed into the corresponding oxide form traditionally known as 'bhasma'. In this work, we present a systematic characterization of this traditional drug using various techniques like X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM)-energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), infrared spectroscopy (IR), thermogravimetry (TG) and surface area measurement. The results obtained were found to match very well with those of a standard copper oxide confirming the composition of the drug sample. In addition, some specific findings were also made which could help in interpreting the therapeutic properties of the traditional drug 'tamra bhasma'.
authors.affiliation: Division of Biochemical Sciences, National Chemical Laboratory, Pune 411008, India.
authors.forename: M P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Wadekar
authors.forename: C V
authors.initials: CV
authors.lastname: Rode
authors.forename: Y N
authors.initials: YN
authors.lastname: Bendale
authors.forename: K R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Patil
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Prabhune
mesh_terms: D001205:Ascorbic Acid / Q000032:analysis*; D003300:Copper / Q000032:analysis*; D004338:Drug Combinations; D004339:Drug Compounding; D005296:Ferrous Compounds / Q000032:analysis*; D007194:India; D008515:Medicine, Ayurvedic; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D010316:Particle Size; D013052:Spectrometry, X-Ray Emission; D013055:Spectrophotometry, Infrared; D013499:Surface Properties; D013818:Thermogravimetry; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
chemical_list: D004338:Drug Combinations; D005296:Ferrous Compounds; C040566:tamrabhasma; D003300:Copper; D001205:Ascorbic Acid; C030973:cupric oxide