Completing its 40th anniversary in this year, the Dr A Lakshmipathi Research Centre for Ayurveda (LRCA), is going to expand its R&D wing with a new building in Tambaram, in the border of Chennai city. The centre is the only institute for clinical research on Ayurveda and is a branch of Central Council for Research in Ayurveda and Siddha (CCRAS) in the state.

The centre is planning to commence an expansion in its R&D wing which will give importance to panchakarma treatment and research. Officials said that the new wing will most probably start its work in this year itself and the plans will be clear once the decisions be approved by the government.

At present, the centre is nearing completion of three projects on Ayurveda. Research for new treatment methods and formulae on Vyanabala vaishamya(hypertension), Medaroga(obesity) and Vishamajvara(malaria). In this, research on malaria has shown promising results, said Dr Gopakumar, assistant director of CCRAS who is also in-charge of the research on Ayurveda. He said that the research also focuses on the preventive medicine for malaria. Started in 1998, the projects will be completed this year.

The projects for each branch of CCRAS are decided by a central scientific advisory committee in every five years. Projects for clinical branches will be decided and allotted by the CCRAS in this year.

So far, the research centre has conducted 38 research projects including nutrition habits of elderly persons in Tamil Nadu, comparative study of ayurvedic and allopathic drugs on 408 patients suffering from minor ailments.

In the study on Medaroga (obesity), which tested the effect of Guggulu and fraction 'A' of petroleum ether extract of Gum Guggulu in 120 obese, hyper-cholesterolaemic and hyper-lipidaemic patients showed that Guggulu is comparable with Clofibrate, a modern hypo-lipidaemic drug. Effect of Vyosadi Guggulu in 51 cases of Medaroga showed a moderate reduction of weight, say the research scholars of the centre.

The research centre provides an out-patient department where a speciality Geriatric Clinic is being run twice a week. The centre conducts its research on malaria by treating and examining the patients in the Chennai corporation dispensaries.

Currently, the pharmacological studies of the drugs are not conducted in the centre. However, the new R&D wing will be provided by these facilities, said officials. The centre has already started a nodal institute for collecting the monographs from research institutes throughout the branches of CCRAS in India and has been published on behalf of the centre. Translation, editing and printing of rare ayurvedic manuscripts are also conducted under the centre. The chemical lab of this ayurvedic centre is situated with Captain Srinivasamoorthi Research Institute for Ayurveda and Siddha in Chennai.