Determination of the Effect of Mushroom on Arsenicosis Patients by Analyzing Physico-Chemical and Biological Parameters

Abstract

Arsenic is a toxic element for animals and the majority of plants, in spite of evidence that it is also an essential element. There are well-identified regions where arsenic ground water concentrations can reach values higher than 2 mg/L. The long term arsenic exposure via drinking water causes cancer like skin, lungs, heart and blood vessels, kidney and urinary bladder, reproductive organs, leukemia, rather than ceutaneous lesions (Keratosis, melanosis, leucomelanosis etc.). Pleurotus ostreatus has a medicinal value which can prevent cancer by reducing the arsenic accumulation in the patients. The spectroscopic (GF-AAS) determination of arsenic in biological samples (hair/nail) before and after application of Pleurotus ostreatus has given a tremendous solution for arsenicosis treatment. This study revealed that 42.6% of people were arsenic affected. We have selected 184 arsenic affected patients out of 571 respondents; among them 61.4% female and 38.6% are male patients. In 78.3% are married people, 48.9% female and 29.3% are male; and 7.6% of female and 9.2% of male are in the section of 16.8% unmarried personals. The educational status is interesting. Maximum people are illiterate (56.5%) and no one in university level; others are 18.5% in primary, 19.6% in secondary and 5.4% in higher secondary school. There are only 33.8% are employed, the fields and percentages are respectively group 1 (agriculture and unskilled workers), group 2 (shop keepers, tailors, salesman, carpenter etc.), and group 3 (teachers and other services) are respectively 23.4%, 8.2%, 2.2%. Maximum females are house wives (53.3%) and 8.2% are female students. Male students are only 1.6%. Unemployed, old and retired farmers are 3.3%. There are suspected 8 deaths from arsenic induced lung cancer. The differential studies of vital signs are blood pressure, pulse rate, respiratory rate, body temperature with them two important investigations for arsenicosis patients are BMI and urine’s pH value and specific gravity. The study revealed that maximum patients were suffering from low systolic pressure (38.6%) and also from high systolic pressure (35.8%). After treatment no gross changes found in systolic blood pressure. Diastolic blood pressure had not any countable responses of medicines like SBP. The pulse rate has a similar result like blood pressure. Here the patients from normal range are slightly increased after treatment (from 17.3% to 22.7%). But most of the patients have high pulse rates. In accordance to body temperature, the percentage of the patients in normal range is increased greatly after treatment (from 29.9% to 74.4%). Body temperature is one of the identifying marks for infection or inflammation present in the body. So this condition is reduced in the patients by Pleurotus ostreatus treatment. Here respiration rate is more important for arsenicosis patients. Because the arsenicosis patients in this area were dying of lung disease or cancer. Here 96.0% patients have high respiration rate and normal are only in 4.0%. After treatment the normal range is increased to 10.0%. A long time treatment can change the patients to normal. The normal value of BMI was in 51.1% patients and 36.9% were in low BMI. So it can be said that poverty or obesity is not the factor for arsenicosis disease. Maximum pH values of urine of the patients were acidic (91.4%), after treatment it reduced to 86.0%. Long time acidic nature in the body can produce cancer. After a long time Pleurotus ostreatus treatment, the possibility of cancer can be reduce by reducing acidic nature in the patients. But the specific gravity of urine was normal in maximum patients (81.3%), after treatment it increased to 82.6%.....................................