122 Editorial given along with conventional drugs. Badole et al. (8) evaluated the effects of aqueous extracts of Pleurotus pulmonarius (Lentinaceae) (called PP-aqu) and its inter- action with glyburide in alloxan induced diabetic mice. Administration of PP-aqu (500 mg kg 1) and its combina- tion with glyburide (10 mg kg 1) significantly decreased serum glucose levels in diabetic mice. This is an example of using an animal model with applications to diabetes, a disease of epidemic proportions. According to Kantamreddi and Wright (9), despite decades of intense research, malaria remains a deadly disease worldwide and new anti-malarials are urgently needed due to increasing drug resistance of Plasmodium falciparum to existing drugs. In their analyses, the evaluation of four Indian Diospyros species namely, D. melanoxylon, D. peregrina, D. sylvatica and D. tomentosa for anti-plasmodial activities against chloroquine-sensitive (3D7) and chloro- quine-resistant (K1) strains of P. falciparum. Six of eight methanolic extracts exerted significant activity against strain 3D7 and five of these showed similar activities against strain K1. D. sylvatica had the most active species making it surely worthy of further investigation. India now has the largest number of human immuno- deficiency virus (HIV) infected persons, with an estimated cumulative 5.1 million infections. Homeopathy is the dominant system among the nationally recognized alter- native or complementary systems of medicine, which collectively provide health care to 600 million people in India. Homeopathy, with its holistic and patient-centered approach, has a wide reach to people at risk of contracting HIV. Nyamathi et al. (10) designed a unique study to assess AIDS knowledge among homeopathy educators and physicians in India. Participants were 68 homeopathy physicians (34 educators and 34 practitioners) who completed a CDC questionnaire measuring HIV/AIDS knowledge regarding AIDS. This study reports the current level of knowledge of, and attitudes about, HIV/AIDS among homeopathy educators and practitioners. Their findings will assist in developing an education module to equip homeopathic health care personnel as they impart AIDS information accurately and efficiently. Leaving the more challenging concerns of disease and possible CAM intervention, I would like to end on a very upbeat subject. We recently received the eCAM Editorial Office report from our Editorial Assistant, Sophie Gilmour. She writes encouraging news. In the first quarter of 2008 the average time from submission to final acceptance has decreased by a month. To maintain high standards and ensure space for the best manuscripts (we are allotted 400 pages per annum), we reject more manuscripts; only 25% were accepted during this quarter. Overall, we are turning around manuscripts quicker than last year, despite increased submissions. For the thrust and future impact of volume 5, it is interesting that the highest number of new submissions received by country and type was from India and the United States. As we are aware, these numbers are important in helping to determine an impact factor (IF) that I continue to emphasize. IF is especially vital to the careers of many authors especially in Europe, Asia and the Middle East with respect to promotions, grant support and interna- tional recognition. References 1. Hankey A, Patwardhan B. Second world ayurveda congress: University of Pune, Pune, Maharashtra, India. eCAM 2006;3:547–8. 2. Cooper EL. Ayurveda is Embraced by eCAM. eCAM 2008;5:1–2. 3. Patwardhan B, Warude D, Pushpangadan P, Bhatt N. Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine: a comparative overview. eCAM 2005;2:465–73. 4. Hankey A. CAM modalities can stimulate advances in theoretical biology. eCAM 2006;2:5–12. 5. Rastogi S, Kulshreshtha DK, Rawat AKS. Streblus asper Lour. (Shakhotaka): a review of its chemical, pharmacological and ethnomedicinal properties. eCAM 2006;3:217–22. 6. Essa MM, Subramanian P. Hibiscus sabdariffa affects ammonium chloride-induced hyperammonemic rats. eCAM 2007; 4:321–5. 7. Shetty S, Udupa S, Udupa L. Evaluation of antioxidant and wound healing effects of alcoholic and aqueous extract of Ocimum sanctum Linn in rats. eCAM 2008;5:95–101. 8. Badole SL, Patel NM, Thakurdesai PA, Bodhankar SL. Interaction of aqueous extract of Pleurotus pulmonarius (Fr.) Quel-Champ. with glyburide in alloxan induced diabetic mice. eCAM Advanced Access 2007; doi:10.1093/ecam/nem010 V. S. 9. Kantamreddi S, Wright CW. Investigation of Indian Diospyros species for antiplasmodial properties. eCAM Advanced Access 2007; doi:10.1093/ecam/nem019. 10. Nyamathi A, Singh VP, Lowe A, Khurana A, Taneja D, George S, et al. Knowledge and attitudes about HIV/AIDS among homoeo- pathic practitioners and educators in India. eCAM Advance Access 2007; doi:10.1093/ecam/nem018.