We investigated the in vitro effect of the essential oil of Croton nepetifolius Baill., Euphorbiaceae (EOCN), on spontaneous or induced contractions of circular and longitudinal muscles from the ovine cervix during the luteal phase of the estrous cycle. The relaxant effect of EOCN was expressed as a percentage of the contraction recorded before the addition of the oil and calculated relative to...

690 We enjoyed reading Andrea Rinaldi’s article, ‘Adopting an orphan’ (EMBO Rep 6: 507–510), on regulations that aim to stimulate the research and development of medicines for rare diseases. We would like to congratulate the author on the quality of the article in general and on highlighting this important health problem. However, Rinaldi stated that Emerging Biopharmaceutical Enterprises (EBE)...