Can an apple a day keep the doctor away?

Phytotherapy in Diabetic Foot Ulcers: A Promising Strategy for Effective Wound Healing

Despite the advancement in wound care, the effective therapy of chronic diabetic ulcers continues to be a challenge. Wound healing is a highly controlled process, which involves a sequence of complex overlapping steps. This healing pathway comprises of hemostasis, inflammation, proliferative, and remodeling phases. Recent evidence suggests that phytomedicines can prevent or repair different kinds of destructive cellular damage, including chronic wounds. Several phytochemicals such as polyphenols, alkaloids, flavonoids, terpenoids, and glycosides have pleiotropic effects, including stimulation of fibroblast proliferation, the main step in wound healing. Besides, the mechanism involves induction of collagen synthesis, migration, and reepithelization and their antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory actions. Similarly, the use of phytochemicals alone or as an adjuvant with standard therapy has demonstrated promising results in managing complications in the diabetic foot. For instance, the extract of Carica papaya has been shown antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory effects, which, together with proteolytic enzymatic activity, contributes to its wound healing property. It is generally believed that phytotherapy has no or minimal toxicity than synthetic therapeutic agents, favoring its use in diabetic foot ulcer management. The current review highlights the selected phytochemicals and their sources; and potential application in diabetic foot ulcer management.Key teaching points and nutritional relevanceCurrently, phytochemicals have been shown wide potential in disease. management including alleviating clinical manifestations, preventing degenerative disease, and curing illness.Increased evidence of phytochemical as anti-infective and anti-inflammatory suggests its role in the management of diabetic foot ulcer(DFU).Potential benefit along with minimal adverse effect favors its application as adjuvant therapy.Further research is needed to standardize its dose and formulation to enhance its clinical application in DFU management.

Investigation of the Genotoxicological Profile of Aqueous Betula pendula Extracts

Betula pendula belongs to the Betulaceae family and is most common in the northern hemisphere. Various birch species have exhibited antimicrobial, antioxidant and anticancer properties. In the present study, we investigated the genotoxic and cytotoxic activity as well as the antigenotoxic potential against the mutagenic agent mitomycin-C (MMC) of two commercial products, i.e., a Betula pendula aqueous leaf extract product (BE) and a Betula pendula product containing aqueous extract of birch leaves at a percentage of 94% and lemon juice at a percentage of 6% (BP) using the cytokinesis block micronucleus (CBMN) assay. The most prevalent compounds and elements of BE and BP were identified using UHPLC-MS and ICP-MS/MS, respectively. All mixtures of BE with MMC demonstrated a decrease in the MN frequencies, with the lowest and highest concentrations inducing a statistically significant antigenotoxic activity. BP lacked genotoxic potential, while it was cytotoxic in all concentrations. Its mixtures with MMC demonstrated statistically significant antigenotoxic activity only at the lowest concentration. UHPLC-MS and ICP-MS/MS showed the presence of various elements and phytochemicals. Our results reveal antigenotoxic and cytotoxic potential of both BE and BP, while the variations observed could indicate the importance of the interactions among different natural products and/or their compounds.

Interactions between Medical Plant-Derived Bioactive Compounds: Focus on Antimicrobial Combination Effects

It is accepted that the medicinal use of complex mixtures of plant-derived bioactive compounds is more effective than purified bioactive compounds due to beneficial combination interactions. However, synergy and antagonism are very difficult to study in a meticulous fashion since most established methods were designed to reduce the complexity of mixtures and identify single bioactive compounds. This study represents a critical review of the current scientific literature on the combined effects of plant-derived extracts/bioactive compounds. A particular emphasis is provided on the identification of antimicrobial synergistic or antagonistic combinations using recent metabolomics methods and elucidation of approaches identifying potential mechanisms that underlie their interactions. Proven examples of synergistic/antagonistic antimicrobial activity of bioactive compounds are also discussed. The focus is also put on the current challenges, difficulties, and problems that need to be overcome and future perspectives surrounding combination effects. The utilization of bioactive compounds from medicinal plant extracts as appropriate antimicrobials is important and needs to be facilitated by means of new metabolomics technologies to discover the most effective combinations among them. Understanding the nature of the interactions between medicinal plant-derived bioactive compounds will result in the development of new combination antimicrobial therapies.

Modeling of the Drying Process of Apple Pomace

Understanding biological materials is quite complicated. The material apple pomace is biologically unstable has been dried under certain conditions. Modeling the pomace drying is necessary to understand the heat and mass transport mechanism and is a prerequisite for the mathematical description of the entire process. Such a model plays an important role in the optimization or control of working conditions. Modeling of the pomace drying process is difficult as apple pomace is highly heterogeneous, as it consists of flesh, seeds, seed covers, and petioles of various sizes, shapes and proportions. A simple mathematical model (Page) was used, which describes well the entire course of the drying process. This is used to control the process. In turn, complex mathematical models describe the phenomena and scientifically explain the essence of drying. Mathematical modeling of the dewatering process is an indispensable part of the design, development and optimization of drying equipment.

Tetrandrine promotes angiogenesis via transcriptional regulation of VEGF-A

Angiogenesis is crucial for tissue damage repair in ischemic cardiovascular diseases. Vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) acts as a vital mediator in angiogenesis. In this study, tetrandrine (Tet) was found from 23 herbal chemicals to increase VEGF-A mRNA expression in H9c2 cells and the effect was confirmed in freshly isolated neonatal rat cardiomyocytes. The effect of Tet on VEGF-A expression and the possible mechanism were investigated. Tet treatment increased de novo VEGF-A mRNA synthesis and did not affect VEGF-A mRNA stability. The circulating chromosome conformation capture (4C) experiments indicated that Tet enhanced VEGF-A transcription by targeting a regulatory element beyond the 2.6 kb region of the translation start site. Tet augmented the angiogenic activities of endothelial cells. It also enhanced blood flow restoration and capillary vessel density following ischemic limb injury associated with an escalation of VEGF-A expression. Moreover, in myocardial infarction (MI) model Tet treatment elevated neovascularization, reduced infarction size, and improved heart function via upregulating VEGF-A levels. Our results suggested that Tet increased VEGF-A transcription through a novel mechanism that likely involves a distant regulatory element and may be useful for therapeutic angiogenesis for ischemic diseases.

Quantitative Ethnobotanical Analysis of Medicinal Plants of High-Temperature Areas of Southern Punjab, Pakistan

Lack of proper infrastructure and the poor economic conditions of rural communities make them dependent on herbal medicines. Thus, there is a need to obtain and conserve the historic and traditional knowledge about the medicinal importance of different plants found in different areas of the world. In this regard, a field study was conducted to document the medicinal importance of local plants commonly used by the inhabitants of very old historic villages in Southern Punjab, Pakistan. In total, 58 plant species were explored, which belonged to 28 taxonomic families, as informed by 200 experienced respondents in the study area. The vernacular name, voucher number, plant parts used, and medicinal values were also documented for each species. Among the documented species, Poaceae remained the most predominant family, followed by Solanaceae and Asteraceae. The local communities were dependent on medicinal plants for daily curing of several ailments, including asthma, common cold, sore throat, fever, cardiovascular diseases, and digestive disorders. Among the reported species, leaves and the whole plant remained the most commonly utilized plant parts, while extracts (38.8%) and pastes (23.9%) were the most popular modes of utilization. Based on the ICF value, the highest value was accounted for wound healing (0.87), followed by skincare, nails, hair, and teeth disorders (0.85). The highest RFC value was represented by Acacia nilotica and Triticum aestivum (0.95 each), followed by Azadirachta indica (0.91). The highest UV was represented by Conyza canadensis and Cuscuta reflexa (0.58 each), followed by Xanthium strumarium (0.37). As far as FL was concerned, the highest value was recorded in the case of Azadirachta indica (93.4%) for blood purification and Acacia nilotica (91.1%) for sexual disorders. In conclusion, the local inhabitants primarily focus on medicinal plants for the treatment of different diseases in the very old historic villages of Southern Punjab, Pakistan. Moreover, there were various plants in the study area that have great ethnobotanical potential to treat various diseases, as revealed through different indices.

Optimization of a New Antihyperglycemic Formulation Using a Mixture of Linum usitatissimum L., Coriandrum sativum L., and Olea europaea var. sylvestris Flavonoids: A Mixture Design Approach

Flavonoids are a class of natural chemicals with variable phenolic structures that have long been recognized for their health advantages, they have recently attracted researchers’ attention for treating diabetes and hyperglycemia. The goal of this research is to develop a novel antihyperglycemic formulation using a combination of three plant flavonoids: Linum usitatissimum L. seeds (FLU), Coriandrum sativum L. seeds (FCS), and Olea europaea var. sylvestris leaves (FOE) based on a mixture design experiment approach which generates the most effective ratio of each component in a mixture instead of the trial-and-error method. Prior to the test, sub-acute toxicity research was conducted to establish a safe and effective dosage. The Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) was used to assess the antihyperglycemic impact of these extracts and their combinations in Swiss albino mice. The dose that showed efficacy and safety was 25 mg/kg, which was utilized in all formulations. According to the results, the binary and ternary combinations showed the most significant synergetic effects. The optimum combination with the most potent effect was 37% FLU, 20% FCS, and 43% FOE. This study’s mixture design and prediction model for glycemic variation (GV) may be utilized at an industrial level to develop a novel antidiabetic and antihyperglycemic formulation that is safe and effective.

Moringa isothiocyanate-1 regulates Nrf2 and NF-κB pathway in response to LPS-driven sepsis and inflammation

This study aims to document the dual mode of pharmacological action of moringa isothiocyanate-1 (MIC-1) derived from seeds of Moringa oleifera Lam. Oral administration of chemically stable MIC-1 (80 mg/kg) significantly reduced the expression of inflammatory markers (Tnf-α, Ifn-α, IL-1β, IL-6) in the liver, kidney, spleen, and colon and decreased spleen weight in the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced sepsis / acute inflammation model in mice. Transcriptomic analysis of the effect of MIC-1 on the liver and in the LPS-induced RAW264.7 murine macrophage showed that MIC-1 decreases inflammation via inflammation, immunity, and oxidative stress pathways. These results are supported by the immunocytochemical observations that MIC-1 increased the nuclear accumulation of nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (Nrf2) transcription factor and decreased the nuclear accumulation of nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) in the LPS-induced macrophages. Transcriptional activation of antioxidant genes by MIC-1 translated into a reduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the cytoplasm, decrease of mitochondrial superoxide content, and restoration of the mitochondrial membrane potential in the LPS-induced macrophages. Our data indicate that MIC-1 affects inflammation and oxidative stress, two key processes involved in the etiology of many chronic diseases. These effects involve upstream regulation of two key transcriptional factors regulating responses to these processes at a gene expression level.

Antiviral and Immunomodulation Effects of Artemisia

Background and Objectives: Artemisia is one of the most widely distributed genera of the family Astraceae with more than 500 diverse species growing mainly in the temperate zones of Europe, Asia and North America. The plant is used in Chinese and Ayurvedic systems of medicine for its antiviral, antifungal, antimicrobial, insecticidal, hepatoprotective and neuroprotective properties. Research based studies point to Artemisia's role in addressing an entire gamut of physiological imbalances through a unique combination of pharmacological actions. Terpenoids, flavonoids, coumarins, caffeoylquinic acids, sterols and acetylenes are some of the major phytochemicals of the genus. Notable among the phytochemicals is artemisinin and its derivatives (ARTs) that represent a new class of recommended drugs due to the emergence of bacteria and parasites that are resistant to quinoline drugs. This manuscript aims to systematically review recent studies that have investigated artemisinin and its derivatives not only for their potent antiviral actions but also their utility against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Materials andMethods: PubMed Central, Scopus and Google scholar databases of published articles were collected and abstracts were reviewed for relevance to the subject matter. Conclusions: The unprecedented impact that artemisinin had on public health and drug discovery research led the Nobel Committee to award the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2015 to the discoverers of artemisinin. Thus, it is clear that Artemisia's importance in indigenous medicinal systems and drug discovery systems holds great potential for further investigation into its biological activities, especially its role in viral infection and inflammation.

Recent Advances in Standardization of Herbal Drugs

Background:

Herbal drugs play a significant role to maintain the human healthiness and to treat the ailments since the dawn of civilization. Moreover, these plants have provided many lead compounds that culminated in modern medicine. A single herb is regarded as mini-combinatorial library of phytoconstituents hence the quality control of herbal drugs in an herbal formulation is not an easy task because a number of factors impact their pharmacological efficiency and consistent therapeutic effects. Hence, to provide consistent beneficial therapeutic effects, standardized herbal products of consistent quality and purity are required.

Methods:

This review is based on publications obtained by a selective search in PubMed using the keywords “Standardized herbal products”, “fingerprinting”, “authentication”, “chemometric, hyphenated techniques”, “quality control of herbal drugs”, “identification”.

Results:

In the era of modernization, chromatographic techniques coupled with sophisticated spectroscopic analytical methods are used in estimating the authenticity, identity and characteristic of herbal products. Further, with the advancement of computer technology, chemometrics methods have become a leading tool with an unsupervised pattern recognition technique for handling multivariate data without prior knowledge about the studied samples and mines more beneficial and valuable information about the chemical entities from the raw data.

Conclusion:

Standardization of HDs chromatographic fingerprint is not always a perfect way to present all compounds. To assess the quality of medicinal plants, new ways are regularly being explored such as combination chemical fingerprint with biological methods, biofingerprint and metabolic fingerprint quality metrology, pharmacodynamics and export system of medicinal plants have been researched in some groups but still a significant amount of work is required to achieve a perfect system for quality evaluation of herbal drugs. Further, novel chemometric techniques have been unfolded that mines more beneficial and valuable information about the chemical entities from the raw data. So this review emphasis mainly on hyphenated techniques associated with chemometric method used in herbal drugs for identifying more valuable information and various methods for providing data, among which most commonly used techniques are chemometric resolution method and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) method.

Essential Oil Phytocomplex Activity, a Review with a Focus on Multivariate Analysis for a Network Pharmacology-Informed Phytogenomic Approach

Thanks to omic disciplines and a systems biology approach, the study of essential oils and phytocomplexes has been lately rolling on a faster track. While metabolomic fingerprinting can provide an effective strategy to characterize essential oil contents, network pharmacology is revealing itself as an adequate, holistic platform to study the collective effects of herbal products and their multi-component and multi-target mediated mechanisms. Multivariate analysis can be applied to analyze the effects of essential oils, possibly overcoming the reductionist limits of bioactivity-guided fractionation and purification of single components. Thanks to the fast evolution of bioinformatics and database availability, disease-target networks relevant to a growing number of phytocomplexes are being developed. With the same potential actionability of pharmacogenomic data, phytogenomics could be performed based on relevant disease-target networks to inform and personalize phytocomplex therapeutic application.

Synergy and antagonism in natural product extracts: when 1 + 1 does not equal 2

Covering: 2000 to 2019 According to a 2012 survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 18% of the U.S. population uses natural products (including plant-based or botanical preparations) for treatment or prevention of disease. The use of plant-based medicines is even more prevalent in developing countries, where for many they constitute the primary health care modality. Proponents of the medicinal use of natural product mixtures often claim that they are more effective than purified compounds due to beneficial "synergistic" interactions. A less-discussed phenomenon, antagonism, in which effects of active constituents are masked by other compounds in a complex mixture, also occurs in natural product mixtures. Synergy and antagonism are notoriously difficult to study in a rigorous fashion, particularly given that natural products chemistry research methodology is typically devoted to reducing complexity and identifying single active constituents for drug development. This report represents a critical review with commentary about the current state of the scientific literature as it relates to studying combination effects (including both synergy and antagonism) in natural product extracts. We provide particular emphasis on analytical and Big Data approaches for identifying synergistic or antagonistic combinations and elucidating the mechanisms that underlie their interactions. Specific case studies of botanicals in which synergistic interactions have been documented are also discussed. The topic of synergy is important given that consumer use of botanical natural products and associated safety concerns continue to garner attention by the public and the media. Guidance by the natural products community is needed to provide strategies for effective evaluation of safety and toxicity of botanical mixtures and to drive discovery in botanical natural product research.

Mushrooms: an emerging resource for therapeutic terpenoids

Mankind has always been fascinated with nature and have heavily explored natural products since the ancient times. Evolution of diseases led to research on synthetic structure, specificity and activity-guided treatment. To combat threats of new developing diseases and the deleterious side effects posed by modern therapy, researchers have once again looked back towards natural resources. Although plants have been the main source of natural drugs, lower fungi are being recently paid attention to. Among them, mushrooms have emerged as an under-explored yet immensely rich resource, especially for bioactive terpenoids. A lot of research is going on around the world with mushroom-derived terpenoids especially their medicinal properties, some of which have even been used in pre- and post-clinical studies. From the literatures that are available, it was found that mushroom terpenoids have activity against a wide range of diseases. In this review, we have summarized different mushroom-derived terpenoids and their therapeutic properties.

In Vitro Antiatherothrombotic Effects of Extracts from Berberis Vulgaris L., Teucrium Polium L., and Orthosiphon Stamineus Benth

Coronary artery disease is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. The pathogenesis is mainly due to atherosclerosis, plaque rupture, and platelet thrombus formation. The main risk factors for coronary artery disease include obesity, hypercholesterolemia, smoking, diabetes, and high blood pressure. As a part of disease management, treatment options using anticoagulant and antiplatelet drugs can be applied with addition to lipid-lowering medication. However, medicinal plants comprising antiatherothrombotic effects can be used as options to combat the disease rather than drug therapies with lesser adverse effects. Therefore, the haematological effect of Berberis vulgaris L., Teucrium polium L., and Orthosiphon stamineus Benth extracts was studied using in vitro model to prevent and to treat coronary atherothrombotic disease. The aqueous, methanol, and polysaccharide extracts of B. vulgaris, T. polium, and O. stamineus, respectively, were studied for their anticoagulant and antiplatelet effect on human whole blood. Extracts were subjected to the prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) test for anticoagulant activity. The antiplatelet activity was investigated using an electrical impedance method. B. vulgaris aqueous extract (BVAE), B. vulgaris polysaccharide extract (BVPE), T. polium aqueous extract (TPAE), and T. polium polysaccharide extract (TPPE) significantly prolonged the coagulation time in a concentration-dependent manner (p<0.05). The administration of BVAE demonstrated the most effective antiplatelet activity against platelet aggregation caused by arachidonic acid (AA) and collagen. These antiplatelet activities may correspond to the presence of higher total phenolic compound, which thus inhibit the platelet aggregation activity. In conclusion, these findings provide strong evidence on the antiatherothrombotic effect of BVAE and TPAE.

Menthol acts as a positive allosteric modulator on nematode levamisole sensitive nicotinic acetylcholine receptors

The ongoing and widespread emergence of resistance to the existing anti-nematodal pharmacopeia has made it imperative to develop new anthelminthic agents. Historically, plants have been important sources of therapeutic compounds and offer an alternative to synthetic drugs. Monoterpenoids are phytochemicals that have been shown to produce acute toxic effects in insects and nematodes. Previous studies have shown nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) to be possible targets for naturally occurring plant metabolites such as carvacrol and carveol. In this study we examined the effects of monoterpenoid compounds on a levamisole sensitive nAChR from Oesophagostomum dentatum and a nicotine sensitive nAChR from Ascaris suum. We expressed the receptors in Xenopus laevis oocytes and used two-electrode voltage-clamp to characterize the effect of various compounds on these cys-loop receptors. At 100 μM the majority of these compounds acted as antagonists. Interestingly, further experiments revealed that both 0.1 μM and 10 μM menthol potentiated acetylcholine and levamisole responses in the levamisole sensitive receptor but not the nicotine sensitive receptor. We also investigated the effects of 0.1 μM menthol on the contractility of A. suum somatic muscle strips. Menthol produced significant potentiation of peak contractions at each concentration of acetylcholine. The positive allosteric modulatory effects of menthol in both in vivo and in vitro experiments suggests menthol as a promising candidate for combination therapy with cholinergic anthelmintics.

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We screened 12 monoterpenoid compounds to search for a potential anthelmintic.

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Menthol acted as a PAM on levamisole sensitive nematode nAChRs in vitro & in vivo.

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Carvacrol produced antagonism on both levamisole and nicotine sensitive nAChRs.

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Monoterpenoid compounds can be used as an adjunct with cholinergic anthelmintics.

Marjoram extract down-regulates the expression of Pasteurella multocida adhesion, colonization and toxin genes: A potential mechanism for its antimicrobial activity

Due to the emergence of virulent and antibiotic-resistant microbes, natural antimicrobials from herbal origins have been given more attention as an alternative therapy. This study provides an in vitro research framework to investigate the antibacterial activities of 5 herbal (marjoram, garlic, onion, cinnamon and black seed) oil extracts against 16 multidrug-resistant (MDR) and virulent P. multocida serogroup A isolates recovered from dead and clinically diseased rabbits. Pathogenicity of the screened isolates was further proven experimentally and was verified by PCR analyses of 5 randomly selected virulence genes encoding attachment and colonization proteins (ptfA, pfhA, and omp87), sialidases (nanB) and dermonecrotoxin (toxA). A total of 12 P. multocida isolates were highly pathogenic with the possession of all examined virulence genes, while the other 4 isolates were of lower pathogenicity with expression of the target genes except toxA. In vitro anti-P. multocida activities of the 5 extracts and their synergism rates with 4 antibiotic drugs revealed that marjoram and cinnamon extracts had the highest antibacterial activities and the highest synergism rates against the screened isolates. Pasteurella multocida virulence gene expression profiles were assessed via real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) in response to marjoram extract. The quantitative analyses showed less than five-fold reduction in the targeted virulence genes expression in presence of marjoram extract compared with the control. The findings from this study document a novel molecular inhibitory activity of marjoram against P. multocida multiple virulence genes and provide a proof of concept for its implementation as an alternative candidate for the treatment of pasteurellosis in farm animals in future.

Southern Brazilian native fruit shows neurochemical, metabolic and behavioral benefits in an animal model of metabolic syndrome

In this work, we evaluated the effects of Psidium cattleianum (Red Type) (PcRT) fruit extract on metabolic, behavioral, and neurochemical parameters in rats fed with a highly palatable diet (HPD) consisted of sucrose (65% carbohydrates being 34% from condensed milk, 8% from sucrose and 23% from starch, 25% protein and 10% fat). Animals were divided into 4 groups: standard chow, standard chow + PcRT extract (200 mg/Kg/day by gavage), HPD, HPD + extract. The animals were treated for 150 days. Concerning chemical profiling, LC/PDA/MS/MS analysis revealed cyanidin-3-O-glucoside as the only anthocyanin in the PcRT extract. Our results showed that the animals exposed to HPD presented glucose intolerance, increased weight gain and visceral fat, as well as higher serum levels of glucose, triacylglycerol, total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol and interleukin-6. These alterations were prevented by PcRT. In addition, HPD caused an increase in immobility time in a forced swimming test and the fruit extract prevented this alteration, indicating an antidepressant-like effect. PcRT treatment also prevented increased acetylcholinesterase activity in the prefrontal cortex caused by HPD consumption. Moreover, PcRT extract was able to restore Ca²⁺-ATPase activity in the prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, and striatum, as well as Na⁺,K⁺-ATPase activity in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus. PcRT treatment decreased thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances, nitrite, and reactive oxygen species levels and prevented the reduction of superoxide dismutase activity in all cerebral structures of the HPD group. Additionally, HPD decreased catalase in the hippocampus and striatum. However, the extract prevented this change in the hippocampus. Our results showed that this berry extract has antihyperglycemic and antihyperlipidemic effects, and neuroprotective properties, proving to be a potential therapeutic agent for individuals with metabolic syndrome.

Development of botanicals to combat antibiotic resistance

The discovery of antibiotics in the previous century lead to reduction in mortality and morbidity due to infectious diseases but their inappropriate and irrational use has resulted in emergence of resistant microbial populations. Alteration of target sites, active efflux of drugs and enzymatic degradations are the strategies employed by the pathogenic bacteria to develop intrinsic resistance to antibiotics. This has led to an increased interest in medicinal plants since 25-50% of current pharmaceuticals are plant derived. Crude extracts of medicinal plants could serve as an alternate source of resistance modifying agents owing to the wide variety of secondary metabolites. These metabolites (alkaloids, tannins, polyphenols etc.) could act as potentials for antimicrobials and resistance modifiers. Plant extracts have the ability to bind to protein domains leading to modification or inhibition protein-protein interactions. This enables the herbals to also present themselves as effective modulators of host related cellular processes viz immune response, mitosis, apoptosis and signal transduction. Thus they may exert their activity not only by killing the microorganism but by affecting key events in the pathogenic process, thereby, the bacteria, fungi and viruses may have a reduced ability to develop resistance to botanicals. The article is meant to stimulate research wherein the cidal activity of the extract is not the only parameter considered but other mechanism of action by which plants can combat drug resistant microbes are investigated. The present article emphasizes on mechanisms involved in countering multi drug resistance.

Deciphering the Mechanism of Action of Wrightia tinctoria for Psoriasis Based on Systems Pharmacology Approach

OBJECTIVE

Psoriasis is a chronic immune-mediated disorder of the skin. The disease manifests itself with red or silvery scaly plaques distributing over the lower back, scalp, and extensor aspects of limbs. Several medications are available for the treatment of psoriasis; however, high rates of remission and side-effects still persist as a major concern. Siddha, one of the traditional systems of Indian medicine offers cure to many dermatological conditions, including psoriasis. The oil prepared from the leaves of Wrightia tinctoria is prescribed by many healers for the treatment of psoriasis. This work aims to decipher the mechanism of action of the W. tinctoria in curing psoriasis and its associated comorbidities.

DESIGN

The work integrates various pharmacology approaches such as drug-likeness evaluation, oral bioavailability predictions, and network pharmacology approaches to understand the roles of various bioactive components of the herb.

RESULTS

This work identified 67 compounds of W. tinctoria interacting with 238 protein targets. The compounds were found to act through synergistic mechanism in reviving the disrupted process in the diseased state.

CONCLUSION

The results of this work not only shed light on the pharmacological action of the herb but also validate the usage of safe herbal drugs.

A new antiviral screening method that simultaneously detects viral replication, cell viability, and cell toxicity

Viruses cause a variety of illnesses in humans, yet only a few antiviral drugs have been developed; thus, new antiviral drugs are urgently needed. Plants could be a good source of antiviral drugs, they do not have mobility and can only defend themselves by producing compounds against pathogens such as viruses in their own fix environment. These compounds may have the potential to inhibit animal and human viruses as well. In this study, a fast and reliable method for screening plant extracts for specific antiviral activity against Herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1) was developed. This method distinguishes between host cell death due to infectivity and multiplicity of the virus versus toxicity of the plant extract. Extracts from 80 plant and plant organs were screened using this approach. Six plant extracts showed potential to exert specific HSV-1 growth inhibition activity. In two cases, different organs from the same plant showed similar active results. With this method it is possible to screen a large number of extracts in a rapid and accurate way to detect antiviral substances against HSV-I and other viruses.

Artemisia dracunculus L. polyphenols complexed to soy protein show enhanced bioavailability and hypoglycemic activity in C57BL/6 mice

OBJECTIVE

Scientifically validated food-based interventions are a practical means of addressing the epidemic of metabolic syndrome. An ethanolic extract of Artemisia dracunculus L. (PMI-5011) containing bioactive polyphenols, such as 2', 4'-dihydroxy-4-methoxydihydrochalcone (DMC-2), improved insulin resistance in vitro and in vivo. Plant polyphenols are concentrated and stabilized when complexed to protein-rich matrices, such as soy protein isolate (SPI), which act as effective food-based delivery vehicles. The aim of this study was to compare the bioaccessibility, bioavailability, and efficacy of polyphenols extracted from A. dracunculus and delivered as PMI-5011 (ethanolic extract alone), formulated with the non-food excipient Gelucire(®), (5011- Gelucire), or sorbed to SPI (5011-Nutrasorb(®)).

METHODS

PMI-5011, 5011-Gelucire or 5011-Nutrasorb each containing 162 μg of DMC-2 was delivered to the TNO intestinal model-1 of the human upper gastrointestinal tract to compare the effect of delivery vehicle on DMC-2 bioaccessibility. C57BL6/J mice were orally administered 5011-Nutrasorb or PMI-5011 to compare effects of polyphenol-protein complexation on acute hypoglycemic activity and bioavailability of DMC-2 in serum.

RESULTS

At 500 mg/kg, 5011-Nutrasorb and PMI-5011 had similar hypoglycemic activity in a high-fat diet-induced diabetes mouse model despite the fact that 5011-Nutrasorb delivered 15 times less DMC-2 (40 versus 600 μg/kg). This can be partially explained by eight times greater DMC-2 absorption into serum from 5011-Nutrasorb than from PMI-5011. TNO intestinal model-1 experiments confirmed higher total bioaccessibility of DMC-2 in vitro when delivered in 5011-Nutrasorb (50.2%) or Gelucire-5011 (44.4%) compared with PMI-5011 (27.1%; P = 0.08).

CONCLUSION

Complexation with soy protein makes antidiabetic A. dracunculus polyphenols more bioavailable and bioaccessible.

Use of in vitro bioassays for assessing botanicals

In vitro bio assays can play a vital role in evaluating botanicals ranging from comparative screening, interaction studies, bio-activity guided fractionation, biological characterization, assisting in stability studies to studying mechanism of actions. In this review, we present some challenges and common pitfalls of using bioassays for assessing botanicals including guidance to overcome them. The overall objective of this review is to improve the success of botanicals products by incorporating robust bioassays during various stages of research and development.

Can medical herbs stimulate regeneration or neuroprotection and treat neuropathic pain in chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy?

Chemotherapy-induced neuropathy (CIPN) has a relevant impact on the quality of life of cancer patients. There are no curative conventional treatments, so further options have to be investigated. We conducted a systematic review in English and Chinese language databases to illuminate the role of medical herbs. 26 relevant studies on 5 single herbs, one extract, one receptor-agonist, and 8 combinations of herbs were identified focusing on the single herbs Acorus calamus rhizoma, Cannabis sativa fructus, Chamomilla matricaria, Ginkgo biloba, Salvia officinalis, Sweet bee venom, Fritillaria cirrhosae bulbus, and the herbal combinations Bu Yang Huan Wu, modified Bu Yang Huan Wu plus Liuwei Di Huang, modified Chai Hu Long Gu Mu Li Wan, Geranii herba plus Aconiti lateralis praeparata radix , Niu Che Sen Qi Wan (Goshajinkigan), Gui Zhi Jia Shu Fu Tang (Keishikajutsubuto), Huang Qi Wu Wu Tang (Ogikeishigomotsuto), and Shao Yao Gan Cao Tang (Shakuyakukanzoto). The knowledge of mechanism of action is still limited, the quality of clinical trials needs further improvement, and studies have not yielded enough evidence to establish a standard practice, but a lot of promising substances have been identified. While CIPN has multiple mechanisms of neuronal degeneration, a combination of herbs or substances might deal with multiple targets for the aim of neuroprotection or neuroregeneration in CIPN.

Oil palm phenolics confer neuroprotective effects involving cognitive and motor functions in mice

Objectives

Phenolics are important phytochemicals which have positive effects on chronic diseases, including neurodegenerative ailments. The oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) is a rich source of water-soluble phenolics. This study was carried out to discover the effects of administering oil palm phenolics (OPP) to mice, with the aim of identifying whether these compounds possess significant neuroprotective properties.

Methods

OPP was given to BALB/c mice on a normal diet as fluids for 6 weeks while the controls were given distilled water. These animals were tested in a water maze and on a rotarod weekly to assess the effects of OPP on cognitive and motor functions, respectively. Using Illumina microarrays, we further explored the brain gene expression changes caused by OPP in order to determine the molecular mechanisms involved. Real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction experiments were then carried out to validate the microarray data.

Results

We found that mice given OPP showed better cognitive function and spatial learning when tested in a water maze, and their performance also improved when tested on a rotarod, possibly due to better motor function and balance. Microarray gene expression analysis showed that these compounds up-regulated genes involved in brain development and activity, such as those under the regulation of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor. OPP also down-regulated genes involved in inflammation.

Discussion

These results suggest that the improvement of mouse cognitive and motor functions by OPP is caused by the neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects of the extract.

Differential transcriptomic profiles effected by oil palm phenolics indicate novel health outcomes

BACKGROUND

Plant phenolics are important nutritional antioxidants which could aid in overcoming chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and cancer, two leading causes of death in the world. The oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) is a rich source of water-soluble phenolics which have high antioxidant activities. This study aimed to identify the in vivo effects and molecular mechanisms involved in the biological activities of oil palm phenolics (OPP) during healthy states via microarray gene expression profiling, using mice supplemented with a normal diet as biological models.

RESULTS

Having confirmed via histology, haematology and clinical biochemistry analyses that OPP is not toxic to mice, we further explored the gene expression changes caused by OPP through statistical and functional analyses using Illumina microarrays. OPP showed numerous biological activities in three major organs of mice, the liver, spleen and heart. In livers of mice given OPP, four lipid catabolism genes were up-regulated while five cholesterol biosynthesis genes were down-regulated, suggesting that OPP may play a role in reducing cardiovascular disease. OPP also up-regulated eighteen blood coagulation genes in spleens of mice. OPP elicited gene expression changes similar to the effects of caloric restriction in the hearts of mice supplemented with OPP. Microarray gene expression fold changes for six target genes in the three major organs tested were validated with real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), and the correlation of fold changes obtained with these two techniques was high (R2 = 0.9653).

CONCLUSIONS

OPP showed non-toxicity and various pleiotropic effects in mice. This study implies the potential application of OPP as a valuable source of wellness nutraceuticals, and further suggests the molecular mechanisms as to how dietary phenolics work in vivo.

Health benefits of vitamins and secondary metabolites of fruits and vegetables and prospects to increase their concentrations by agronomic approaches

Fruits and vegetables (FAVs) are an important part of the human diet and a major source of biologically active substances such as vitamins and secondary metabolites. The consumption of FAVs remains globally insufficient, so it should be encouraged, and it may be useful to propose to consumers FAVs with enhanced concentrations in vitamins and secondary metabolites. There are basically two ways to reach this target: the genetic approach or the environmental approach. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the results that have been obtained so far through purely agronomic approaches and brings them into perspective by comparing them with the achievements of genetic approaches. Although agronomic approaches offer very good perspectives, the existence of variability of responses suggests that the current understanding of the way regulatory and metabolic pathways are controlled needs to be increased. For this purpose, more in-depth study of the interactions existing between factors (light and temperature, for instance, genetic factors × environmental factors), between processes (primary metabolism and ontogeny, for example), and between organs (as there is some evidence that photooxidative stress in leaves affects antioxidant metabolism in fruits) is proposed.

Mechanisms of the gastric antiulcerogenic activity of Anacardium humile St. Hil on ethanol-induced acute gastric mucosal injury in rats

Leaves and bark infusions Anacardium humile St. Hil. (Anacardiaceae), known as in Brazil as "cajuzinho do cerrado", have been used in folk medicine as an alternative treatment for ulcers and gastritis. This study evaluated the gastroprotective activity of an ethyl acetate extract of the leaves of A. humile (AcF) and the mechanism involved in this gastroprotection. Pretreatment concentrations (50, 100, 200 mg x kg⁻¹) were administered by gavage. Following a 60 min. period, all the rats were orally administered 1 mL of absolute ethanol. One hour after the administration of ethanol, all groups were sacrificed, and the gastric ulcer index was calculated. Prostaglandin PGE₂ concentration, gastric adherent mucous, and the participation of nitric oxide (NO) and sulfhydryl compounds in the gastroprotection process were also analyzed using the most effective tested dose (50 mg x kg⁻¹). A histological study of the glandular stomach for the evaluation of the epithelial damage and mucus content was also performed. AcF significantly reduced the gastric damage produced by ethanol. This effect was statistically significant for the 50 mg x kg⁻¹ group compared to control. Also, it significantly increased the PGE₂ (by 10-fold) and mucous production, while pretreatment with NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) or N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) completely abolished the gastroprotection. AcF has a protective effect against ethanol, and this effect, might be due to the augmentation of the protective mechanisms of mucosa.

Importance of extract standardization and in vitro/ex vivo assay selection for the evaluation of antioxidant activity of botanicals: a case study on three Rosmarinus officinalis L. extracts

The overproduction of free radicals and oxygen reactive species is suspected to be implicated in a wide range of metabolic reactions that can have pernicious consequences in the development of a variety of human diseases. Botanical extracts are sources of antioxidants that counteract both free radicals and oxygen reactive species. The processing conditions used in the botanical extraction may influence the antioxidant composition; therefore, different extracts from the same plant may have different antioxidant properties. To illustrate this fact, we conducted a study using three commercial rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) leaf extracts. The three extracts were standardized to contain, respectively, 20% carnosic acid, 40% ursolic acid, or 20% rosmarinic acid. They were evaluated for their total (hydrophilic + lipophilic) antioxidant effects on oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), their ferric reducing/antioxidant power (FRAP), and their capacity to inhibit Cu(2+)-induced low-density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation ex vivo. The ursolic acid extract showed the lowest antioxidant capacity on all models. The rosmarinic acid extract had an antioxidant capacity 1.5 times higher on ORAC and four times higher on FRAP than the carnosic acid extract. However, the carnosic acid extract was better than the rosmarinic acid extract in inhibiting the oxidation of LDL ex vivo. These results encourage conducting further studies to evaluate the carnosic acid and rosmarinic acid extracts in vivo. Our study offers an example of the importance of the extraction procedures, on which depends the nature of the antioxidant composition, and highlights interest to proceed with in vitro/ex vivo assay selection for the evaluation of the antioxidant properties of botanical extracts.

Immunosuppressive constituents from Urtica dentata Hand

A novel biscoumarin, 6,6',7,7'-tetramethoxyl-8,8'-biscoumarin (1), was isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of Urtica dentata Hand, together with five known compounds named as 7,7'-dihydroxy-6,6'-dimethoxy-8,8'-biscoumarin (2), 7,7'-dimethoxy-6,6'-biscoumarin (3), scoparone (4), vanillic acid (5), and daucosterol (6). Structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analysis including 2D NMR experiments. Compounds 1 and 2 were confirmed to be a rare carbon-carbon linked symmetrical biscoumarin. Compounds 1-4, especially 1 (IC(50) = 8.18 x 10(- 5) mol/l), showed potent immunosuppressive activities as determined by the Cell Counting Kit-8 assay for lymphocyte proliferation. Also, in the FACS analysis, 1 (IC(50) = 5.19 x 10(- 4) mol/l) promoted the differentiation of CD4(+)CD25(+)Foxp3(+) T regulatory cells distinctly compared to the normal control. Thus, 1 possessed specific immunosuppressive property by eliciting T regulatory cells, which may provide a potential treatment strategy for autoimmune diseases.

Evaluation of inhibitory activities of plant extracts on production of LPS-stimulated pro-inflammatory mediators in J774 murine macrophages

Whole plant methanolic extracts of 14 traditionally used medicinal herbs were evaluated for their anti-inflammatory activity. Extracts of Grindelia robusta, Salix nigra, Arnica montana, and Quassia amara showed up to 4.5-fold inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) production in the J774 murine macrophage cells challenged with LPS without cytotoxicity. These four selected extracts significantly reduced the protein levels of inducible NO synthase (iNOS) and the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) as observed by Western blot analysis. Culture supernatants from cells treated with these extracts indicated 3-5-fold reduction of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). However, only G. robusta and Q. amara extracts significantly inhibited (by 50%) IL-1beta and IL-12 secretions. Furthermore, all these plant extracts were shown to prevent the LPS-mediated nuclear translocation of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB). All the above observations indicate the anti-inflammatory potential of these plant extracts.

A natural history of botanical therapeutics

Plants have been used as a source of medicine throughout history and continue to serve as the basis for many pharmaceuticals used today. Although the modern pharmaceutical industry was born from botanical medicine, synthetic approaches to drug discovery have become standard. However, this modern approach has led to a decline in new drug development in recent years and a growing market for botanical therapeutics that are currently available as dietary supplements, drugs, or botanical drugs. Most botanical therapeutics are derived from medicinal plants that have been cultivated for increased yields of bioactive components. The phytochemical composition of many plants has changed over time, with domestication of agricultural crops resulting in the enhanced content of some bioactive compounds and diminished content of others. Plants continue to serve as a valuable source of therapeutic compounds because of their vast biosynthetic capacity. A primary advantage of botanicals is their complex composition consisting of collections of related compounds having multiple activities that interact for a greater total activity.

New Strategy for the Search of Natural Biologically Active Substances

The modern pharmaceutics actively screens an immense diversity of substances occurring in plants and other natural resources in the search for new effective medicinal agents. The Global Institute for Bioexploration (GIBEX) established by joint efforts of Rutgers University and the University of Illinois (United States) represents the organizational core of international scientific community whose activity is directed towards the search and development of new medicinal preparations from natural raw materials. The basis of GIBEX activity is the transfer of modern screening technologies to countries and geographical regions characterized by remarkable biodiversity. The GIBEX goals are to encourage the search for new natural biologically active substances, to maintain biodiversity, and to monitor the natural resources conservation.

A quantitative synthesis of the medicinal ethnobotany of the Malinké of Mali and the Asháninka of Peru, with a new theoretical framework

BACKGROUND

Although ethnomedically and taxonomically guided searches for new medicinal plants can improve the percentage of plants found containing active compounds when compared to random sampling, ethnobotany has fulfilled little of its promise in the last few decades to deliver a bounty of new, laboratory-proven medicinal plants and compounds. It is quite difficult to test, isolate, and elucidate the structure and mechanism of compounds from the plethora of new medicinal plant uses described each year with limited laboratory time and resources and the high cost of clinical trials of new drug candidates.

METHODS

A new quantitative theoretical framework of mathematical formulas called "relational efficacy" is proposed that should narrow down this search for new plant-derived medicines based on the hypothesis that closely related plants used to treat closely related diseases in distantly related cultures have a higher probability of being effective because they are more likely to be independent discoveries of similar plant compounds and disease mechanisms. A prerequisite to this hypothesis, the idea that empirical testing in traditional medicine will lead to choosing similar medicinal plants and therefore the medicinal flora of two distant cultures will prove to be more similar than their general flora, is tested using resampling statistics on cross-cultural field data of the plants used by the Malinké of Mali and the Asháninka of Peru to treat the diseases malaria, African sleeping sickness, Chagas' disease, leishmaniasis, diabetes, eczema, asthma, and uterine fibroids.

RESULTS

In this case, the similarity of the medicinal floras is found to be significantly greater than the similarity of the general floras, but only when the diseases in question are grouped into the categories of parasitic and autoimmune diseases.

CONCLUSION

If the central theoretical framework of this hypothesis is shown to be true, it will allow the synthesis of medicinal plant information from around the world to pinpoint the species with the highest potential efficacy to take into the laboratory and analyze further, ultimately saving much field and laboratory time and resources.

Revisiting the ancient concept of botanical therapeutics

Mixtures of interacting compounds produced by plants may provide important combination therapies that simultaneously affect multiple pharmacological targets and provide clinical efficacy beyond the reach of single compound-based drugs. Developing innovative scientific methods for discovery, validation, characterization and standardization of these multicomponent botanical therapeutics is essential to their acceptance into mainstream medicine.

Anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive compounds from Tripterygium wilfordii

The extract of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F. (TwHF), which showed anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive activities in human clinical trials for rheumatoid arthritis, was subjected to the activity-guided fractionation and spectroscopic characterization of bioactives. A tetrahydrofuran lignan, tripterygiol (1), and eight known compounds, all capable of suppressing pro-inflammatory gene expression were identified. Most of the pharmacological activity of the extract can be attributed to triptolide, its most abundant and active component, with some contribution from tripdiolide.

Chemical and biological characterisation of nutraceutical compounds of broccoli

People's diet offers a greater and more diverse group of plant bioactives than do drugs, and they often do not realise that many drugs are derived from the compounds originally discovered in plant foods. Numerous epidemiological studies indicate that Brassica vegetables in general, and broccoli in particular, protect humans against cancer since they are rich sources of glucosinolates as well as possessing a high content of flavonoids, vitamins and mineral nutrients. One unusual phytotherapeutic role of broccoli is for skin diseases--the juice of the leaves is used to treat warts. However, the main use of broccoli stems from its health-promoting properties. Some criteria have been proposed to evaluate the possibilities of developing new "functional foods" to reduce the risk of specific cancers; largely in broccoli, which is associated with cancer protection. Processing conditions, transport, domestic cooking, etc., affect the health-promoting properties of broccoli and these have been widely studied. This review makes an in-depth study of the chemical and biological characterization of the phytochemicals of broccoli and the effects on the bioactive composition of broccoli.

Emerging issues in traditional Chinese medicine

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has many beneficial effects and has been practiced for several thousand years. It is known to treat the cause of a disease rather than to alleviate its symptoms. Based on a belief that TCM is natural, safe, and of lower cost, consumers worldwide are spending more out-of-pocket money on this form of therapy. This increased spending, and reports of adverse reactions, has drawn the attention of many regulatory agencies. Scientists have called for more evidence-based and scientific research on the risks and benefits of TCM. In Canada, the Natural Health Product Regulations came into effect January 2004. TCM herbal product manufacturers will need to provide products of reputable quality to the market. Many will apply modern technology and good science to support their products. The issues facing producers, scientists, and consumers alike are quality control and assessment, standardization of bioactive components, mechanisms of actions, and integration of the evolved modern Chinese medicine into the healthcare system. Solid science, better regulation of the final product, and better education of consumers are necessary to extract the best of TCM to complement existing conventional medicine to deliver the best healthcare.Key words: bioactive components, chromatographic fingerprinting, integration, mechanisms, Natural Health Product (NHP) Regulations, standardization, traditional Chinese medicine.