Posted by admin on Jul 31, 2018 in |
The therapeutic potential of essential oil-bearing plants have been realized. Like herbal remedies, essential oils and their constituents cover a wide field of performance. These include antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, anticancer, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties. The field of aroma and smell is so attracting that Nobel Prize (2004) in physiology and Medicine was awarded for unlocking the secrets of smell. Thanks to Prof. Richard Alex of Columbia University, and Linda B. Buck, who unlocked the secrets of the olfactory system at the molecular level. These odor bearing substances pass through nasal passage are detected by particular neurons called olfactory cells present in the upper part of nasal epithelium which contains five (5) million neurons. Essential oils are chemically a mixture of organic compounds belonging to different chemical entities such as terpenes, phenols, aliphatic compounds, benzoyl compounds, and heterocyclic compounds. Terpenes are classified as mono, sesquiterpenes, and diterpenes based on isoprene units. Oxygenated terpenes are the chief odor transporters of the essential oils. They include the alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, carboxylic acids,...
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Posted by admin on Jul 31, 2018 in |
Hypertension is a common clinical problem encountered in day-to-day practice. Although several synthetic pharmaceutical drugs already exist for the treatment of hypertension, these drugs can develop many complicated side effects. On the other hand in our Arabian countries, patient compliance forces the population to frequently recourse to traditional medicine which mainly uses plants. Because of most of the medicinal agents including herbs were reported to have potentially unexpected effects including toxicity and interactions, this study focused on the investigation of antihypertensive activity of four plants mixture along with studying their interaction. In this study ethanolic extract of a mixture composed of four plants Hyphaene thebaica, Olea europaea, Origanum majorana, and Hibiscus sabdariffa was investigated for its antihypertensive activity and interaction between it’s including herbs. 50 g of each plant powder was mixed homogeneously and macerated in 70% ethanol for about 7 days. The effect of this extract was investigated at a dose level of 25 mg/kg. Blood pressure was measured by a non-invasive blood pressure recorder apparatus before and...
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Posted by admin on Aug 2, 2017 in |
Combretastatin A-4 (CA-4) is an anti-mitotic agent that is gaining rapid recognition among cancer biologists and clinicians as one of the newer vascular disrupting agents, (VDAs) for cancer therapy. CA-4 belongs to a group of tubulin binding natural products called combretastatin, derived from the African Bush Willow, Combretum caffrum. Due to CA-4’s in-vivo efficacy, several analogs of CA-4 have been synthesized to maximize its solubility and bioavailability. Combretastatin A-4 phosphate is a more soluble form of CA-4 that has completed for treatment of acute myelogenous leukemia and relapsed ovarian cancer. This review attempts to highlight the various CA-4 analogs that have been synthesized and their effectiveness in clinical. Combretastatin A-4 phosphate (CA-4-P) is a biologically very active compound by binding to the colchicine binding site which leads to the inhibition of microtubule polymerization as well as showing antiangiogenic and anticancer effects by selectively shutting down the tumor blood flow. To avoid the disadvantage of rather low in-vivo efficacy resulting from the isomerization of the cis-stilbene derivative to the thermodynamically...
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Posted by admin on Aug 2, 2017 in |
Herbal medicines are now creature in modern dosage forms using modern manufacture in and processing techniques in the pharmaceutical industry. Antioxidants assuage oxidative stress in cells and thereby help in the prevention and treatment of many diseases of humans. This study aimed to assess the antioxidant activity of ethanol and chloroform extracts of wild and micro-propagated Cleome viscosa. DPPH performed an antioxidant activity ((2, 2 – diphenyl 1, picryl hydrazyl) radical scavenging method for ethanol and chloroform extracts of wild and micro-propagated C. viscosa. The ethanol and chloroform extract results were exhibited by strong antioxidant DPPH radical scavenging activity with the percentage of potential antioxidant concentration wild and micro-propagated were found to be 77.74%, 76.45% and 63.54%, 55.16% respectively. The percentage compared to positive standard compounds of ascorbic acid. The results were concluded that ethanol extracts possess effective antioxidant activity than that chloroform...
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Posted by admin on Aug 2, 2017 in |
Oral mucositis (OM) is an inflammatory condition affecting oral mucosa. The etiology of this type of inflammation is associated with exposure to radiotherapy or chemotherapeutic drugs. Herbal drugs have been used to induce healing of different types of gastrointestinal ulcers. The role of medicinal plant in cancer therapy-induced oral mucositis has been investigated extensively. Preclinical studies refer to healing activity of some medicinal plants such as Chamomile, royal jelly, Calendula officinalis and salvadora perisca in oral mucositis induced by either chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Some herbal drugs are proved to have potential efficacy in decreasing both incidence and severity of oral mucositis in clinical studies. The molecular targets modulated by herbal drugs are various including scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS), inhibition of inflammatory cascade, prevention of keratinocyte apoptosis and induction of some growth factors. This review, illustrates the common herbal drugs that have been used for oral mucositis management focusing on different therapeutic pathways that are implicated in this pharmacologic...
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