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Plant-Based Natural Products Against Huntington’s Disease: Preclinical and Clinical Studies
Published in Megh R. Goyal, Hafiz Ansar Rasul Suleria, Ademola Olabode Ayeleso, T. Jesse Joel, Sujogya Kumar Panda, The Therapeutic Properties of Medicinal Plants, 2019
Banadipa Nanda, Samapika Nandy, Anuradha Mukherjee, Abhijit Dey
Onjisaponin-B is isolated from Polygala tenuifolia Willd. In PC12 cell expressing mHtt, autophagy is triggered via 5’-adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase-mammalian target of rapamycin (AMPK-mTOR signaling) [139].
Herbs with Antidepressant Effects
Published in Scott Mendelson, Herbal Treatment of Major Depression, 2019
Polygala is a large genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Polygalaceae. The genus is distributed throughout much of the world in temperate zones and tropics. The species Polygala tenuifolia grows in Asia and has been an important herb in Traditional Chinese Medicine. In Chinese it is called “yuan zhi,” and it has traditionally been used to calm the mind and restore memory.1 It is also an important component in variety of herbal combinations used to treat syndromes analogous to MDD. The best-known combination in which it is an ingredient is Kaixinsan.2 However, it is included in other well-known combinations, including An shen yang xin cha, Gui pi wan, Tian wang bu xin dan, Ding xin wan, and An mian pian. Yeung et al. did not list it among the ten herbs most often used in Traditional Chinese Medicine to treat MDD. However, it is certainly a contender. The species Polygala senega is native to North America. Its common name is Seneca snakeroot, which harkens back to the Seneca people that used the plant to treat snakebite.3
Polygala tenuifolia: a source for anti-Alzheimer’s disease drugs
Published in Pharmaceutical Biology, 2020
Xinxin Deng, Shipeng Zhao, Xinqi Liu, Lu Han, Ruizhou Wang, Huifeng Hao, Yanna Jiao, Shuyan Han, Changcai Bai
Polygala tenuifolia Willd. (Polygalaceae), also known as Yuan Zhi, has been reported to be enriched with triterpene saponins, onjisaponins and polygalasaponins (Jin et al. 2014), and it also exhibits protective effects on the central nervous system and is frequently used to treat memory dysfunction, insomnia and neurasthenia (Zhang et al. 2016). As the main pharmacologically active components of P. tenuifolia, polygalasaponins, including polygalasaponin XXXII (PGS 32), tenuifolin, polygalacic acid and senegenin (tenuigenin), have been shown to possess multiplex neuroprotective potential associated with AD, such as anti-β-amyloid (Aβ) aggregation (Jia et al. 2004; Park et al. 2019), anti-Tau (Xu et al. 2012), anti-inflammation (Cheong et al. 2011; Wang et al. 2017), antioxidant (Zhang et al. 2011), enhancing central cholinergic system, anti-neuronal apoptosis (Li et al. 2015), promote neuronal proliferation (Park et al. 2008; Zhu et al. 2016). The chemical structures are presented in Figure 2.
UHPLC-MS/MS method for pharmacokinetic and bioavailability determination of five bioactive components in raw and various processed products of Polygala tenuifolia in rat plasma
Published in Pharmaceutical Biology, 2020
Xin Zhao, Baoxin Xu, Peng Wu, Pan Zhao, Changchuan Guo, Yueli Cui, Yanxue Zhang, Xuelan Zhang, Huifen Li
The root of Polygala tenuifolia Willd. (Polygalaceae) (PT) is a common traditional Chinese medicine that has been listed as a nootropic, anti-inflammatory and anti-psychotic medicine to cure insomnia (Yao et al. 2010), forgetfulness, neurasthenia, coughing and soreness caused by heart and kidney disharmony (Li et al. 2008; Leem and Oh 2015). Raw PT (RPT) presents the side effects of gastrointestinal toxicity and throat irritation, and it requires processing before being prescribed in Chinese clinical practices. In modern times, the most common processing methods of PT include heartwood discarding, liquorice boiling and honey stir-baking. Among them, liquorice-boiled PT (LPT) and honey-stir-baked PT (HPT) are commonly used in clinics. RPT and LPT are listed in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia (Chinese Pharmacopoeia Commission 2015), and HPT is listed in the National Regulations for the Processing of Traditional Chinese Medicine (Chinese Drug Administration 1988). According to the theories of traditional Chinese medicine, LPT can reduce the side effects of RPT on pharyngeal irritation and gastrointestinal stimulation and promote peace of mind and intellectual development. LPT is widely used to treat neurological disorders, such as palpitations, restlessness and trances. Additionally, HPT can eliminate adverse reactions and enhance the effect of resolving phlegm and relieving cough. It is mainly used to treat chronic bronchitis, coughs, phlegm and other diseases. Processing can reduce the gastrointestinal motility disorder of RPT and enhance its neuroprotective effect (Yang et al. 2011).
Herbal medicine for psychiatric disorders: Psychopharmacology and neuroscience-based nomenclature
Published in The World Journal of Biological Psychiatry, 2019
Siu W. Tang, Wayne H. Tang, Brian E. Leonard
Another important herb, Polygala tenuifolia, is commonly used together with Ziziphus jujube for the purpose of sedation, symptoms of depression and anxiety, excessive dreams, low mood and mental exhaustion, forgetfulness and cognitive enhancement (Hong et al. 2016). The ingredients identified are numerous. Under the NbN, the pharmacology of this herb would be ‘BDNF-CREB modifier and GABA’. The mode of action is ‘GABA and neuroprotective’ (Liang et al. 2011), including ‘DA neurons protection (Yuan et al. 2012), anti-apoptotic and anti-oxidative’. It increases Glu NR2B expression in the rat hippocampus. It is an anti-amyloid β (Jia et al. 2004), which explains its anti-dementia property (Xie et al. 2012). Tenuifolin exhibits a fast anti-depressant action with a mechanism similar to ketamine, through activation of the mTOR pathway and modulation of glutamatergic synapses (Shin et al, 2014). Polygalasaponin in the herb antagonises scopolamine-induced cognitive impairment (Zhou et al. 2016b) and improves hippocampal learning and memory (Xue et al. 2009). Tenuifoliside may exert its neuroprotective effect through a BDNF/TrkB-ERK/PI3K-CREB signalling pathway (Dong et al. 2014a) and shows a synergistic action together with another ingredient: 3,6′-disinapoyl sucrose, which also acts on this same pathway (Liu et al. 2016). It has a strong anti-inflammatory action through the inhibition of the NF-κB and mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways (Kim et al. 2013). The application of the NbN to this herb is shown in Figure 2.