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Ocimum Basilicum: A Model Medicinal Industrial Crop Enriched with an Array of Bioactive Chemicals
Published in Amit Baran Sharangi, K. V. Peter, Medicinal Plants, 2023
Sunita Singh Dhawan, Pankhuri Gupta, Raj Kishori Lal
Ocimum (Lamiaceae family) is also known as basil or tulsi. It has many medicinal properties and pharmaceutical applications. There are several types of Ocimum available in India, including more than 100 species. It is widely found throughout temperate regions in the world with the most number of species (Dzoyem et al., 2017; Shah et al., 2018). Modern scientific research in Ocimum today demonstrates the many psychological and physiological benefits of tulsi consumption and demonstrates the wisdom of Ayurveda, which celebrates tulsi as a plant that can be worshipped, ingested, made into tea and used in daily life for medicinal and spiritual purposes (Cohen, 2014; Jamshidi and Cohen, 2017). It is highly useful for the treatment of heart disease, stomach disorders, headaches, hepatitis, malaria, tuberculosis, swine flu and dengue. For dental health treatment and for healthy gums leaf powder and essential oil of Ocimum are highly beneficial. Ocimum plants are also used as flies, mosquitoes, and insect repellant. Its essential oil can be used to control malaria by decreasing the growth of mosquitoes (Upadhyay, 2017). The genetic germplasm available in CSIR-CIMAP is comprised of many species of Ocimum (Lal et al., 2018).
Tropical Herbs and Spices as Functional Foods with Antidiabetic Activities
Published in Megh R. Goyal, Arijit Nath, Rasul Hafiz Ansar Suleria, Plant-Based Functional Foods and Phytochemicals, 2021
Arnia Sari Mukaromah, Fitria Susilowati
Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) is similar to turmeric and it is a popular ingredient in cooking due to a peculiar flavor, aroma, and pungent odors. Besides cooking, ginger is also well-known for its medicinal properties against gastrointestinal disorder, motion sickness, nausea relief, cold, and flu relief, pain, and inflammation (reduce muscle pain, knee, and elbow). Ginger contains several biochemical constituents, such as: gingerol, shogaol, paradol, and zingerone [23]. It may also reduce the risks of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), blood clotting, and hyperglycemia.
Functional Benefits of Ficus Hispida L.
Published in Hafiz Ansar Rasul Suleria, Megh R. Goyal, Health Benefits of Secondary Phytocompounds from Plant and Marine Sources, 2021
D. Suma, A. Vysakh, R. N. Raji, Ninan Jisha, M. S. Latha
In developing countries, over 80% of the inhabitants depend on herb medicines, mainly plant drugs, for their primary healthcare. Ayurvedic products are practically cost-effective and well established by patients. They are easily obtainable and have lower side effects. These herbal drugs and Indian medicinal plants are also a wealthy source of valuable compounds including antioxidants and components that can be used in functional foods. Traditional medicinal properties and curative potentials of most herbs are well-documented. About 61% of new drugs particularly in transmittable illness and cancer have been developed in recent years. It has been observed that study rate of active new chemical principles are diminishing recently. The current review will form the source for collection of plant species for more examination in the possible finding of new innate biocompounds. Additional investigation is expected on the isolation and structure elucidation of active components from the plant.
A Proprietary Herbal Blend Containing Extracts of Punica granatum Fruit Rind and Theobroma cocoa Seeds Increases Serum Testosterone Level in Healthy Young Males: A Randomized, Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Study
Published in Journal of Dietary Supplements, 2023
Poorna Gopal Azad Sreeramaneni, Amulya Yalamanchi, Manikyeswara Rao Konda, Sree Harsha Varma Cherukuri, Joseph C. Maroon
The present clinical study demonstrates that LN18178, a proprietary blend of PG rind and TC seed extracts, increased testosterone level, muscle strength, and arm circumference in healthy young male volunteers. The objective of the current study was to assess whether the herbal blend increased serum testosterone level and, notably, its tolerability in the young male participants. The number of volunteers in each group of the present study was estimated based on the outcome from a published clinical study of a popular dietary supplement (Shilajit) on testosterone levels in healthy males (20). Although plants are natural resources rich in various medicinal properties, concerns on the side effects of long-term use of many plant-based products are growing (21, 22). An herbal blend utilizing the plant raw materials present in the food chain is generally considered safe, given a long consumption history. TC seeds have global applications in beverage and confectionary industries (13), and the PG rind extract powder is used in dairy industries (23). Overall, our observations on the adverse events and other safety evaluations, including the routine hemato-biochemical measures in the present study, suggest that LN18178 is a safe and tolerable herbal composition. Further, the safety profile LN18178 has also been tested in a ninety-day repeated dose oral toxicity study in rats along with in vitro and in vivo genetic toxicity studies (data will be published separately). These safety data also support that LN18178 is safe for human consumption.
Gnetum montanum extract induces apoptosis by inhibiting the activation of AKT in SW480 human colon cancer cells
Published in Pharmaceutical Biology, 2022
Xianglong Pan, Xiaotao Hou, Fan Zhang, Peiling Tang, Wanruo Wan, Zixia Su, Yeguo Yang, Wei Wei, Zhengcai Du, Jiagang Deng, Erwei Hao
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is among the top three cancers with higher incident and mortality rate around the world. In 2020, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) documented that approximately 1.15 million of new CRC cases (which is about 10% of all types of cancers) and >570,000 of CRC-related deaths (which is about 9.4% of all cancer-related deaths) were reported worldwide (Jung et al. 2020; Sung et al. 2021). Colon cancer is a malignant tumour grows from the epithelium mucosal crypts of the large intestine (Iqbal and George 2017). Gene mutations (such as adenomatous polyposis (APC), deleted in colorectal cancer (DCC), K-Ras, p53, B-Raf proto-oncogene serine/threonine kinase (BRAF), mismatch repair gene) and microsatellite instability are the common factors that led to the development of colon cancer (Ahmed 2020; Benson et al. 2021). The common treatments of colon cancer include surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and molecular targeted therapy. Although the present diagnostic and therapeutic procedures have greatly been improved, the prognosis of colon cancer remains poor (Binefa et al. 2014; Li et al. 2021). The therapeutic drugs used to treat malignant tumours include chemo drugs, new technology drugs, and natural drugs. Research in exploring the novel natural compounds that can modulate apoptosis pathway of cancer cells for new drug development is intensively on-going. Various traditional plants with known medicinal properties are widely studied over the past decades (Hou et al. 2016; Aiello et al. 2019).
Molecular Mechanisms of Cancer Prevention by Gooseberry (Phyllanthus emblica)
Published in Nutrition and Cancer, 2022
Gaurav Kumar, Venkateshwar Madka, Gopal Pathuri, Vishal Ganta, Chinthalapally V. Rao
Many plant extracts, as well as chemicals purified from them, have demonstrated medicinal properties, and have been used to develop numerous traditional herbal therapies demand for which is continuously increasing worldwide. More than 110 thousand plant extracts or purified molecules have been screened for their anticancer efficacy since the start of a National Cancer Institute (NCI) screening program (1). Approximately 25 percent of all medications prescribed in the United States were developed from plants (2), including paclitaxel (commonly known by the tradename Taxol) which is derived from the bark of the Pacific yew tree and may be the most widely used anticancer medication. Similarly, gooseberry (Phyllanthus emblica, Emblica officinalis, or Amla) is an important herbal medicine, commonly used in the Ayurvedic and Unani systems of medicine in South Asia and Arab nations. Different parts of the P. emblica tree have various therapeutic applications in these systems of medicine, including: improving the immune system, treating constipation, reducing stomach acidity, treating stomach ulcers, purifying the blood, and treating diarrhea, dysentery, helminthic infections, diabetes, and cancer (3).