China
Africa
Explore chapters and articles related to this topic
Medicinal Plants: A Potent Antimicrobial Source and An Alternative to Combat Antibiotic Resistance
Published in Jayanta Kumar Patra, Gitishree Das, Sanjeet Kumar, Hrudayanath Thatoi, Ethnopharmacology and Biodiversity of Medicinal Plants, 2019
Shraddha Chauhan, Reecha Sahu, Lata S. B. Upadhyay
Alkaloids diverse and abundant class secondary metabolites found at 10–15% concentration in almost all plants. Alkaloids are chemical compound containing basic nitrogen atom. They are colorless crystals. Their chemical structure is enormously dynamic. They are produced by wide variety of organisms such as plants, bacteria, fungus, etc. Many alkaloids have physiological effect that renders them valuable medicine against diseases like malaria, diabetics, cancer, and cardiac dysfunction. These are also practiced in local anesthesia and as analgesic compounds. The first example of alkaloid used in medicine was morphine isolated from Papaver somniferum. Morphine blunts the pain response secondary to the ischemic tissue damage along with providing anxiolysis. Codeine another alkaloid obtained from Papaver somniferum is a mild pain reliever and an effective cough suppressant. A number of alkaloids are being used as drugs for century. Among the oldest and best known of these is quinine, derived from the bark of the tropical cinchona tree which is used as an antimalarial drug. Berberine is another common example of alkaloid effective against Plasmodia and Trypanosomes. Mostly they control microbial regulation (Cowan, 1999). Harmine, a beta-carboline alkaloid, is widely distributed in the plants. Harmine has various types of pharmacological activities such as antimicrobial, antifungal, antitumor, cytotoxic, antiplasmodial, antioxidant, antimutagenic, antigenotoxic, and anti-HIV (Patel et al., 2012).
Catalog of Herbs
Published in James A. Duke, Handbook of Medicinal Herbs, 2018
Per 100 g, the fresh forage is reported to contain 67.7 g H2O, 5.7 g protein, 1.5 g fat, 16 g N-free extract, 5.7 g fiber, 3.4 g ash, 0.56% Ca, 0.06% P, 0.0009% Cu, and 250 mg thiamine. Egyptians sell the seed oil as the aphrodisiac Zit-el-Harmel. Dry seed contain 29.4 to 35.2% protein, 13.5 to 17.5% oil. Seeds contain harmine, harmaline, harmalol, harman, peganine, isopeganine, dipegene, vasicinone, and deoxyvasicinone.80 According to Emboden, harmine, harmaline, and harmalol have produced sexual responses in rats under laboratory conditions, 5 mg harmine eliciting measurable sexual activity. Harmine is used in research on mental disease and encephalitis.54 Harmine and harmaline elicit hallucinogenic effects in humans at doses of 4 mg/kg. Closely related to the harmala bases is 6-methox-ytetrahydroharman, a natural hormone of the pineal body, hallucinogenic at doses of 1.5 mg/kg.
Phytochemistry of Harmal
Published in Ephraim Shmaya Lansky, Shifra Lansky, Helena Maaria Paavilainen, Harmal, 2017
Ephraim Shmaya Lansky, Shifra Lansky, Helena Maaria Paavilainen
The β-carboline indole alkaloids within P. harmala seeds are derived from tryptamine, a derivative of the indolic amino acid tryptophan. The parent skeleton is indole itself, the key plant growth hormone. P. harmala β-carboline indole alkaloids are also commonly known as “harmala alkaloids” after the plant species in question (Figures 6.1 through 6.3). Harmine is further found in other plants besides P. harmala, including the South American “vine of the soul,” Banisteriopsis caapi, the “engine” of the hallucinogenic brew, ayahuasca (Shanon 2010), tobacco, Nicotinia tabacum, and passion flowers (Passiflora incarnata).
Putative mechanism for cancer suppression by PLGA nanoparticles loaded with Peganum harmala smoke extract
Published in Journal of Microencapsulation, 2021
Hoda Shabestarian, Masoud Homayouni Tabrizi, Monireh Movahedi, Ali Neamati, Fariba Sharifnia
Moreover, PHSE-PNP nanoparticles induced a strong cytotoxic impact and remarkably decreased tumour dimension in the murine breast cancer model through the suppression of tumour growth and destruction of tumour tissue cells (Figure 5). In the scratch (Figure 7) and CAM assays (Figure 6), the present study also detected the anti-angiogenic impact of PHSE-PNP, which is congruent with its antitumor property. Similarly, Shah et al. reported the anticancer and anti-angiogenic activities of limonene (Shah et al.2018), which has been recognised as one of PHSE’s main ingredients. Therefore, the anti-breast cancer and anti-angiogenesis activities of PHSE-PNP can be attributed to high limonene levels. The presence of alkaloid compounds in pecans can also produce anti-cancer and anti-angiogenic effects. Research has shown that harmine is a potent angiogenic inhibitor and can significantly reduce the proliferation of vascular endothelial cells and the expression of angiogenesis-related genes, such as KB nuclear and transcription factors, among others. Harmine, as a mechanism of action, can be used to inhibit the growth of cancer cells. As harmine reduces the production of other factors involved in angiogenesis, it thereby inhibits angiogenesis in the tumour and so eventually hinders tumour growth (Cragg and Newman 2005, Esmaeili et al.2007).
Traditional Use of Banisteriopsis caapi Alone and Its Application in a Context of Drug Addiction Therapy
Published in Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 2021
Matteo Politi, Fabio Friso, Gary Saucedo, Jaime Torres
Psychotropic properties of harmala alkaloids which belong to the group of β-Carbolines derivatives have been a matter of discussion since the early investigations of psychedelic drugs (Naranjo 1967). Preliminary studies of these alkaloids in humans, in particular harmine, report their visual hallucination effects of varying degrees of complexity and organization (Pennes and Hoch 1957). Recently, there has been a particular rise in interest with regards to β-Carbolines and research for mental health (Dos Santos and Hallak 2017). For instance, harman and harmine are considered multi-target antidepressant compounds and may be useful in the treatment of depressive disorders (Ferraz et al. 2019). β-Carbolines are of great interest due to their diverse biological activities including the interaction with benzodiazepine receptors and 5-hydroxy serotonin receptors demonstrating sedative, anxiolytic, hypnotic, and anticonvulsant activities (Cao et al. 2007), as well as potential effects against neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s (Piechowska, Zawirska-Wojtasiak, and Mildner-Szkudlarz 2019).
Harmine-loaded galactosylated pluronic F68-gelucire 44/14 mixed micelles for liver targeting
Published in Drug Development and Industrial Pharmacy, 2019
Jeetendra Prasad Kushwaha, Debjani Baidya, Sharvil Patil
Harmine (HM, 7-methoxy-1-methyl-9H-pyrido[3,4-b]indole), a tricyclic beta-carboline alkaloid isolated from Peganum harmala (Zygophyllaceae) seeds has been traditionally used medicinal preparations. HM has been known to have wide range of pharmacological activities such as antimicrobial, antiplasmodial, antioxidative, including antitumor properties [1]. HM has shown promising anticancer activity against liver cancer cells [2]. Various mechanisms such as induction of apoptosis via mitochondrial signaling pathway, inhibition of DNA topoisomerase, inhibition of tumor specific neo-vessel formation and down regulation of COX-2, PCNA, Bcl-2, and MMP-2 [3–5]. Despite such a wide range of pharmacological activities, clinical application of HM is limited owing to its poor aqueous solubility (log P 3.56), instability at pH 7 and above, P-gp efflux, extensive in vivo metabolism, and rapid elimination due to glucuronidation/sulfation. Thus oral bioavailability of HM reported in the literature is only 3% [6].