Ethnomedicinal and Pharmacological Importance of Glycyrrhiza glabra L
Mahendra Rai, Shandesh Bhattarai, Chistiane M. Feitosa in Wild Plants, 2020
Other triterpenes present are liquiritic acid, glycyrretol, glabrolide, isoglaborlide, and liquorice acid (Isbrucker and Burdock 2006). The root also contains an isoflavane known as Glabridin. EMA (2013) was the first to isolate 18β-glycyrrhizic acid from the roots of Glycyrrhiza glabra and he called 18β-glycyrrhizic acid as glycyrrhizin (EMA 2013). Glycyrrhizin is the major bioactive compound in the underground parts of Glycyrrhiza plants, which possess a wide range of pharmacological properties, and are used worldwide as a natural sweetener. Due to its economic value, the biosynthesis of glycyrrhizin has received substantial importance in many parts of the world. The percentage of Glycyrrhizin present in the root as potassium and calcium salts depends on plant species, geographic, and climatic conditions (Sabbioni et al. 2005). It is the flavonoids and chalcones which impart the yellow color to liquorice (Damle 2014). Examples of such flavonoids and chalcones include liquiritin, liquiritigenin, rhamnoliquiritin, neoliquiritin, isoliquiritin, isoliquiritigenin, neoisoliquiritin, licuraside, glabrolide, and licoflavonol (Damle 2014). Structures of important constituents of Glycyrrhiza have been given in Figure 18.1 (Pandey et al. 2017).
Herbs with Antidepressant Effects
Scott Mendelson in Herbal Treatment of Major Depression, 2019
Glycyrrhiza, or licorice, is a commonly used Chinese herbal medicine, derived from the dried roots and rhizomes of Glycyrrhiza uralensis, glabra, and inflata. Glycyrrhizin is the principal phytochemical in licorice root and makes up roughly 20% of licorice root extract.1 Aside from glycyrrhizin, the Glycyrrhiza species also contain various triterpene saponins, flavonoids, coumarins, and other phenolics. Among these are glycyrrhizic acid, liquiritigenin, liquiritin, isoliquiritigenin, licoflavonol, licoricone, gancaonin, glabrone, glabridin, glycycoumarin, and others. The Glycyrrhiza have been shown to have a number of pharmacological properties including anti-inflammatory, antioxidative, antidiabetic, immunomodulatory, and neuroprotective effects.2
Photocatalytic Inactivation of Pathogenic Viruses Using Metal Oxide and Carbon-Based Nanoparticles
Devarajan Thangadurai, Saher Islam, Charles Oluwaseun Adetunji in Viral and Antiviral Nanomaterials, 2022
Lin et al. (2019) and Tong et al. (2020) have reported the studies of CDs derived from Chinese medicine, namely from licorice root and curcumin respectively. Glycyrrhizin (glycyrrhizin acid) is the main active constituent of licorice root. Glycyrrhizin (Fu et al. 2005) and curcumin (Gera et al. 2017) have both shown antiviral, anti-oxidation, anti-inflammation, and antimicrobial properties. However, cytotoxicity and water solubility limit the application of both compounds. To overcome the disadvantages, they have demonstrated that by converting glycyrrhizin and curcumin to CDs (Gly-CDs and Cur-CDs respectively), the CDs were able to show high biocompatibility. Gly-CDs showed excellent inactivation of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV). It was found to inhibit PRRSV invasion and replication, as well as ROS production induced by PRRSV infection. Cur-CDs, on the other hand, showed excellent inactivation of enterovirus 71 (EV71). Cur-CDs were found to inhibit viral attachment to host cell thus suppressing the EV71-induced ROS (Lin et al. 2019; Tong et al. 2020).
Glycyrrhizin improves bone metabolism in ovariectomized mice via inactivating NF-κB signaling
Published in Climacteric, 2021
Y. Tang, X. L. Lv, Y. Z. Bao, J. R. Wang
Glycyrrhizin is the most medically efficacious component of the licorice plant, with strong antivirus, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antitumor properties. Several research studies have revealed protective functions of glycyrrhizin in diseases including virus infection, metabolic disorders, alcoholic liver injury, autoimmune encephalomyelitis, and so on13–17. A previous study reports that glycyrrhizin inhibits RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis and reduces oxidative stress in bone marrow-derived monocytes (BMMs)18. A later study reveals that glycyrrhizin attenuates osteoclast formation and preserves bone mass and trabecular structure in OVX mice19, implying that glycyrrhizin would become a promising adjuvant therapeutic for PMO. However, the mechanism involved in the anti-osteoporosis effect of glycyrrhizin in vivo is unknown. In the present study, we explore the underlying mechanisms by mainly focusing on the NF-κB signaling pathway in vivo.
Herbal and Natural Dietary Products: Upcoming Therapeutic Approach for Prevention and Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Published in Nutrition and Cancer, 2021
Deepa S. Mandlik, Satish K. Mandlik
Glycyrrhiza glabra has demonstrated several pharmacological actions such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and immunomodulatory. Glycyrrhizin has hepatoprotective, anti-inflammatory, anti-viral and anticancer activity as the key component in the G. glabra (48). Glycyrrhizin and other constituents of G. glabra confirmed anticancer potential in various types of cancer, such as liver, skin and breast cancer by inhibiting cell proliferation, developing and growing cancer cells (49). Glycyrrhizic acid is the principal constituent of the licorice extract, can prevent hepatic carcinoma in mice treated with DEN (50). Glycyrrhizic acid administration has been able to considerably induce cytochrome P450 content that reduces cancer prevalence (51). Glycyrrhizic acid altered O-carboxymethyl chitosan nanoparticles (CMCNP) with various degrees of substitution can proficiently distribute paclitaxel to HCC. CMCNP-GA considerably enhanced the accretion of paclitaxel in hepatic tumor tissue and the targeted delivery to liver carcinoma cells, resulting in significantly increased in-vitro cytotoxicity and antitumor efficacy in-vivo (52). In one of the study, extract of G. glabra confirmed a strong effect on the treatment of DEN induced HCC in rats and this activity was stronger than cisplatin alone or cisplatin and G. glabra combination (53). Zhang et al., have confirmed the anti-cancerous role of G. glabra on HCC ascites mice model by using murine H22 ascitic cell line through the regulating of Frk-Arhgdib-Inpp5d-Avpr2-Aqp4 signal axis (54).
Formulation of pluronic F127/TPGS mixed micelles to improve the oral absorption of glycyrrhizic acid
Published in Drug Development and Industrial Pharmacy, 2020
Chengying Shen, Junjun Zhu, Jiawen Song, Jing Wang, Baode Shen, Hailong Yuan, Xiaofang Li
Glycyrrhizic acid (GL) is pentacyclic triterpenoid glycoside extracted from Radix glycyrrhizae. It is the main active ingredient of R. glycyrrhizae with multiple biological activities such as antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, and antiviral properties [1,2]. Nowadays, GL is often used as a hepatoprotective agent for the treatment of acute and chronic hepatitis with elevated alanine aminotransferase in clinic [3,4]. However, GL is poorly absorbed after oral administration due to its poor solubility in water and its salt also has poor permeability across the gastrointestinal mucosa [5], which leads to low oral bioavailability and limits its clinical efficacy. In addition, the intravenous (i.v.) administration of glycyrrhizin at a high dose showed several side effects, such as sodium and water retention, hypokalemia, edema, hypo-aldosteronism, and elevated blood pressure [6]. In recent years, various preparations have been developed to increase the water solubility and oral absorption of GL, such as liposome [7], chitosan nanoparticles [5], and sodium deoxycholate/phospholipid-mixed nanomicelles [8]. However, these preparations have their own disadvantages, such as poor loading capacity and stability, drug leakage, potential toxicological risks of residual organic solvent or excipient (bile salt) [9–13]. Therefore, more efforts should be made to develop a novel drug delivery system to increase the oral absorption of GL.