Identification of medicinal plants by voucher specimen
C. P. Khare in Evidence-based Ayurveda, 2019
The classical example is that of Ashwagandha. Five forms of Indian Ashwagandha have been identified by CK Atal. Form I is the Ashwagandha of commerce which is cultivated in Madhya Pradesh. Form II grows in the sandy desert of Pilani (Rajasthan). Form III grows in Chandigarh and mountainous areas of Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. Form IV is found growing near Delhi, Form V grows wild near Delhi and Ahmedabad. A separate species status, W. ashwagandha, was suggested for the cultivated forms in the W. somnifera germplasm. Now, Indian species of Withania has been identified as Withania ashwaganda sp. novo (Bilal Ahamad Mir and Sushma Kaul). A considerable degree of variation in bioactive withanolides, withanolide A (WS-1), withanone (WS-2) and withaferin A (WS-3) and morphological characters were detected among the populations. Plant height and plant biomass were the highest in plants collected from Manasa population followed by Hyderabad. Leaves were found to be the principle organ for WS-3 accumulation while roots mainly accumulate WS-1, suggesting a spatial variation of withanolides. Plants of Manasa population alone showed the presence of WS-2 accumulation was also the highest in Manasa population, with 1.312% WS-3 in the leaves and 0.083% WS-1 in roots. Withanolide accumulation correlated positively with developmental stages and the highest content of these withanolides was found at maturity in both roots and leaves. Thus, all Ashwagandha products must specify the chemotype of Ashwagandha.
Herbs with Antidepressant Effects
Scott Mendelson in Herbal Treatment of Major Depression, 2019
Interestingly, Withania somnifera has been investigated as a component in the treatment of various cancers. This is due to its ability to enhance apoptosis, a form of programmed cell death, through inhibition of the PI3/akt/mTOR cascade.16 This effect would seem to be at odds with antidepressant effects. However, it is possible that the effects of Withania somnifera on the PI3/akt/mTOR cascade are tissue-specific. In any case, the active component of the herb, Withanolide A, enhances the activity of this cascade in hippocampal neurons.17 Moreover, Withania somnifera potently inhibits GSK-3β through enhancement of its phosphorylation in mouse brain. Activation of mTOR is one way in which GSK-3β is inhibited.18 Treatment with Withania somnifera also spares BDNF in the hippocampus and reduces memory impairment of rats subjected to hypoxia.19 A similar sparing of BDNF by Withania somnifera was observed in mice treated with scopolamine.20
Improved Production and Postharvest Technologies in Ashwagandha (Indian Ginseng)
Amit Baran Sharangi, K. V. Peter in Medicinal Plants, 2023
Withanolides, withaferins, tropine, pseudo-tropine, anferine, sitoindoside VII and VIII, ginsenosides, somniferine, somnine, withanine, somniferinine, pseudo-withanine, pseudo-tropine, 3-a-gloyloxytropane, choline, cusco-hygrine, isopelletierine, anaferine, and 2 acyl sterylglucoside (Mishra et al., 2000). Withasomniferin-A and 5-dihydroxy withanolide-R are present in aerial parts of Withania somnifera (Rahman et al., 1993). It is also rich in iron. Different chemicals present in different parts of the plant are depicted in subsections.
Phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (PHGDH) inhibitors: a comprehensive review 2015–2020
Published in Expert Opinion on Therapeutic Patents, 2021
Quentin Spillier, Raphaël Frédérick
Similarly, Zheng et al. screened a natural compounds library using an isolated enzyme assay to discover new PHGDH inhibitors. This screening identified 74, a withanolide derivative from Physalis ixocarpa as a potent compound (Figure 10)[48]. Binding to the target was subsequently confirmed using MST experiments and competition assays revealed a noncompetitive mode of action with respect to both substrates. The investigation of the mode-of-action of this compound, using a computer-based homology model of the full-length human PHGDH, suggested a new allosteric site located near the active site. It appears that 74 would present key steric interactions with the Val301, Pro331 and Ile333 residues and hydrogen bonds with Gln302, Asp305, Thr313 and Pro327 delineating this cavity. Cell-based assays revealed that the compound is not toxic for healthy cells but can induce apoptosis of PHGDH-dependent tumor lines. Compound 74 was also shown to inhibit tumor proliferation in vivo.
Withanolide a penetrates brain via intra-nasal administration and exerts neuroprotection in cerebral ischemia reperfusion injury in mice
Published in Xenobiotica, 2020
Sumedha Mukherjee, Gaurav Kumar, Ranjana Patnaik
Withania somnifera (WS) is an Indian Ayurvedic herb, extract of which has been traditionally used as a nootropic agent and a brain tonic (Baitharu et al., 2014). WS has been also reported to enhance cognition in cases of amyloid β (Aβ) and scopolamine-induced memory loss (Dhuley, 1998; Naidu et al., 2006). Withanolide A (WA) is a steroidal lactone and a major constituent phytochemical of WS extract (Baitharu et al., 2014). It is also the fundamental Withanolide present in the roots of WS (Dhar et al., 2015). WA has exhibited neuroprotective ability in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease by combating A β induced damage and dopaminergic neurodegeneration respectively (Kurapati et al., 2013; Prakash et al., 2013). WA treatment also facilitated axonal and dendritic growth and induced pre- and post-synaptic reconstruction in primary culture of rat cortical neurons, which had been subjected to Aβ induced neuronal atrophy (Kuboyama et al., 2005). WA conferred neuroprotection in C. elegans by modulating the acetylcholine levels (Akhoon et al., 2016). It also enhanced stress resistance in C. elegans, thereby increasing its life expectancy (Akhoon et al., 2016). WA reportedly exerted neuroprotection in rats exposed to hypobaric hypoxia, by modulating the glutathione biosynthesis pathway (Baitharu et al., 2014). A recently published in-silico study suggested that WA might be a potent inhibitor of PARP-1, thereby inhibiting parthanatos, a caspase-independent cell death pathway involved in ischemic cell death (Andrabi et al., 2006). The study thus identified WA as a possible therapeutic compound which might be able to combat cerebral ischemic pathophysiology.
Bioactive metabolites from the leaves of Withania adpressa
Published in Pharmaceutical Biology, 2018
Widad Ben Bakrim, Laila El Bouzidi, Jean-Marc Nuzillard, Sylvian Cretton, Noémie Saraux, Aymeric Monteillier, Philippe Christen, Muriel Cuendet, Khalid Bekkouche
The flora of Morocco includes three Withania species: W. frutescens Pauquy, W. somnifera (L.) Dunal, and W. adpressa Coss. The latter is a medicinal plant endemic to Moroccan Sahara, locally known as “aglim” or “hjuju”, and used to treat food intoxication (Bellakhdar 1997). Our previous phytochemical study on this species led to the isolation of a new withanolide named (22R)-14α,15α,17β,20β-tetrahydroxy-1-oxowitha-2,5,24-trien-26,22-olide together with withanolides F and J (Abdeljebbar et al. 2007). To date, there is only one pharmacological study on W. adpressa, which mainly refers to the potent cytotoxicity of its withanolides against human cancer cells (Abdeljebbar et al. 2009).
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