• Advances in Traditional Medicine
• /
• v.7 no.4
• /
• pp.331-335
• /
• 2007

The utility of Lepidium sativum Linn (Garden cress) as a medicinal plant has increased many fold over a period of time. A survey of literature relating to the medicinal uses of L.sativum reveals it to be one of the widely used medicinal plants. It finds place in folklore medicine, Ayurveda, Unani and other indigenous systems of medicine. Following a large number of claims on the wide range of traditional medicinal properties of the plant, considerable efforts have been made to verify its efficacy as a curative agent through pharmacological investigations and clinical trials. In this article, a comprehensive account of the traditional uses, phytochemical investigation and therapeutic potential of Lepidium sativum is presented.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
• /
• v.27 no.1
• /
• pp.23-31
• /
• 2011

Ever since the dawn of civilization, the ambient vegetation and the resources constituted major source of human existence for various substantial requirements. Our present knowledge on plant resources emerged from the traditional heritable knowledge descended from generation to generation. However, traditional knowledge pertaining to several aspects remained untapped from various remote localities or populations. Furthermore, with the present trends of excessive exploitation of natural resources and degradation of habitats, conservation and ecological management require coherence of traditional skills and modern approaches. Therefore, the present study is to record traditional plant based knowledge among the inhabitants of Siwalik region of Uttarakhand Himalaya. Extensive field survey was made for the collection of data on the medicinal aspects of plant species in the study area covering the parts of districts Pauri, Dehradun and Haridwar. During the course of study 130 plant species belonging to 65 families are reported, used as traditional medicine by the local inhabitants of this region.

• CELLMED
• /
• v.7 no.2
• /
• pp.10.1-10.10
• /
• 2017

The Maasai community from Kenya is highly esteemed for their strong adherence to traditional cultures and ethno medicine. This is attributed to their age-old traditional mechanisms of passing down knowledge to the younger generation. Adoption to new socio-economic lifestyle and urbanization has been associated with development of diabetes, which has been reported among some indigenous pastoral communities in Kenya. Documentation of traditional methods of treatment and management of diabetes by the Maasai has not yet been reported, yet it is noteworthy. Thirty traditional healers from Narok County were purposively selected and interviewed about traditional knowledge of antidiabetic medicinal plants, parts used, preparation dosage and administration. A total of 14 antidiabetic plant species distributed within 13 genera and 12 families were identified and documented as herbal medicine used in the management of diabetes. The most highly cited plant species was Dovyalis abyssinica (20%), the plant family Flacourtiaceae and Rhamnaceae (2 plant species each) recorded the highest number of plant species while the most frequently used plant part was the roots (46%). Literature review revealed that some of the cited plants have known phytochemicals with antidiabetic activity; the study recommends further scientific investigation to validate their efficacy and safety.

• Advances in Traditional Medicine
• /
• v.9 no.1
• /
• pp.1-13
• /
• 2009

Medicinal herbs are significant source of synthetic and herbal drugs. In the commercial market, medicinal herbs are used as raw drugs, extracts or tinctures. Isolated active constituents are used for applied research. For the last few decades, phytochemistry (study of plants) has been making rapid progress and herbal products are becoming popular. According to Ayurveda, the ancient healing system of India, the classical texts of Ayurveda, Charaka Samhita and Sushruta Samhita were written around 1000 B.C. The Ayurvedic Materia Medica includes 600 medicinal plants along with therapeutics. Herbs like turmeric, fenugreek, ginger, garlic and holy basil are integral part of Ayurvedic formulations. The formulations incorporate single herb or more than two herbs (poly-herbal formulations). Medicinal herb contains multitude of chemical compounds like alkaloids, glycosides, saponins, resins, oleoresins, sesquiterpene, lactones and oils (essential and fixed). Today there is growing interest in chemical composition of plant based medicines. Several bioactive constituents have been isolated and studied for pharmacological activity. R. cordifolia is an important medicinal plant commonly used in the traditional and Ayurvedic system of medicine for treatment of different ailments. This review illustrates its major constituents, pharmacological actions substantiating the claims made about this plant in the traditional system of medicine and its clinical applications.

• Natural Product Sciences
• /
• v.9 no.2
• /
• pp.87-90
• /
• 2003

The purpose of this study was to find the effect of 36 traditional medicinal plant species on hepatoprotective activity screening. For this study, carbon tetrachloride $(CCl_{4})$ intoxificated rats were used. Test extracts were made with the traditional medicinal plants refluxed in 95% MeOH and orally administered to the rats. Sixteen species, such as Mentha arvensis, Sophora japonica, Benincasa hispida, Lonicera japonica (Lonicerae Flos), Agaricus blazei, Epimedium koreanum, Aralia continentalis, Lithospermum erythrorhizon, Cimicifuga foetida, Gastrodia elata, Sanguisorba officinalis, Cephalonoplos segetum, Bupleurum falcatum, Alisma plantago-aquatica var. orientale, Lonicera japonica (Lonicerae Folium) and Sinomenium acutum showed protective effect against increased serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and/or serum asparteate aminotransferase (AST) activities.

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
• /
• 2022.09a
• /
• pp.93-93
• /
• 2022

Hovenia dulcis, one of the traditional medicinal plants, is currently being used as a functional ingredient for the development of health functional foods that protects the liver from alcohol damage in Korea. A variety of pharmacological effects of Hovenia dulcis have been reported so far, but studies on immune-enhancing activity are insufficient. Thus, in this study, we report that Hovenia dulcis branches (HDB) induce the activation of macrophages. HDB increased the production of immunostimulatory factors and phagocytosis in RAW264.7 cells. TLR4 inhibition blocked HDB-mediated production of immunostimulatory factors. In addition, the JNK inhibition reduced the HDB-mediated production of immunostimulatory factors, and the HDB-mediated JNK activation was blocked by the TLR4 inhibition. HDB increased the level of LC3-II and p62/SQSTM1. TLR4 inhibition blocked HDB-mediated increase in the level of LC3-II and p62/SQSTM1. These findings indicate that HDB may induce TLR4/JNK-dependent macrophage activation and TLR4-dependent macrophage autophagy.

• Natural Product Sciences
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.217-227
• /
• 2021

This study is a record of ethnomedicinal knowledge in Begumganj province focussed on medicinal plants and their local uses for primary health care. The aim was to document and preserve the ethnomedicinal knowledge used by traditional healers of Begumganj upazila, Bangladesh, to treat human diseases and evaluate the relative efficacy of the medicinal plants. The uses of medicinal plants were documented as an ethnomedicinal data sheet using direct observation, field interview, plant interview and group interview techniques from December 2012 to January 2014 in the study area. Data were collected from 98 traditional healers through a questionnaire survey and analyzed through informant consensus factor and fidelity level. This study revealed comprehensive relationship among various diseases and families, forms and parts of plants and modes of preparation. Overall, 75 plant species under 71 genera of 47 families were documented, which are used to treat 41 diseases. Data analysis revealed that 41.33%, 14.67%, 36% and 8% of the medicinal plant species were herbs, shrubs, trees, and climbers, respectively. Leaves were the most used parts, followed by stem, root, fruit, bark, latex and rhizome. The most frequently treated diseases were dysentery, rheumatism and skin diseases. This is the first ethnobotanical survey, which recorded the importance of medicinal plants in Begumganj upazila, Bangladesh. This study can contribute to preserving the indigenous knowledge on the traditional use of medicinal plants in this region and new drug development with attracting future generations towards traditional healing practice.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
• /
• v.47 no.4
• /
• pp.493-505
• /
• 2023

In recent years, an increasing number of reports have explored the wound healing mechanism of these two traditional Chinese herbal medicines- Panax ginseng and Panax notoginseng, but there is no systematic research on the related core functions and different mechanisms in the treatment of wound healing up to now. Based on network pharmacology and meta-analysis, the present work aimed to comprehensively review the commonality and diversity of P. ginseng and P. notoginseng in wound healing. In this study, a wound healing-related "ingredients-targets" network of two herbs was constructed. Thereafter, meta-analysis of the multiple target lists by Metascape showed that these two medicines significantly regulated blood vessel development, responses to cytokines and growth factors and oxygen levels, cell death, cell proliferation and differentiation, and cell adhesion. To better understand the discrepancy between these two herbs, it was found that common signaling pathways including Rap1, PI3K/AKT, MAPK, HIF-1 and Focal adhesion regulated the functions listed above. In parallel, the different pathways including renin-angiotensin system, RNA transport and circadian rhythm, autophagy, and the different metabolic pathways may also explained the discrepancies in the regulation of the above-mentioned functions, consistent with the Traditional Chinese Medicine theory about the effects of P. ginseng and P. notoginseng.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
• /
• v.45 no.6
• /
• pp.642-653
• /
• 2021

Background: Effective strategies are dramatically needed to prevent and improve the recovery from myocardial ischemia and reperfusion (I/R) injury. Direct interactions between the mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) during heart diseases have been recently investigated. This study was designed to explore the cardioprotective effects of gypenoside XVII (GP-17) against I/R injury. The roles of ER stress, mitochondrial injury, and their crosstalk within I/R injury and in GP-17einduced cardioprotection are also explored. Methods: Cardiac contractility function was recorded in Langendorff-perfused rat hearts. The effects of GP-17 on mitochondrial function including mitochondrial permeability transition pore opening, reactive oxygen species production, and respiratory function were determined using fluorescence detection kits on mitochondria isolated from the rat hearts. H9c2 cardiomyocytes were used to explore the effects of GP-17 on hypoxia/reoxygenation. Results: We found that GP-17 inhibits myocardial apoptosis, reduces cardiac dysfunction, and improves contractile recovery in rat hearts. Our results also demonstrate that apoptosis induced by I/R is predominantly mediated by ER stress and associated with mitochondrial injury. Moreover, the cardioprotective effects of GP-17 are controlled by the PI3K/AKT and P38 signaling pathways. Conclusion: GP-17 inhibits I/R-induced mitochondrial injury by delaying the onset of ER stress through the PI3K/AKT and P38 signaling pathways.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
• /
• v.45 no.3
• /
• pp.187-193
• /
• 2014

To identify potential gastrointestinal prokinetic agents, water and 70% ethanol extracts and isolated compounds from 41 different traditional medicinal herbs were evaluated for the stimulation of gastrointestinal (GI) motility in vivo. Of the 41 water and 70% ethanol extracts, 12 extracts were found to enhance GI motility activity in mice by more than 10%. The 12 extracts are as follows: Atractylodes japonica (root), Crataegus pinnatifida (flower), Aucklandia lappa (root), Inula helenium (root), Cynanchum wilfordii (root), Chinese Liriope platyphylla (root), Codonopsis pilosula (root), Glehnia littoralis (root), Pinellia ternate (tuber), Agastache rugosa (aerial part), Angelica decursiva (whole plant), and Peucedanum praeruptorum (whole plant). In particular, the extracts from Atractylodes japonica (root), Cynanchum wilfordii (root) and Angelica decursiva (whole plant) have demonstrated the highest GI motility activity. In addition, 26 isolated compounds from the medicinal herbs were tested, and 8 isolated compounds were found to be active. They are ${\alpha}$-ionone, ${\beta}$-ionone, trans-caryophyllene, cedrol, methyl-3,5-di-O-E-caffeoyl-quinate, lobetyolin, oleoyllinoleoylolein and cis-jasmone. ${\beta}$-ionone from Aucklandia lappa (root) showed the most potent GI motility activity. The active traditional medicinal herbs and isolated compounds might be therapeutically advantageous in the treatment of GI motility disorders.