Important Indigenous Medicinal Plant Research Articles

Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal: Enhanced production of withanolides and phenolic acids from hairy root culture after application of elicitors

Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal is an important indigenous medicinal plant with extensive pharmaceutical potential. The root is the main source of major bioactive compounds of this plant species including withanolides, withanine, phenolic acids, etc. Hairy root culture (HRC) is a crucial method for low-cost production of active compounds on a large scale. Four different Agrobacterium rhizogenes strains have been used for the hairy root induction. Maximum transformation efficiency (87.34 ± 2.13%) was achieved with A4 bacterial strain-mediated transformed culture. The genetic transformation was confirmed by using specific primers of seven different genes. Seven HR (Hairy root) lines were selected after screening 29 HR lines based on their fast growth rate and high accumulation of withanolides and phenolic acids content. Two biotic and three abiotic elicitors were applied to the elite root line to trigger more accumulation of withanolides and phenolic acids. While all the elicitors effectively increased withanolides and phenolic acids production, among the five different elicitors, salicylic acid (4.14 mg l–1) induced 11.49 -fold increase in withanolides (89.07 ± 2.75 mg g–1 DW) and 5.34- fold increase in phenolic acids (83.69 ± 3.11 mg g− 1 DW) after 5 days of elicitation compared to the non-elicited culture (7.75 ± 0.63 mg g–1 DW of withanolides and 15.66 ± 0.92 mg g–1 DW of phenolic acids). These results suggest that elicitors can tremendously increase the biosynthesis of active compounds in this system; thus, the HRC of W. somnifera is cost-effective and can be efficiently used for the industrial production of withanolides and phenolic acids.

Optimizing extraction of Pelargonium sidoides roots: Impact of ethanol concentration on biological activity of extracts

Pelargonium sidoides DC. (Geraniaceae) is an important indigenous medicinal plant in South Africa, historically employed by various ethnic groups to treat respiratory and gastrointestinal ailments. The proprietary herbal tincture, Umckaloabo®, utilizes an ethanolic extract (EPs® 7630) from the roots of P. sidoides, and has demonstrated effectiveness in alleviating symptoms of respiratory infections.P. sidoides roots contain numerous highly oxygenated coumarins and phenolic metabolites, notably the marker compound umckalin. While Umckaloabo® is prepared using 11 % ethanol extraction, the South African commercial market predominantly employs 60 % ethanol extraction due to its consistent umckalin yield and antimicrobial activity. The effects of these extraction methods on chemical composition and in vitro pharmacological activity remain poorly understood.This study confirmed superior antibacterial and antifungal activity in the 60 % ethanol extracts prepared from six root samples compared to the 11 % ethanol extracts. MIC values for both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria ranged from 0.078 to 2.5 mg/mL in the 60 % extracts. Remarkably, two of the root extracts exhibited excellent to very good activity against C. albicans and C. neoformans with MIC values of 0.039 and 0.078 mg/mL, respectively.A positive correlation was identified between total minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) levels and polyphenol content, rather than umckalin levels. The influence of these extracts on the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 was assessed. Both 60 % and 11 % root extracts of P. sidoides at 100 µg/mL significantly reduced IL-6 production, with the 60 % extracts demonstrating a more pronounced effect (p = 0.008).Statistical analysis revealed significant differences between 11 % and 60 % ethanol extractions in terms of average MIC overall, average Gram-negative MIC, average Gram-positive MIC, fungal MIC, and IL-6 levels. Extracts with higher polyphenol values exhibited superior antimicrobial activity and antioxidant potential, suggesting that polyphenol content may serve as a more reliable indicator of antimicrobial activity than umckalin levels. Additionally, polyphenol levels in the roots may vary with altitude and other environmental factors, warranting further research.

A phytopharmacological review on an important indigenous medicinal plant Hyoscyamus gallagheri

Since the ancient time, medicinal plants play a central role in the day-to-day life of humankind as crucial additive agents in foods, drinks and drugs and also as components in perfumes and cosmetics. The nutritional, pharmacological, biological and toxicological properties of the medicinal plants also have extensive applications. Globally, the majority of people nowadays rely on alternative and complementary medicines as safe sources for the treatment of various ailments obtained from natural sources. Plenty of plant and marine sources are available worldwide including the Sultanate of Oman with notable medicinal values. Hyoscyamus gallagheri ( H. gallagheri ), is one of the leafy plants grown in the desert areas of the Sultanate of Oman which belongs to the family of Solanaceae. Omanis have used the selected plant species traditionally to increase hair density, hair fall, dental pain, relieve snake bite, scorpion sting pain, motion sickness, asthma and cough. This plant is considered as a new species because still now there is no evidence on phytochemicals, pharmacological and toxicological studies available of the selected species. Previously, our group from Nizwa University has conducted two studies on the pharmacological and phytochemicals of the selected plant species and the results showed that the plant extracts contain different groups of phytochemicals, which possess notable biological activity. This present review is to summarize the updated scientific information available on the selected plant species grown in Oman. Therefore, the main objective of this current review is to compare and contrast the morphology, toxicity, pharmacological activity, phytochemicals, potential uses with other species belong to this family including the selected plant species of H. gallagheri . In conclusion, the raw plant materials, its crude extracts and isolated ingredients might be used as a novel therapeutic or herbal medicine to treat various ailments.

Hepatoprotective activity of Chloroform and Ethyl acetate extract of Dipteracanthus patulus against Paracetamol induced Hepatotoxicity in rats through Antioxidant mechanism

Dipteracanthus patulus (DP) is an important medicinal plant and popularly known as black weed. Dipteracanthus patulus belongs to Acanthaceace family and very important indigenous medicinal plant. The earlier study reported that hepatoprotective activity leaves of DP, hence there is no report on hepatoprotective activity of whole plant of DP and the hepatoprotective phytoconsituents like lupeol, β-carotene, β-sitosterol and rutin are already reported in this plant material. Therefore this current research is aimed to evaluate the hepatoprotective effect of whole plant of Dipteracanthus patulus. The paracetamol induced rat model was used to evaluate the hepatoprotective activity and Silymarin was used for standard. The treatment with the ethyl acetate and chloroform extracts of Dipteracanthus patulus to the paracetamol induced liver toxic rats shows the significant reduction of SGOT, SGPT, ALP, total cholesterol, triglycerides, urea and uric acid levels. However the CAT, GSH, GPx and SOD levels were significant increase in ethyl acetate and chloroform extracts of Dipteracanthus patulus treated paracetamol induced liver toxic rats. Results of current research concluded that the hepatoprotective activity of Dipteracanthus patulus through antioxidant mechanism.

Surgery and Medicinal Plants: A review of important indigenous medicinal plants of Iran for burn wound healing

Surgical Science is one of the branches of medical science that deals with surgical and medicinal interventions, which can cure surgical wounds, cuts, burns and so on. The accelerated recovery process has always been a concern for surgeons and physicians. Standard local antibiotic drugs such as silver nitrate, mafenide acetate, sulfadiazine silver and AgNO3 are also used to treat wounds which are associated with some complications. Considering the fact that no effective herbal remedy has been introduced for wound healing, the purpose of this review is to investigate and identify indigenous Iranian herbs used for wound healing after surgery, especially burn wounds. In this systematic review paper, published articles in the period 1952 to 2017 with keywords of surgery, wound healing, burns, herbs, etc. from databases such as SID, MEDLIB, ProQuest, Magiran, Europe PubMed Central and Google Scholar. Abstract and title of all articles were studied and non-relevant articles were deleted and remaining articles were used for review. Based on the results of the study, Malva sylvestris, Camellia sinensis, Aloe vera, Cydonia oblonga, Scrophularia striata, Centella asiatica, Arnebia euchroma, Calendula officinalis and Hypericum perforatum are the most important herbal remedies for burn restoration. The following is an explanation of the most important herbal remedies for native burn wounds in Iran.

Identification of the New High Oil and Rhizome Yielding Variety of Kaempferia galanga (Jor Lab K-1): A Highly Important Indigenous Medicinal Plants of North East India

Kaempferia galanga is very important medicinal and aromatic plants of throughout Asia. It is used in skin diseases, piles, cough, fever, epilepsy, spleen disorders, wounds, asthma and rheumatism; and also useful in digestion. Our investigation objective was to identify the high herbage and high essential oil genotypes. The thirty-five germplasm were evaluated during the year 2013–14. After two years of evaluation high oil and rhizome yielding genotype of K. Galanga was identified and named “Jor Lab K-1″ which was propagated through vegetative means using the rhizome as explant. This elite new genotype was evaluated in four different locations of North East India during the year, 2015 and 2016. The identified germplasm has shown 35 percent superiority over the check variety with rhizome herbage yield of 7.156 tons/ha and dry rhizome recovery of 25 % from fresh rhizomes and the average 2.38 % essential oil in dry rhizome. The essential oil of the dry rhizome, obtained by hydrodistillation was analyzed by GC-MS. The major components found were Ethyl trans-cinnamate (31.12 %), Ethyl trans-p-methoxycinnamate (14.3 %), 1,8-Cineole (10.57 %), Delta-3-Carene (5.12 %) and n-pentadecane (4.8 %).

Efficient Stable in Vitro Micropropagation and Conservation of Tinospora cordifolia (Willd.)Miers: an Anti-diabetic Indigenous Medicinal Plant

An efficient protocol is described for the rapid in vitro multiplication of Tinospora cordifolia (Willd.) Miers., an important indigenous medicinal plant, via enhanced shoot bud proliferation from shoot tip explants. This plant has great importance to different pharmaceutical industry for its medicinal value and mainly harvested from the wild population is resulting an over-exploitation of natural habits. To avoid this alarming situation and to ensure its continuous supply, plant tissue culture technique was applied. The explants cultured on to MS medium containing different concentrations of BAP, Kn and NAA either alone or in combination for investigation of morphogenetic response. The best shoot proliferation (16.5±0.25) was observed MS media supplemented with 5.0 mg l−1 BAP alone. The highest shoot elongation observed MS medium containing 1.0 mg l−1 BAP in combination with 0.6 mg l−1 GA3 (12.5±1.5 cm). The maximum rooting frequency (82.00±3.0%) obtained from the MS medium in the combination 1.0 mg l−1 IBA. For in vitro conservation, the best response (95%) was achieved using 2% sorbitol and 2% mannitol in combination with MS medium at 10°C temperature up to 8 months by in vitro slow growth technique. Regenerated plantlets were transferred to greenhouse conditions and observed 90.00±0.4% survival frequencies. The diploid status (2n=24) of regenerated plantlets as well as mother plant was determined using chromosome counts of root-tips. Berberine content (0.218%) in regenerated plants was determined by using HPTLC and HPLC methods. It is concluded that the regenerated plants were stable in respect to their morphology, chromosome number and berberine content, which offers a unique opportunity to obtain true-to-type plants as source plant.

Diversity analysis of Kaempferia galanga L. germplasm from South India using DIVA-GIS approach

Kaempferia galanga L. (Zingiberaceae) is an important indigenous medicinal plant of India. Plant rhizomes are used in the preparation of Ayurvedic drugs, perfumes and cosmetics. K. galanga germplasm collected from southern states of India were evaluated for essential oil content and oil composition. The volatile composition of essential oil of Kaempferia galanga L. was investigated by gas chromatography (GC) and Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Results showed wide variations in essential oil content of K. galanga rhizomes ranging from 0.83 to 2.19% on dry weight basis. Thirty-eight compounds were identified in the Kaempferia oil. The oil composition was dominated by two esters viz; ethyl-trans-p-methoxy cinnamate (28.35–69.96%) and trans-ethyl cinnamate (11.48–26.56%). Other prominent chemical constituents were δ-3-carene (0.13–6.46%), 1,8-cineole (0.19–5.17%), borneol (0.96–2.40%) and pentadecane (6.04–16.53%). DIVA-GIS analysis of K. galanga germplasm for chemical components indicated that diverse accessions can be obtained from Central Kerala, while South Eastern parts of Kerala possessed least diversity indices. Superior accessions were identified based on high content of ethyl-trans-p-methoxy cinnamate (IC373589, IC087831, IC373591) and trans-ethyl cinnamate (IC087826, IC210748, IC087832). Ethyl-trans-p-methoxy cinnamate and trans-ethyl cinnamate are found to be the most important constituents present in the essential oil isolated from all the accessions of K. galanga which are reported to be responsible for most of the pharmacological properties of the plant. Hence, these promising accessions of K. galanga can be exploited for large-scale cultivation of this plant for obtaining higher yields of pharmacologically important constituents.

Review on Pharmacological Effects of <i>Plectranthus f</i><i>orskohlii</i> (Willd) Briq

Plectranthus forskohlii (Willd). Briq. (Syn: Coleus forskohlii) is an important indigenous medicinal plant in India. It has been used in traditional Ayurveda medicine for curing various disorders and this is the only source of the diterpenoid forskolin. Forskolin is used for the treatment of eczema, asthma, psoriasis, cardiovascular disorders and hypertension, where decreased intracellular cAMP level is believed to be a major factor in the development of the disease process. A comprehensive account of the morphology, medicinal uses, phytochemistry, pharmacological activities, analytical methods and biotechnological approaches for forskolin production reported are included in view of the many recent findings of importance on this plant.

Review on Pharmacological Effects of <i>Plectranthus f</i><i>orskohlii</i> (Willd) Briq

Plectranthus forskohlii (Willd). Briq. (Syn: Coleus forskohlii) is an important indigenous medicinal plant in India. It has been used in traditional Ayurveda medicine for curing various disorders and this is the only source of the diterpenoid forskolin. Forskolin is used for the treatment of eczema, asthma, psoriasis, cardiovascular disorders and hypertension, where decreased intracellular cAMP level is believed to be a major factor in the development of the disease process. A comprehensive account of the morphology, medicinal uses, phytochemistry, pharmacological activities, analytical methods and biotechnological approaches for forskolin production reported are included in view of the many recent findings of importance on this plant.

Coleus forskohlii - a comprehensive review on morphology, phytochemistry and pharmacological aspects.

Coleus forskohlii is an important indigenous medicinal plant in India. It has been used in traditional Ayurvedic medicine for curing various disorders and this is the only source of the diterpenoid forskolin. Forskolin is used for the treatment of eczema, asthma, psoriasis, cardiovascular disorders and hypertension, where decreased intracellular cAMP level is believed to be a major factor in the development of the disease process. A comprehensive account of the morphology, distribution, medicinal uses, phytochemistry, pharmacological activities, analytical methods, cultivation aspects and biotechnological approaches for forskolin production reported are included in view of the many recent findings of importance on this plant. Key words: Coleus forskohlii, forskolin, review.

Effects of ascorbic acid on axillary shoot induction in Tylophora indica (Burm. f.) Merrill.

A procedure for rapid in vitro multiplication of Tylophora indica (Burm. f.) Merrill., an important indigenous medicinal plant, has been developed. Addition of ascorbic acid was essential to induce sprouting of axillary buds. Optimum multiplication was observed on MS medium containing 6-benzylamino purine (5.0 mg l−1), α-naphathalene-acetic acid (0.5 mg l−1) and ascorbic acid (100 mg l−1). Rooting of in vitro produced shoots was readily achieved with indole-3-acetic acid alone (1.0 mg l−1) in MS. The plantlets thus obtained were successfully transferred to pots in large numbers which grew normally.