scholarly journals Natural Products from Ethnodirected Studies: Revisiting the Ethnobiology of the Zombie Poison

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulysses Paulino Albuquerque ◽  
Joabe Gomes Melo ◽  
Maria Franco Medeiros ◽  
Irwin Rose Menezes ◽  
Geraldo Jorge Moura ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Traditional Medicine ◽  
Animal Species ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Biological Products

Wade Davis's study of Haitian “zombification” in the 1980s was a landmark in ethnobiological research. His research was an attempt to trace the origins of reports of “undead” Haitians, focusing on the preparation of the zombification poison. Starting with this influential ethnopharmacological research, this study examines advances in the pharmacology of natural products, focusing especially on those of animal-derived products. Ethnopharmacological, pharmacological, and chemical aspects are considered. We also update information on the animal species that reportedly constitute the zombie poison. Several components of the zombie powder are not unique to Haiti and are used as remedies in traditional medicine worldwide. This paper emphasizes the medicinal potential of products from zootherapy. These biological products are promising sources for the development of new drugs.

scholarly journals Pharmacological, medicinal and toxicological properties of lavender essential oil: A review

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. e23310514933
Author(s):  
Gabriel Fernando Esteves Cardia ◽  
Francielli Maria de Souza Silva-Comar ◽  
Edvalkia Magna Teobaldo da Rocha ◽  
Saulo Euclides Silva-Filho ◽  
Mayara Zagotto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Medicinal Plants ◽  
Essential Oil ◽  
Adverse Effects ◽  
Essential Oils ◽  
Traditional Medicine ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Pharmacological Properties ◽  
New Research ◽  
Therapeutic Possibilities

The natural products extracted from plants are part of traditional medicine and are also therapeutic possibilities for treating many diseases. Recently, its use in the development of new drugs has shown much visibility for its efficiency and few adverse effects. Essential oils extracted from medicinal plants are indicated to treat numerous diseases due to their antimicrobial, antiviral, antimutagenic, anticancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, and antiprotozoal properties. Among essential oils, lavender essential oil stands out for having several important pharmacological properties. This review detailed the main studies on essential oils from different species of lavender and obtained a valuable collection on all their pharmacological, medicinal and toxicological potential. In this context, we evaluated lavender essential oil as a promising substance that can help treat several diseases. We provide some evidence and an overview of the potential therapeutic effect of lavender essential oil to guide new research.

Natural Anti-inflammatory compounds as Drug candidates in Alzheimer’s disease

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Reyaz Hassan Mir ◽  
Abdul Jalil Shah ◽  
Roohi Mohi-ud-din ◽  
Faheem Hyder Potoo ◽  
Mohd. Akbar Dar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Natural Products ◽  
Protective Action ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Huperzine A ◽  
Brain Disorder ◽  
Anti Inflammatory

: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative brain disorder characterized by memory impairment, dementia, oxidative stress in elderly people. Currently, only a few drugs are available in the market with various adverse effects. So to develop new drugs with protective action against the disease, research is turning to the identification of plant products as a remedy. Natural compounds with anti-inflammatory activity could be good candidates for developing effective therapeutic strategies. Phytochemicals including Curcumin, Resveratrol, Quercetin, Huperzine-A, Rosmarinic acid, genistein, obovatol, and Oxyresvertarol were reported molecules for the treatment of AD. Several alkaloids such as galantamine, oridonin, glaucocalyxin B, tetrandrine, berberine, anatabine have been shown anti-inflammatory effects in AD models in vitro as well as in-vivo. In conclusion, natural products from plants represent interesting candidates for the treatment of AD. This review highlights the potential of specific compounds from natural products along with their synthetic derivatives to counteract AD in the CNS.

Natural Products for the Treatment of Neurodegenerative Diseases

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (34) ◽  
pp. 5790-5828 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ze Wang ◽  
Chunyang He ◽  
Jing-Shan Shi
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Natural Products ◽  
Neurodegenerative Diseases ◽  
Neuroprotective Effect ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Progressive Degeneration ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
And Function

Neurodegenerative diseases are a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by the progressive degeneration of the structure and function of the central nervous system or peripheral nervous system. Alzheimer's Disease (AD), Parkinson's Disease (PD) and Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) are the common neurodegenerative diseases, which typically occur in people over the age of 60. With the rapid development of an aged society, over 60 million people worldwide are suffering from these uncurable diseases. Therefore, the search for new drugs and therapeutic methods has become an increasingly important research topic. Natural products especially those from the Traditional Chinese Medicines (TCMs), are the most important sources of drugs, and have received extensive interest among pharmacist. In this review, in order to facilitate further chemical modification of those useful natural products by pharmacists, we will bring together recent studies in single natural compound from TCMs with neuroprotective effect.

scholarly journals Natural Products Targeting the Mitochondria in Cancers

Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 92
Author(s):  
Yue Yang ◽  
Ping-Ya He ◽  
Yi Zhang ◽  
Ning Li
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Anticancer Drugs ◽  
Web Of Science ◽  
Keyword Search ◽  
Biological Activities ◽  
Natural Compounds ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Antitumor Effects ◽  
Regulate Cell Growth ◽  
Anticancer Drug Discovery

There are abundant sources of anticancer drugs in nature that have a broad prospect in anticancer drug discovery. Natural compounds, with biological activities extracted from plants and marine and microbial metabolites, have significant antitumor effects, but their mechanisms are various. In addition to providing energy to cells, mitochondria are involved in processes, such as cell differentiation, cell signaling, and cell apoptosis, and they have the ability to regulate cell growth and cell cycle. Summing up recent data on how natural products regulate mitochondria is valuable for the development of anticancer drugs. This review focuses on natural products that have shown antitumor effects via regulating mitochondria. The search was done in PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases, over a 5-year period, between 2015 and 2020, with a keyword search that focused on natural products, natural compounds, phytomedicine, Chinese medicine, antitumor, and mitochondria. Many natural products have been studied to have antitumor effects on different cells and can be further processed into useful drugs to treat cancer. In the process of searching for valuable new drugs, natural products such as terpenoids, flavonoids, saponins, alkaloids, coumarins, and quinones cover the broad space.

scholarly journals Bioactive Terpenes and Their Derivatives as Potential SARS-CoV-2 Proteases Inhibitors from Molecular Modeling Studies

Biomolecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 74
Author(s):  
Lúcio Ricardo Leite Diniz ◽  
Yunierkis Perez-Castillo ◽  
Hatem A. Elshabrawy ◽  
Carlos da Silva Maia Bezerra Filho ◽  
Damião Pergentino de Sousa
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Healthcare Systems ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Therapeutic Approaches ◽  
Elderly Individuals ◽  
Global Challenge ◽  
Molecular Modeling Studies ◽  
Human Coronaviruses ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Chronic Comorbidities

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is caused by a novel coronavirus; the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). Millions of cases and deaths to date have resulted in a global challenge for healthcare systems. COVID-19 has a high mortality rate, especially in elderly individuals with pre-existing chronic comorbidities. There are currently no effective therapeutic approaches for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. Therefore, the identification of effective therapeutics is a necessity. Terpenes are the largest class of natural products that could serve as a source of new drugs or as prototypes for the development of effective pharmacotherapeutic agents. In the present study, we discuss the antiviral activity of these natural products and we perform simulations against the Mpro and PLpro enzymes of SARS-CoV-2. Our results strongly suggest the potential of these compounds against human coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2.

Back to the Roots: Prediction of Biologically Active Natural Products from Ayurveda Traditional Medicine

2011 ◽  
Vol 30 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 181-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Honey Polur ◽  
Tejal Joshi ◽  
Christopher T. Workman ◽  
Gandhidas Lavekar ◽  
Irene Kouskoumvekaki
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Traditional Medicine ◽  
Biologically Active ◽  
Active Natural

scholarly journals Foeniculum vulgareMill: A Review of Its Botany, Phytochemistry, Pharmacology, Contemporary Application, and Toxicology

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shamkant B. Badgujar ◽  
Vainav V. Patel ◽  
Atmaram H. Bandivdekar
Keyword(s):  
Traditional Medicine ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Foeniculum Vulgare ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Valuable Compounds

Foeniculum vulgareMill commonly called fennel has been used in traditional medicine for a wide range of ailments related to digestive, endocrine, reproductive, and respiratory systems. Additionally, it is also used as a galactagogue agent for lactating mothers. The review aims to gather the fragmented information available in the literature regarding morphology, ethnomedicinal applications, phytochemistry, pharmacology, and toxicology ofFoeniculum vulgare. It also compiles available scientific evidence for the ethnobotanical claims and to identify gaps required to be filled by future research. Findings based on their traditional uses and scientific evaluation indicates thatFoeniculum vulgareremains to be the most widely used herbal plant. It has been used for more than forty types of disorders. Phytochemical studies have shown the presence of numerous valuable compounds, such as volatile compounds, flavonoids, phenolic compounds, fatty acids, and amino acids. Compiled data indicate their efficacy in severalin vitroandin vivopharmacological properties such as antimicrobial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, antimutagenic, antinociceptive, antipyretic, antispasmodic, antithrombotic, apoptotic, cardiovascular, chemomodulatory, antitumor, hepatoprotective, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, and memory enhancing property.Foeniculum vulgarehas emerged as a good source of traditional medicine and it provides a noteworthy basis in pharmaceutical biology for the development/formulation of new drugs and future clinical uses.

Eremophilane-type sesquiterpenes from fungi and their medicinal potential

2017 ◽  
Vol 399 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kamila Tomoko Yuyama ◽  
Diana Fortkamp ◽  
Wolf-Rainer Abraham
Keyword(s):  
Fatty Acids ◽  
Natural Products ◽  
Carbon Skeleton ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Bioactive Natural Products ◽  
Pharmacokinetic Assessment ◽  
Immunomodulatory Properties ◽  
Chemical Tools ◽  
Subsequent Improvement

AbstractEremophilanes are sesquiterpenes with a rearranged carbon skeleton formed both by plants and fungi, however, almost no plant eremophilanes are found in fungi. These eremophilanes possess mainly phytotoxic, antimicrobial, anticancer and immunomodulatory properties and in this review fungal eremophilanes with bioactivities of potential medicinal applications are reviewed and discussed. A special focus is set on natural products bearing highly functionalized fatty acids at C-1 or C-3 position of the eremophilane backbone. Many of these fatty acids seem to contribute to the bioactivity of the metabolites enhancing the activity of the sesquiterpene moieties. Several approaches for optimization of these natural products for clinical needs and testing of the resulting derivatives are presented and discussed. The combination of identification of bioactive natural products with their subsequent improvement using a variety of genetical or chemical tools and the pharmacokinetic assessment of the products is presented here as a promising approach to new drugs.

scholarly journals Computer-Aided Drug Design (CADD) to De-Orphanize Marine Molecules: Finding Potential Therapeutic Agents for Neurodegenerative and Cardiovascular Diseases

Marine Drugs ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 53
Author(s):  
Laura Llorach-Pares ◽  
Alfons Nonell-Canals ◽  
Conxita Avila ◽  
Melchor Sanchez-Martinez
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Drug Design ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
Marine Invertebrate ◽  
In Silico Analysis ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Computer Aided Drug Design ◽  
Marine Habitats ◽  
Computer Aided ◽  
Promising Line

Computer-aided drug design (CADD) techniques allow the identification of compounds capable of modulating protein functions in pathogenesis-related pathways, which is a promising line on drug discovery. Marine natural products (MNPs) are considered a rich source of bioactive compounds, as the oceans are home to much of the planet’s biodiversity. Biodiversity is directly related to chemodiversity, which can inspire new drug discoveries. Therefore, natural products (NPs) in general, and MNPs in particular, have been used for decades as a source of inspiration for the design of new drugs. However, NPs present both opportunities and challenges. These difficulties can be technical, such as the need to dive or trawl to collect the organisms possessing the compounds, or biological, due to their particular marine habitats and the fact that they can be uncultivable in the laboratory. For all these difficulties, the contributions of CADD can play a very relevant role in simplifying their study, since, for example, no biological sample is needed to carry out an in-silico analysis. Therefore, the amount of natural product that needs to be used in the entire preclinical and clinical study is significantly reduced. Here, we exemplify how this combination between CADD and MNPs can help unlock their therapeutic potential. In this study, using a set of marine invertebrate molecules, we elucidate their possible molecular targets and associated therapeutic potential, establishing a pipeline that can be replicated in future studies.

scholarly journals Discovery of Cyanobacterial Natural Products Containing Fatty Acid Residues

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra A. C. Figueiredo ◽  
Marco Preto ◽  
Gabriela Moreira ◽  
Teresa P. Martins ◽  
Kathleen Abt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Fatty Acid ◽  
Isotope Labeling ◽  
Gene Clusters ◽  
New Drugs ◽  
Beta Oxidation ◽  
Bacterial Genomes ◽  
Biosynthetic Gene Clusters ◽  
Apparent Lack ◽  
Massive Sequencing

Natural products have an important role in several human activities, most notably as sources of new drugs. In recent years, massive sequencing and annotation of bacterial genomes has revealed an unexpectedly large number of secondary metabolite biosynthetic gene clusters whose products are yet to be discovered. For example, cyanobacterial genomes contain a large number of gene clusters that likely incorporate fatty acid-derived moieties, but for most cases we lack the knowledge and tools to effectively predict or detect the encoded natural products. Here, we exploit the apparent lack of a functional beta-oxidation pathway in cyanobacteria to achieve efficient stable-isotope labeling of their fatty acid-derived lipidome. We show that supplementation of cyanobacterial cultures with deuterated fatty acids can be used to easily detect natural product signatures in individual strains. The utility of this strategy is demonstrated in two cultured cyanobacteria by uncovering analogues of the multidrug-resistance reverting hapalosin, and novel, cytotoxic, lactylate-nocuolin A hybrids – the nocuolactylates.

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