scholarly journals A Chewable Cure “Kanna”: Biological and Pharmaceutical Properties of Sceletium tortuosum

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (9) ◽  
pp. 2557
Author(s):  
Madira Coutlyne Manganyi ◽  
Cornelius Carlos Bezuidenhout ◽  
Thierry Regnier ◽  
Collins Njie Ateba

Sceletium tortuosum (L.) N.E.Br. (Mesembryanthemaceae), commonly known as kanna or kougoed, is an effective indigenous medicinal plant in South Africa, specifically to the native San and Khoikhoi tribes. Today, the plant has gained strong global attraction and reputation due to its capabilities to promote a sense of well-being by relieving stress with calming effects. Historically, the plant was used by native San hunter-gatherers and Khoi people to quench their thirst, fight fatigue and for healing, social, and spiritual purposes. Various studies have revealed that extracts of the plant have numerous biological properties and isolated alkaloids of Sceletium tortuosum are currently being used as dietary supplements for medicinal purposes and food. Furthermore, current research has focused on the commercialization of the plant because of its treatment in clinical anxiety and depression, psychological and psychiatric disorders, improving mood, promoting relaxation and happiness. In addition, several studies have focused on the isolation and characterization of various beneficial bioactive compounds including alkaloids from the Sceletium tortuosum plant. Sceletium was reviewed more than a decade ago and new evidence has been published since 2008, substantiating an update on this South African botanical asset. Thus, this review provides an extensive overview of the biological and pharmaceutical properties of Sceletium tortuosum as well as the bioactive compounds with an emphasis on antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, antidepressant, anxiolytic, and other significant biological effects. There is a need to critically evaluate the bioactivities and responsible bioactive compounds, which might assist in reinforcing and confirming the significant role of kanna in the promotion of healthy well-being in these stressful times.

Foods ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 843
Author(s):  
Nayely Leyva-López ◽  
Cynthia E. Lizárraga-Velázquez ◽  
Crisantema Hernández ◽  
Erika Y. Sánchez-Gutiérrez

The agroindustry generates a large amount of waste. In postharvest, food losses can reach up to 50%. This waste represents a source of contamination of soil, air, and bodies of water. This represents a problem for the environment as well as for public health. However, this waste is an important source of bioactive compounds, such as phenolic compounds, terpenes, and β-glucans, among others. Several biological activities have been attributed to these compounds; for example, antioxidant, antimicrobial, gut microbiota, and immune system modulators. These properties have been associated with improvements in health. Recently, the approach of using these bioactive compounds as food additives for aquaculture have been addressed, where it is sought that organisms, in addition to growing, preserve their health and become disease resistant. The exploitation of agro-industrial waste as a source of bioactive compounds for aquaculture has a triple objective—to provide added value to production chains, reduce pollution, and improve the well-being of organisms through nutrition. However, to make use of the waste, it is necessary to revalue them, mainly by determining their biological effects in aquaculture organisms. The composition of bioactive compounds of agro-industrial wastes, their biological properties, and their application in aquaculture will be addressed here.


2010 ◽  
Vol 46 (4) ◽  
pp. 607-616 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daiane Hansen ◽  
Mitsue Haraguchi ◽  
Antonio Alonso

The plant of the genus Pterodon (Fabaceae, Leguminosae), commonly known as 'sucupira' or 'faveira', are disseminated throughout the central region of Brazil and has frequently been used in popular medicine for its anti-rheumatic, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory properties. In recent years, interest in these plants has increased considerably. The biological effects of different phytoextracts and pure metabolites have been investigated in several experimental models in vivo and in vitro. The literature describes flavonoids, triterpene and steroids, while one paper presented studies with proteins isolated from the genus. This review provides an overview of phytochemical and pharmacological research in Pterodon, showing the main chemical compounds studied to date, and focusing on the relationship between these molecules and their biological activity. Furthermore, this study paves the way for more in-depth investigation, isolation and characterization of the molecules of this plant genus.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isaac John Umaru ◽  
Hauwa A. Umaru ◽  
Fasihuddin Badruddin Ahmed

Abstract Introduction Adonsonia digitata L. (Malvaceae) commonly known as Baobab is a medicinal and nutritional plant. The plant parts are used to treat various ailments such as diarrhoea, malaria and microbial infections. It is reported that it is an excellent anti-oxidant due to its vitamin C content. Baobab has numerous biological properties including antimicrobial, antiviral, anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory activities amongst others. Objective: The study involves extraction, Isolation, Characterisation of phytochemicals and evaluation of antioxidant potential of the pure compounds. Methods: The dried leaf powder was subjected to rotary evaporator to obtain crude extract which was subjected to isolation using chromatography analysis and elucidation using NMR and FTIR. Antioxidant (IC 50 ) potential was determined using 2,2-diphenyl-1- picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate (DPPH). Result: Phytochemical investigation of the Baobab leaf extract through isolation and characterization of a bioactive compound was observed. The leaf extract yielded three compound characterised as D-Limonene, Thunbergol and (z)-2-Methyl-7-octadecene. Conclusion: The analysis of the chemical component reported identified compounds from Baobab leaf as; D-Limonene; ( 1 ) Thunbergol ( 2 ) and Cis-2-Methyl-7-octadecene ( 3 ) with significant antioxidant potential. The chemical components were identified for the first time.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 1675-1684
Author(s):  
Bhadekar N. S ◽  
Zodape G.V

The sponge Sigmadocia fibulata (Schmidt) was collected during low tides from West Coast of Mumbai. Crude extract was obtained by taking 10 gram of sponge samples in10 ml of methanol. The preparative TLC (Thin Layer Chromatography) was performed by using Toluene: Ethyl acetate: Diethylamine (7:2:1) (v/v). The isolated compounds were subjected to GC-MS and FTIR analysis. The structural properties of bio active compounds were determined.From the structural determination it was confirmed that S. fibulata contains bioactive compounds as Triacontanoic acid, methyl ester – (Skin irritant), Hexadecanoic acid, 2- hydroxyl- (hydroxymethyl) ethyl ester – (Fatty acid, Metabolite and Irritant) and 2-Nitro-1, 3-bis-oclyoxy-benzene, (A natural product found in Neolitsea daibuensis. It has a role as a plant metabolite and an algal metabolite). From their biological properties it was confirmed that S. fibulata contains bio active compound, which has biomedical and pharmaceutical properties.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 4114
Author(s):  
Vladyslav Vivcharenko ◽  
Agata Przekora

The great variety of wounds and the lack of an effective universal treatment method has resulted in high demand for modern treatment strategies. Traditional approaches are often ineffective on a variety of chronic wounds, such as venous ulcers or the diabetic foot ulcer. There is strong evidence that naturally derived bioactive compounds have pro-healing properties, raising a great interest in their potential use for wound healing. Plant-derived compounds, such as curcumin and essential oils, are widely used to modify materials applied as wound dressings. Moreover, dressing materials are more often enriched with vitamins (e.g., L-ascorbic acid, tocopherol) and drugs (e.g., antibiotics, inhibitors of proteases) to improve the skin healing rate. Biomaterials loaded with the above-mentioned molecules show better biocompatibility and are basically characterized by better biological properties, ensuring faster tissue repair process. The main emphasis of the presented review is put on the novel findings concerning modern pro-healing wound dressings that have contributed to the development of regenerative medicine. The article briefly describes the synthesis and modifications of biomaterials with bioactive compounds (including curcumin, essential oils, vitamins) to improve their pro-healing properties. The paper also summarizes biological effects of the novel wound dressings on the enhancement of skin regeneration. The current review was prepared based on the scientific contributions in the PubMed database (supported with Google Scholar searching) over the past 5 years using relevant keywords. Scientific reports on the modification of biomaterials using curcumin, vitamins, and essential oils were mainly considered.


Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (8) ◽  
pp. 1972 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zaw Min Thu ◽  
Ko Ko Myo ◽  
Hnin Thanda Aung ◽  
Marco Clericuzio ◽  
Chabaco Armijos ◽  
...  

Mushrooms have a long history of uses for their medicinal and nutritional properties. They have been consumed by people for thousands of years. Edible mushrooms are collected in the wild or cultivated worldwide. Recently, mushroom extracts and their secondary metabolites have acquired considerable attention due to their biological effects, which include antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-obesity, and immunomodulatory activities. Thus, in addition to phytochemists, nutritionists and consumers are now deeply interested in the phytochemical constituents of mushrooms, which provide beneficial effects to humans in terms of health promotion and reduction of disease-related risks. In recent years, scientific reports on the nutritional, phytochemical and pharmacological properties of mushroom have been overwhelming. However, the bioactive compounds and biological properties of wild edible mushrooms growing in Southeast Asian countries have been rarely described. In this review, the bioactive compounds isolated from 25 selected wild edible mushrooms growing in Southeast Asia have been reviewed, together with their biological activities. Phytoconstituents with antioxidant and antimicrobial activities have been highlighted. Several evidences indicate that mushrooms are good sources for natural antioxidants and antimicrobial agents


Marine Drugs ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (8) ◽  
pp. 444
Author(s):  
Roberta Esposito ◽  
Nadia Ruocco ◽  
Thomas Viel ◽  
Serena Federico ◽  
Valerio Zupo ◽  
...  

In the last decades, the marine environment was discovered as a huge reservoir of novel bioactive compounds, useful for medicinal treatments improving human health and well-being. Among several marine organisms exhibiting biotechnological potential, sponges were highlighted as one of the most interesting phyla according to a wide literature describing new molecules every year. Not surprisingly, the first marine drugs approved for medical purposes were isolated from a marine sponge and are now used as anti-cancer and anti-viral agents. In most cases, experimental evidence reported that very often associated and/or symbiotic communities produced these bioactive compounds for a mutual benefit. Nowadays, beauty treatments are formulated taking advantage of the beneficial properties exerted by marine novel compounds. In fact, several biological activities suitable for cosmetic treatments were recorded, such as anti-oxidant, anti-aging, skin whitening, and emulsifying activities, among others. Here, we collected and discussed several scientific contributions reporting the cosmeceutical potential of marine sponge symbionts, which were exclusively represented by fungi and bacteria. Bioactive compounds specifically indicated as products of the sponge metabolism were also included. However, the origin of sponge metabolites is dubious, and the role of the associated biota cannot be excluded, considering that the isolation of symbionts represents a hard challenge due to their uncultivable features.


Author(s):  
Elga Šnē ◽  
Ruta Galoburda ◽  
Dalija Segliņa

In recent years, due to the health problems and better life expectancy, natural sources of bioactive substances have gained wide interest. Sea buckthorn is well known as a valuable plant and is widely used in traditional medicine for the treatment of diseases and disorders. A considerable amount of literature has been published on sea buckthorn berries, although all parts of sea buckthorn plant are considered as a source of a large amount of biological active substances, and believed to have beneficial health effects. Therefore, vegetative parts would be a good raw material not only for medicinal, cosmetic and pharmaceutical properties, but also for the food industry. This has increased the research on different sea buckthorn vegetative parts and their extract activity and toxicity. Sea buckthorn leaves have attracted interest during the past few years as the most promising source of active compounds after berries. They contain a wide range of hydrophilic and lipophilic bioactive compounds, which exhibit remarkable anti-oxidant potential together with anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-tumour and anti-inflammatory activity. Therefore, extracts of the plant leaves could be used as natural replacements for synthetic additives and for food products with functional properties. This creates the need to investigate the biochemical content of sea buckthorn vegetative parts grown in Latvia.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chem Int

Coumarin and its derivatives are widely spread in nature. Coumarin goes to agroup as benzopyrones, which consists of a benzene ring connected to a pyronemoiety. Coumarins displayed a broad range of pharmacologically useful profile.Coumarins are considered as a promising group of bioactive compounds thatexhibited a wide range of biological activities like anti-microbial, anti-viral,antiparasitic, anti-helmintic, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, anticancer,anti-oxidant, anti-proliferative, anti-convulsant, and antihypertensiveactivities etc. The coumarin compounds have immense interest due to theirdiverse pharmacological properties. In particular, these biological activities makecoumarin compounds more attractive and testing as novel therapeuticcompounds.


2004 ◽  
Vol 69 (3) ◽  
pp. 499-510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petra Beranová ◽  
Karel Chalupský ◽  
Gustav Entlicher

Nω-Hydroxy-L-arginine (NOHA) is a stable intermediate in NO formation from L-arginine catalyzed by NO synthase (NOS). Apparently, NOHA can be released and serve as a stable reserve NO donor (as a substrate of NOS) or transported and exert its own biological effects. It shows endothelium-dependent as well as endothelium-independent vasorelaxant activity. The latter case indicates that NOHA can be metabolized by pathways independent of NOS. These possibilities are discussed in detail. Of the available NOHA homologues homo-NOHA is a good substrate of NOS while nor-NOHA seems to be a very poor substrate of this enzyme. On the contrary, nor-NOHA exerts arginase inhibitory activity 20 times higher than NOHA whereas homo-NOHA is inactive. Detailed investigation of biological activities of NOHA and its homologues seems to be promising from the pharmacological point of view. A review with 43 references.


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