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importance and interest of researchers in this plant, probably because of the alternative potential this species has, in addition to official therapies for diabetes.
Acknowledgments: UNEMAT, FLOBIO Research Group, FAPEMAT
References:
1. Rieder A, Rodrigues FAC. 2012. Caceres: Unemat. 25 p.
2. Rieder A. Guarim Neto G. 2012. Caceres: UNEMAT Publisher. 94 p.
PLANTS USED IN DIABETES THERAPY IN MATO GROSSO (BRAZIL) AND WITH ADVERSE EFFECTS
© Arno Rieder, Tatiane Gomes de Almeida
University of the State of Mato Grosso (UNEMAT): Caceres, Mato Grosso, Brazil
Diabetes is increasing in the world. Alternative and complementary therapies are welcome. Phytotherapy is one of them and, in the plants used, phytochemistry finds bioactive substances. Some may have a therapeutic effect on diabetes. There may also be an adverse effect, depending on the type of substances, concentrations and mixtures. Plants for therapeutic purposes should be chosen by checking for potential adverse effects. It is revealed medicinal plants used for diabetes control in Mato Grosso (MT), Brazil (BR) and, which also show to have harmful, attractive or repellent effect. In a first step, in a specific study1, a list of plants used in the control of diabetes in MT was constituted. In a second stage, on these plants, we sought popular knowledge1, essays2, literature3 and lifelong learning. This aimed to find other biological effects in these plants (attractive, repellent, nefarious). In the first stage a list of 133 species used to control diabetes in MT was identified, which were distributed in 52 botanical families. In the second stage, there were 9 species among those that had some effect on other organisms (insects, molluscs, etc.). Acting as attractive insects (ants, beetles, bees) has three species [Embauba (Cecropia pachystachya Trecul.- Cecropiaceae), Melon of Sao Caetano (Momordica charantia L. - Cucurbitaceae), Lixeira (Curatella americana L. - Dilleniaceae)], as insect repellent (mosquitoes, mosquitoes) and herbivores
(in general) there are two species [Negramina (Siparuna guianensis Aubl. - Monimiaceae), Losna (Artemisia absinthium L. - Asteraceae)] and, with insecticidal effect (Diptera larvae, Lepidoptera, etc.) there are five species" [two Anonaceae: Ata (Annona dioica A.St.-Hyl.), Graviola (A. muricata L.); Two Asteraceae: Losna (A. absinthium L.), Carqueja (Baccharis trimera (Less.) DC and; Quina (Strychnos pseudoquina A.St.-Hil.- Loganiaceae)]. Two plants (Losna, Carqueja) also have an effect against molluscs, bacteria and other microorganisms4. These plants should receive special attention and care and, if used medicinally, only under professional guidance. May have potential to help in the control of synanthropic pests, mainly in urban environments (households, health units, public roads, commercial houses)
Acknowledgments: FLOBIO Research Group (Bioactive Flora Study) UNEMAT / CNPq / FAPEMAT
Reference:
1. Rieder A. Guarim Neto G. 2012. Caceres: UNEMAT Publisher. 94 p.
2. Rieder A, Lima LG, Straub AL. 2011. Plant Med; 77. (3).
3. Rieder A, Rodrigues FAC. 2012. Caceres: Unemat. 25 p.
4. Barbosa FS. 2007. Medicinal plants: effect on pest insects and their natural enemies. Montes Claros, MG: NCA / UFMG, xiv, 80 p.
VITEX AGNUS CASTUS EXTRACT BNO 1095 IS AN EFFECTIVE INHIBITOR OF UTERINE CONTRACTIONS AND INFLAMMATION AS SYMPTOMS OF PRIMARY DYSMENORRHEA
© Röhrl J., Ammendola A., Abramov-Sommariva D., Künstle G.
Bionorica SE, Neumarkt, Germany
Many women suffer monthly from menstrual cramps severely enough that their quality of life is severely disrupted. In the case of primary dysmenorrhea, a condition related to premenstrual syndrome (PMS), intense uterine contractions are thought to trigger moderate to intense pain despite the absence of an
underlying infection or other medically-identifiable disease states. The associated pain is likely to be mediated by the release of inflammatory mediators such as prostaglandins, leukotrienes and the infiltration of leukocytes that normally accompany the breakdown of the endometrial lining.
Obzory po kliniceskoj farmacologii i lekarstvennoj terapii [Reviews of clinical pharmacology and drug therapy]
vol. 15/2Q17/suppLeMEnt 1
The extract of Vitex agnus-castus berries BNO 1095 (VAC extract of chaste tree, or chaste berries) is clinically effective in treating the symptoms of PMS, yet the mechanisms of how the chemically complex mixture acts are largely unknown.
Using an in vivo dysmenorrhea model rats were treated with 10 mg/kg estradiol-benzoate i.p. once daily for 12 days and with 2.1, 10.3 or 20.7 mg/kg VAC dry extract p.o. once daily for 7 days prior to induction of convulsions. Uterine contractions where induced with 2 lU/kg oxytocin i.p., followed by monitoring of abdominal convulsions and signs of pain on the last day of the experiment. Moreover, in vitro methods were applied to assess the spasmolytic and anti-inflammatory effects of the BNO 1095 extract.
Here, we show that the VAC dry extract BNO 1095 (commercially available as Agnucaston®) targets the uterine myometrial tissue and inflammatory signaling molecules of associated inflammatory cells. Specifically, BNO 1095 dose-dependently inhibited oxytocin-induced uterine contractions in a rat dysmenorrhea model in vivo, and drug-induced contractions in isolated human and rat uterine tissue in vitro. Furthermore, BNO 1095 showed a promising anti-inflammatory capacity by potently inhibiting 5-lipoxygenase activity and leukotriene production and by reducing the production of reactive oxygen species and inflammatory cytokines in vitro.
In conclusion these results provide evidence that BNO 1095, as contained in Agnucaston®, effectively treats menstruation-related complaints including primary dysmenorrhea.
HERG CHANNEL RELATED RISK ASSESSMENT OF BOTANICALS
© Ulrike Grienke, Christina E. Mair, Jadel M. Kratz, Judith M. Rollinger
Department of Pharmacognosy, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
A blockage of the human Ether-a-go-go Related Gene (hERG) channel is associated with a drug-induced QT prolongation and increased risk of fatal arrhythmias [1]. Therefore, screening this antitarget is an important part of preclinical safety assessment for drug substances. While all new chemical entities must be investigated for possible hERG channel blockage, the risk portfolio of herbal medicines is still unsatisfying.
To address this issue, the EU project "hERG related risk assessment of botanicals" (PI RSES-GA-2011-295174) was launched in 2012 with the main goal to establish a network between European, South American, North American, and South African educational and research entities for the identification of hERG channel blockers in commonly consumed botanicals and supplements. Three different strategies have been applied for the targeted identification and isolation of hERG channel blocking constituents from natural sources: (i) in vitro screening of relevant plant extracts followed by micro-fractionation and isolation, (ii) investigation of plant materials based on reports of cardiotoxicity without a clear understanding of the molecular mechanism, and (iii) computational approaches for the virtual prediction of hERG channel blockers.
Out of more than 1,200 extracts probed in this recently accomplished project, only 2.5% reduced the hERG channel peak tail current by >30% at 100 ^g/mL
in a voltage-clamp assay on Xenopus oocytes. Here, examples and strategies for the identification of hERG blockers from medicinal plants will be presented [2-5]. This includes also a critical view on the relevance of these findings and a concluding discussion of the outcome of the project.
Acknowledgement: This work was supported by a Marie Curie IRSES Fellowship within the Seventh European Community Framework Programme (hERGscreen, P295174)
Reference:
1. Sanguinetti MC, Tristani-Firouzi M. 2006. Nature. 440:463-469.
2. Kratz JM, Schuster D, Edtbauer M, Saxena P, Mair CE, Kirchebner J, Matuszczak B, Baburin I, Hering S, Rollinger JM. 2014. J Chem Inf Model. 54:2887-2901.
3. Grienke U, Mair CE, Saxena P, Baburin I, Scheel O, Ganzera M, Schuster D, Hering S, Rollinger JM. 2015. J Agric Food Chem. 63:5634-5639.
4. Mair CE, de Miranda Silva C, Grienke U, Kratz JM, Carreno F, Zimmermann ES, de Araüjo BV, Dalla Costa T, Rollinger JM. 2016. Planta Med. 82:10301038.
5. Kratz JM, Mair, CE, Oettl SK, Saxena P, Scheel O, Schuster D, Hering S, Rollinger JM. 2016. Planta Med. 82: 1009-1015.
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