Potential health benefits of carotenoid lutein: An updated review

Carotenoids in food substances are believed to have health benefits by lowering the risk of diseases. Lutein, a carotenoid compound, is one of the essential nutrients available in green leafy vegetables (kale, broccoli, spinach, lettuce, and peas), along with other foods, such as eggs. As nutrition plays a pivotal role in maintaining human health, lutein, as a nutritional substance, confers promising benefits against numerous health issues, including neurological disorders, eye diseases, skin irritation, etc. This review describes the in-depth health beneficial effects of lutein. As yet, a minimal amount of literature has been undertaken to consider all its promising bioactivities. The step-by-step biosynthesis of lutein has also been taken into account in this review. Besides, this review demonstrates the drug interactions of lutein with β-carotene, as well as safety concerns and dosage. The potential benefits of lutein have been assessed against neurological disorders, eye diseases, cardiac complications, microbial infections, skin irritation, bone decay, etc. Additionally, recent studies ascertained the significance of lutein nanoformulations in the amelioration of eye disorders, which are also considered in this review. Moreover, a possible approach for the use of lutein in bioactive functional foods will be discussed.

Biological Efficacy and Toxicological Evaluation of Ethanolic Extract of Cassia nodosa Buch.-Ham. (Leguminosae)

Medicinal plants are used worldwide to treat various diseases. However, scientific validation of the therapeutic potential of most medicinal plants is absent, and little to no information on their potential toxicity exists. It is therefore important to assess the efficacy and toxicity of various medicinal plants commonly used in traditional herbal medicine. The main goal of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of the ethanolic extract of Cassia nodosa, a plant used in the treatment of fever, cold, gastric pain, diabetes mellitus, and malaria in Ghana. The stem bark extract of Cassia nodosa was obtained by cold maceration. Following phytochemical examination via standard procedures, the extract was screened for antiplasmodial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activities. The extract was also evaluated for acute oral toxicity and its toxicity to the liver and kidney of rats. Phytochemicals present in the extract included sterols, alkaloids, tannins, glycosides, and coumarins. In the in vitro antiplasmodial activity test, the Cassia nodosa extract showed moderate antiplasmodial activity with an IC50 value of 23.98 ± 2.07 µg/ml. An ED50 value of 8.52 ± 2.83 mg/kg in the anti-inflammatory test indicated that the Cassia nodosa extract administered orally was very active in reducing inflammation. The total antioxidant capacity of the extract was determined to be 48.49 ± 5.24 gAAE/100 g with the total phenolic content being 28.48 ± 3.13 (gGAE/100 g) extract. In the DPPH radical scavenging assay, the concentration required for 50% inhibition of DPPH radical was found to be 78.71 ± 6.84 µg/mL. There was a gradual increase in the body weight of rats in both treated and control groups during the acute toxicity test. Clinical biochemical tests did not show any significant differences between control and treated groups of animals in terms of liver and renal functions, 14 days after administration of Cassia nodosa extracts. Taken together, these results provide scientific validation for the use of the plant in traditional medicine.

Scolicidal effects of Cassia fistula and Urtica dioica extracts on protoscoleces of hydatid cysts

Echinococcosis is among the most underestimated parasitic diseases that have universal distribution. The primary treatment is surgery. Hence, the development of new and more effective scolicidal agents with lower side effects is crucial. This study evaluated the therapeutic effects of Urtica dioica and Cassia fistula extracts as a scolicidal herbal drug in vitro. Suspension of protoscoleces was obtained from the infected livers of sheep in Khorramabad, Iran. Hydro-alcoholic solution was extracted from the leaves and stems of Urtica dioica and the fruit of Cassia fistula. Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces were treated with the essential oils at concentrations of 10, 25, 50, and 100 mg/mL for 10, 20, 30, and 60 min and their viability was evaluated by the eosin staining test. The extract of Urtica dioica at a concentration of 100 mg/mL killed 90.51% of protoscoleces after 60 min. Cassia fistula also killed 67.74% of protoscoleces after 60 min. This study obtained satisfactory results. Urtica dioica and Cassia fistula extracts are promising protoscolicides and can be used in the treatment of hydatid cysts and pre-surgically to prevent secondary infections.

Medicinal plants used by traditional healers for the treatment of malaria in the Chipinge district in Zimbabwe

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Because about 50% of the Zimbabwean population is at risk of contracting malaria each year, the majority of people, especially in rural areas, use traditional plant-based medicines to combat malaria. This explorative ethnobotanical survey was undertaken to document how malaria is conceptualized and diagnosed by traditional healers, and to record the medicinal plants used in the prevention and treatment of malaria, their mode of preparation and administration.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The research was conducted in three villages in Headman Muzite׳s area and in Chiriga village. These villages are located in the Chipinge district in the Manicaland Province in Zimbabwe.Traditional healers were selected with the assistance of the headman of the Muzite area and a representative of the Zimbabwe National Traditional Healers Association. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 traditional healers from four villages in the Chipinge district in Zimbabwe.

RESULTS

In total, 28 plants from 16 plant families are used by the healers who manage malaria with medicinal plants. The most cited plant is Cassia abbreviata Oliv. (Leguminosae) followed by Aristolochia albida Duch (Aristolociaceae) and Toddalia asiatica (L.) Lam. (Rutaceae). Roots (55.3%) are the most common part used. Most of the plant parts used to treat malaria are stored as dried powders in closed bottles. The powders are soaked in hot or cold water and the water extract is taken as the active medicine. The healers consider their medicinal knowledge as a spiritual family heritage. Only 25% of the healers refer the malaria patients that do not respond to their treatment to hospital - they believe evil spirits cause their remedies to failure and they would rather try a different plant or perform a cleansing ceremony.

CONCLUSIONS

Local knowledge of medicinal plants in the treatment of malaria still exists in all four villages surveyed and traditional healers appear to play an important role in primary health care services in this remote rural area in Zimbabwe. This explorative survey underscores the need to preserve and document traditional healing for managing malaria and for more future scientific research on the plants to determine their efficacy and their safety. This could improve their traditional anti-malarial recipes and might contribute to a better integration of Zimbabwean traditional medicine into the national health system in the future.

Efficient preparative isolation and identification of walnut bioactive components using high-speed counter-current chromatography and LC-ESI-IT-TOF-MS

Preparative isolation of complex mixtures of compounds from walnut polar extracts was established by a combination of high-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) and electrospray ionization-ion trap-time of flight mass spectrometry (ESI-IT-TOF-MS). Compounds were isolated after a solvent optimisation selection based on solute distribution in a biphasic solvent system. Isolation was achieved through one or two successive HSCCC runs, and final purification on Sephadex LH-20. Isolated compounds included ellagitannins (1-11), gallic acid (12), dicarboxylic acid glucosides (13-15), hydrojuglone glucoside (16), catechin (17), procyanidin B2 (18), and megasterone glucosides (19-20). Praecoxin D (4) was isolated for the first time from walnut, while praecoxin A methyl ester (5) and glansreginin A n-butyl ester (14) are newly identified compounds. The purity and identity of isolated compounds were confirmed by NMR and HPLC-ESI-MS/MS. These results provided a foundation for in depth characterisation of walnut compounds and offered an efficient strategy for isolation of potentially health-relevant phytochemicals from walnuts.