Drug leads agents from methanol extract of Nigerian bee (Apis mellifera) propolis

A Systematic Review of Phytochemistry, Nutritional Composition, and Pharmacologic Application of Species of the Genus Viola in Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs)

Viola L. is the largest genus of the Violaceae family with more than 500 species across the globe. The present extensive literature survey revealed Viola species to be a group of important nutritional and medicinal plants used for the ethnomedicinal treatment of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, asthma, lung diseases, and fatigue. Many plant species of this genus have also received scientific validation of their pharmacological activities including neuroprotective, immunomodulatory, anticancer, antihypertensive, antidyslipidemic, analgesic, antipyretic, diuretic, anti-inflammatory, anthelmintic, and antioxidant. Viola is highly rich in different natural products some of which have been isolated and identified in the past few decades; these include flavonoids terpenoids and phenylpropanoids of different pharmacological activities. The pharmacokinetics and clinical studies on this genus are lacking, and the present review is aimed at summarizing the current understanding of the ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, nutritional composition, and pharmacological profile of medicinal plants from the Viola genus to reveal its therapeutic potentials, gaps, and subsequently open a new window for future pharmacological research.

The consumption of propolis and royal jelly in preventing upper respiratory tract infections and as dietary supplementation in children

Propolis and royal jelly (RJ), two important honeybee products, have been used commonly all over the world as traditional and ethnopharmacological nutrients since ancient times. Both of them have a lot of active ingredients which are known to be effective for several medical conditions. In this article, medical databases were searched for the usage of RJ and propolis in upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) and as a dietary supplementation, together and separately. 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic acid is the most prominent active compound showing antimicrobial effect within RJ. Caffeic acid phenethyl ester is the most famous one that shows antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory effect within propolis. When compared with propolis, RJ was found to have richer content for all three main nutrients; proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids. More clinical, experimental, and basic studies are needed to find out the best standardized mixture to cope with URTI in which RJ and propolis will be main ingredients in addition to the other secondary compounds that have health-beneficial effects.