Spinacia oleracea Linn Considered as One of the Most Perfect Foods: A Pharmacological and Phytochemical Review

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (20) ◽  
pp. 1666-1680 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosa Martha Perez Gutierrez ◽  
Elisa Gutierrez Velazquez ◽  
Silvia Patricia Paredes Carrera

Background: : Leaves of Spinacia oleracea have been widely used as vegetarian foods. Some studies on the chemical composition of spinach have shown that it contains a high content of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals), and has an important economic value with some agronomic advantages. S. oleracea in traditional medicine is reported to cure more than one health problem. Objective: : This review focuses on the ethnopharmacological uses and pharmacological and phytochemical studies of Spinacia oleracea. Method: : Information on S. oleracea was obtained via electronic search of scientific databases such as Scopus, PubMed, Google Scholar, Scirus, Science Direct, Scielo, Web of Science, Medline, Springerlink, BioMed Central (BMC), and SciFinder for publications on this plant. In addition, books on medicinal herbs were also consulted. Results: : Approximately 100 chemical compounds were isolated and characterized from S. oleracea. The major active components of the plant are flavones, flavanols, methylenedioxyflavonol glucuronides, glucuronides, and carotenoids, which were extensively investigated. This review revealed potential pharmacological properties of these isolated compounds such as anti-obesity, anti-α-amylase, bileacid binding capacity, anti-mutagenic, anti-oxidant, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, cognitive and mood effect, hypoglycemic, and anti-hypertriglyceridemia. Conclusions:: S. oleracea is an important edible plant also used for ethnomedical therapy of obesity, inflammation of lungs, lumbago, flatulence, and treatment of urinary calculi. Pharmacological and phytochemical studies of this plant including bioactives, which have been adequately studied, support its uses in traditional medicine. Additionally, prospects and future trends of this plant are proposed.

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (01) ◽  
pp. 35-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuenong Zhang ◽  
Wenwen Zhao ◽  
Ying Wang ◽  
Jinjian Lu ◽  
Xiuping Chen

Psoralea corylifolia Linn. (P. corylifolia) is an important medicinal plant with thousands of years of clinical application. It has been widely used in many traditional Chinese medicine formulas for the treatment of various diseases such as leucoderma and other skin diseases, cardiovascular diseases, nephritis, osteoporosis, and cancer. Phytochemical studies indicated that coumarins, flavonoids, and meroterpenes are the main components of P. corylifolia, and most of these components are present in the seeds or fruits. The extracts and active components of P. corylifolia demonstrated multiple biological activities, including estrogenic, antitumor, anti-oxidant, antimicrobial, antidepressant, anti-inflammatory, osteoblastic, and hepatoprotective activities. This paper systematically summarized literatures on the chemical constituents and biological activities of P. corylifolia, which provided useful information for the further research and development toward this potent medicinal plant.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 45
Author(s):  
Chrisye Yustitia Pelokang ◽  
Roni Koneri ◽  
Deidy Katili

Abstrak Tumbuhan obat merupakan tumbuhan yang menghasilkan satu atau lebih komponen aktif yang dipercaya oleh penduduk berkhasiat obat sehingga dimanfaatkan dalam pengobatan tradisional. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengidentifikasi dan mengkaji spesies tumbuhan yang digunakan sebagai obat tradisional oleh Etnis Sangihe di Kepulauan Sangihe bagian Selatan, Sulawesi Utara. Pengambilan data dilakukan melalui wawancara terstruktur  yang diajukan kepada pengobat tradisional. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan adanya 38 spesies dari 25 famili tumbuhan yang dimanfaatkan sebagai tumbuhan obat oleh Etnis Sangihe bagian Selatan. Herba merupakan habitus tumbuhan yang banyak dimanfaatkan untuk bahan pengobatan. Bagian tumbuhan yang paling banyak digunakan sebagai obat yaitu daun. Cara pengolahan yang paling banyak digunakan adalah direbus. Jenis penyakit yang dapat diobati dengan tumbuhan obat sebanyak 22 jenis penyakit. Kata kunci: tumbuhan obat, obat tradisional, habitus, Kepulauan Sangihe Bagian Selatan Abstract             Medicinal plants are plants that produce one or more active components that are believed by local people as medicinal plants for traditional medicine practices. This study aimed to identify and to assess the plant species that used as traditional medicine by the Sangihe Ethnic in the Southern Sangihe Islands, North Sulawesi. Data collection was conducted by structured interviews to the indigenous medical practitioners. The results showed that 38 plant species from 25 plant families were used as medicinal plants by the Southern Sangihe Ethnic people. Herbs were plant habitus that were widely used for medicinal ingredients. The leaves were widely used as medicinal plant materials. Boiling was the most processing method for preparing medicinal herbs. There were 22 types of diseases that could be treated using medicinal plants. Keywords: medicinal plants, traditional medicine, habitus, Southern Sangihe Islands


2020 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gordana Joksic ◽  
Djordje Radak ◽  
Emina Sudar-Milovanovic ◽  
Milan Obradovic ◽  
Jelena Radovanovic ◽  
...  

Background: Gentiana lutea (GL), commonly known as yellow gentian, bitter root, and bitterwort, belongs to family Gentianaceae. GL belongs to genus Gentiana, which is a rich natural source of iridoids, secoiridoids, xantones, flavonoids, triterpenoids, and carbohydrates. Medicinal plants from Gentiana species have anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-mitogenic, anti-proliferative, and lipid-lowering effects, as well as a cardioprotective, hypotensive, vasodilator and anti-platelet activities. Objective: We reviewed the recent literature related to the effects of Gentiana species, and their active components on vascular diseases. Methods: Data used for this review were obtained by searching the electronic database [PUBMED/MEDLINE 1973 - February 2020]. The primary data search terms of interest were: Gentiana lutea, Gentienacea family, phytochemistry, vascular diseases, treatment of vascular diseases, anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-atherogenic. Conclusion: Gentiana species and their constituents affect many different factors related to vascular disease development and progression. Therefore, Gentiana-based therapeutics represent potentially useful drugs for the management of vascular diseases.


Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 883
Author(s):  
Yuxuan Liang ◽  
Riming Huang ◽  
Yongchun Chen ◽  
Jing Zhong ◽  
Jie Deng ◽  
...  

Hemerocallis citrina Baroni (HC) is an edible plant in Asia, and it has been traditionally used for sleep-improvement. However, the bioactive components and mechanism of HC in sleep-improvement are still unclear. In this study, the sleep-improvement effect of HC hydroalcoholic extract was investigated based on a caffeine-induced insomnia model in Drosophila melanogaster (D. melanogaster), and the ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization quadrupole Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-Orbitrap-MS) and network pharmacology strategy were further combined to screen systematically the active constituents and mechanism of HC in sleep-improvement. The results suggested HC effectively regulated the number of nighttime activities and total sleep time of D. melanogaster in a dose-dependent manner and positively regulated the sleep bouts and sleep duration of D. melanogaster. The target screening suggested that quercetin, luteolin, kaempferol, caffeic acid, and nicotinic acid were the main bioactive components of HC in sleep-improvements. Moreover, the core targets (Akt1, Cat, Ple, and Sod) affected by HC were verified by the expression of the mRNA of D. melanogaster. In summary, this study showed that HC could effectively regulate the sleep of D. melanogaster and further clarifies the multi-component and multi-target features of HC in sleep-improvement, which provides a new insight for the research and utilization of HC.


2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Ryan Hilda Wandita ◽  
Sri Pujiyanto ◽  
Agung Suprihadi ◽  
Ratih Dewi Hastuti

Onions (Allium cepa L.) is one of the leading horticultural commodities in Indonesia and is often used as seasoning and traditional medicine. Onion has a high economic value and fluctuating prices so that domestic onion production needs to be improved, one of them with a presence of endophytic bacteria that act as plant growth promoting agent or Plant Growth Promoting Bacteria (PGPB). Endophytic bacteria isolated from the root, leaves, and bulbs. In this research has been tested endophytic bacteria of onion plants from Garut regency which has PGPB factors such as able to dissolve phosphate, and produce HCN. The results obtained 251 isolates of endophytic bacteria. Based on the characterization results, the superior isolates capable of dissolving phosphate with an average diameter of 0.45 cm is isolate II.B.1D.3, and 11 isolates capable of producing high HCN. These isolates can be used as PGPB agents so that they can be useful in increasing plant growth and onion production and biocontrol in suppressing pathogens. Keywords: PGPB, endophyte, onion, phosphate, HCN


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 177
Author(s):  
Peter Tshepiso Ndhlovu ◽  
Abiodun Olusola Omotayo ◽  
Wilfred Otang-Mbeng ◽  
Adeyemi Oladapo Aremu

Globally, the potential of medicinal plants is increasingly being recognized due to their relative availability, particularly in rural areas. This review explored the ethnobotanical and economic values of six selected medicinal plants widely used to treat and manage childhood diseases in South Africa. Acalypha glabrata, Aloe maculata, Datura stramonium, Gomphocarpus fruticosus, Rhoicissus tridentata and Vachellia karroo were selected based on their high relative frequency of citations for treating a wide range of diseases. Information was obtained from various scientific databases and ethnobotanical books. In addition to being popular for treating childhood diseases, the selected medicinal plants possess diverse applications in traditional medicine for other age groups, highlighting their general therapeutic values. This translates to extensive harvesting, trading and consumption of these plants in order to meet demands on local levels. Currently, empirical data on the economic value of the selected plants remain poorly reported. Even though South Africa has many laws to conserve and promote indigenous knowledge and medicinal plants, their commercialization remains low. Particularly the cultivation of the selected plants needs to be promoted under a participatory management action plan to stimulate the economy of the disadvantaged. A collaborative research framework for the inclusive transformation of indigenous medicinal plants is recommended to reveal their concealed beneficial properties.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (14) ◽  
pp. 01-06
Author(s):  
Joanna Jasińska

The different definitions of efficiency (in their medical meanings) are presented as the result of meta-reviews found in scientific databases. Efficacy and efficiency are often mismatched with effectiveness in the research of healthcare systems in different countries. In addition to the classic Bismarck’s and Beveridge’s models the modern concepts of health systems include personalized medicine, recognition of health as economic value. However, the basic problem in the Polish healthcare system is the low quality of overly specific and often changed legislation.


Author(s):  
Pei-Wen Sun ◽  
Yan-Hong Xu ◽  
Cui-Cui Yu ◽  
Fei-Fei Lv ◽  
Xiao-Lin Tang ◽  
...  

Abstract Agarwood is derived from wounded Aquilaria trees and is widely used in traditional medicine, incense, and perfume. Sesquiterpenes are one of the main active components in agarwood and are known to be induced by wounding or injury. The molecular mechanism by which wounding leads to sesquiterpene formation remains largely unknown. ASS1 is one of key enzymes responsible for the biosynthesis of sesquiterpenes and is a pivotal jasmonate (JA)-responsive wound-inducible synthase. However, why ASS1 does not express in healthy trees and how its expression is induced as a result of wounding remains unexplored. Here, we report that ASS1 is a wound-induced gene with a promoter in which the 242-bp (-973 to -731bp) region is identified as the core sequence for responding to wound signals. AsWRKY44 binds directly to this region and represses ASS1 promoter activity. Downregulation or disruption of AsWRKY44 can relieve the inhibition and activate ASS1 expression. Further, it is found that in response to the exogenous MeJA, AsWRKY44 is degraded and the expression of ASS1 is significantly upregulated. These findings confirm AsWRKY44 is a crucial negative regulator involved in the regulation of wound-induced ASS1 transcription, which reveals the core mechanism of agarwood sesquiterpenes biosynthesis.


1990 ◽  
Vol 45 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 739-748
Author(s):  
M. Beuttenmüller ◽  
C. Nespoulous ◽  
A. Radunz ◽  
G. H. Schmid

Abstract In the present paper we demonstrate that the conformational state of the Afunctional enzyme ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase is different in the tobacco mulanl Susu when compared to the wild type tobacco or spinach. The conformational state of the tobacco mu- tant enzyme is characterized by the presence of a higher number of antigenic determinants ac- cessible to antibody binding. This seems to be correlated to a higher oxygenase activity in the mutant. The Afunctional enzyme ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase of the wild type tobacco Nicotiana tabacum var. John William’s Broadleaf, of the tobacco mutant Su.su and of spinach (Spinacia oleracea) was characterized by comparative immunological methods. Although the enzyme of the tobacco mutant appears identical to the enzyme of the wild type, when analyzed in immunodiffusion tests and immuno electrophoretical analyses, it exhibits a higher oxygenase activity. On the other hand the spinach enzyme exhibits only par- tial serological identity to the two tobacco enzymes. For the comparative studies pure IgG-fractions were prepared from the respective antisera. RuBP-carboxylasc oxygenase was used as a 70% purified enzyme preparation. Determination of the antibody binding capacity showed that the enzymes bind from the homologous antisera the highest amount of antibodies, which means that the antisera reflect the complementary picture of the enzyme structure. The enzyme molecules of N. tabacum var. JWB and of spinach bind 9 antibody molecules each. I lowevcr, the binding capacity of the tobacco mutant enzyme exhibiting the higher oxygenase activity is 30% higher. Measurement of the oxygenase function under the influence of the homologous as well as of the non-homologous antisera has led to the result that the oxygenase activity of all enzymes is inhibited. However, it is the degree of inhibition which differs. The antiserum to the mutant enzyme causes with the spinach as well as with the JWB-enzyme a higher degree of inhibition than that produced by the homologous antiserum. Therefore, a correlation between inhibitory effect brought about by this antiserum and the amount of antibodies bound does not exist. Whereas the enzyme of the tobacco wild type binds 20% less antibodies out of this antiserum its oxygenase activity is 60% more inhibited and the function of the spinach enzyme is 20% stronger inhibited although binding of antibodies from the antiserum to the tobacco enzyme is 50% lower. These observations permit the conclusion that the antiserum towards the mutant enzyme contains more antibodies with a higher binding affinity towards reactive regions of the oxy- genase function. This in turn means that the structure of this enzyme or its conformation must be different in comparison to the wild type enzyme.


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