scholarly journals A Narrative Review of Libidibia ferrea: Botanical Aspects, Ethnopharmacological Properties, Phytochemical Characteristics, Toxicity, and Experimental Tests

Author(s):  
Nayanne C. O. da S. Almeida ◽  
Silvania da C. Furtado ◽  
José F. M. Barcellos

Introduction: Jucá or pau-ferro (Libidibia ferrea) is an arboreal plant from the Fabaceae family. It is commonly used in traditional medicine in the treatment of various diseases, including inflammatory process. Aims: The objective of this narrative review is to present botanical aspects, ethnopharmacological properties, phytochemical characteristics, toxicity highlighting, and experimental models with L. ferrea. Results: Botanical Aspects: Jucá has several uses such as in landscaping (stem and canopy), in arborization of urban areas. Ethnopharmacological Properties: It is used in the treatment of various diseases such as diabetes, flu, asthma and, inflammatory processes of which different parts are used (root, stem bark, leaves, fruits, seeds). Phytochemical Characteristics: Phenolic compounds, fatty acids, and terpenoids are among the compounds monthly used. Toxicity: In vivo models have been used to verify toxicity and in most studies the plant presented no toxicity in its use. Experimental studies: Animals, such as mice, dogs, rats, etc. and different models of studies to analyze the action of the plant were used. Conclusions: Such low toxicity, associated with its widespread use in folk medicine and its various effects demonstrated in the studies included in this Review have corroborated for the continuity of the research with L. ferrea. New studies, however, ought to follow methodological guidelines, such as the Animal Research: reporting in vivo Experiments (ARRIVE) so that, a methodological design secures more homogeneous studies capable of quantifying the actual size of the effect in the plant may have in clinical studies.  

Biomolecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 160
Author(s):  
Oliwia Koszła ◽  
Katarzyna M. Targowska-Duda ◽  
Ewa Kędzierska ◽  
Agnieszka A. Kaczor

Schizophrenia (SZ) is a complex psychiatric disorder characterized by positive, negative, and cognitive symptoms, and is not satisfactorily treated by current antipsychotics. Progress in understanding the basic pathomechanism of the disease has been hampered by the lack of appropriate models. In order to develop modern drugs against SZ, efficient methods to study them in in vitro and in vivo models of this disease are required. In this review a short presentation of current hypotheses and concepts of SZ is followed by a description of current progress in the field of SZ experimental models. A critical discussion of advantages and limitations of in vitro models and pharmacological, genetic, and neurodevelopmental in vivo models for positive, negative, and cognitive symptoms of the disease is provided. In particular, this review concerns the important issue of how cellular and animal systems can help to meet the challenges of modeling the disease, which fully manifests only in humans, as experimental studies of SZ in humans are limited. Next, it is emphasized that novel clinical candidates should be evaluated in animal models for treatment-resistant SZ. In conclusion, the plurality of available in vitro and in vivo models is a consequence of the complex nature of SZ, and there are extensive possibilities for their integration. Future development of more efficient antipsychotics reflecting the pleiotropy of symptoms in SZ requires the incorporation of various models into one uniting model of the multifactorial disorder and use of this model for the evaluation of new drugs.


Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 460
Author(s):  
Beatriz Medeiros-Fonseca ◽  
Antonio Cubilla ◽  
Haissa Brito ◽  
Tânia Martins ◽  
Rui Medeiros ◽  
...  

Penile cancer is an uncommon malignancy that occurs most frequently in developing countries. Two pathways for penile carcinogenesis are currently recognized: one driven by human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and another HPV-independent route, associated with chronic inflammation. Progress on the clinical management of this disease has been slow, partly due to the lack of preclinical models for translational research. However, exciting recent developments are changing this landscape, with new in vitro and in vivo models becoming available. These include mouse models for HPV+ and HPV− penile cancer and multiple cell lines representing HPV− lesions. The present review addresses these new advances, summarizing available models, comparing their characteristics and potential uses and discussing areas that require further improvement. Recent breakthroughs achieved using these models are also discussed, particularly those developments pertaining to HPV-driven cancer. Two key aspects that still require improvement are the establishment of cell lines that can represent HPV+ penile carcinomas and the development of mouse models to study metastatic disease. Overall, the growing array of in vitro and in vivo models for penile cancer provides new and useful tools for researchers in the field and is expected to accelerate pre-clinical research on this disease.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 247-251
Author(s):  
Z. Abdullahi ◽  
A. A. Jimoh ◽  
B. E. Patrick ◽  
M. I. Yakubu ◽  
D. Mallam

Different parts of Vitellaria paradoxa plant have many applications in ethno-medicine. Some of the uses of this plant include treatment of diarrhoea and other GIT disorders. In this study the antidiarrhoeal activity of the ethanol extract of Vitellaria paradoxa was evaluated using three experimental models: Castor oil-induced diarrhoea; small intestinal motility and intestinal fluid accumulation (enteropooling) models in mice. Five groups of five mice were used for each model. Group one mice received 10 ml/kg of distilled water, while groups 2, 3, and 4 received 125, 250 and 500 mg/kg of the extract orally respectively. Group 5 mice received Loperamide 5 mg/kg orally. Oral median lethal dose (LD50) of the extract was determined using OECD (2008) Guideline 425. Phytochemical studies were conducted using standard procedures. The LD50 was estimated to be greater than 5000 mg/kg body weight and there were no signs of mortality or visible signs of toxicity in all the mice treated. Phytochemical screening revealed the presence of carbohydrates, alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, tannins, triterpenes, steroids, cardiac glycosides and anthraquinones glycosides. Extract showed a dose-dependent anti-diarrhoeal activity by reducing stool frequency and consistency. The extract at the higher doses significantly (p < 0.05) inhibited GIT motility and castor oil-induced enteropooling, comparable to that of the reference control drug Loperamide. The study showed that ethanol stem bark extract of Vitellaria paradoxa possess anti-diarrhoeal activity and thus justifies its ethno-medicinal use in the treatment of diarrhoea.


Biomolecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 590 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliana Agostinho Lopes ◽  
Vinícius Peixoto Rodrigues ◽  
Marcelo Marucci Pereira Tangerina ◽  
Lucia Regina Machado da Rocha ◽  
Catarine Massucato Nishijima ◽  
...  

Machaerium hirtum (Vell.) Stellfeld (Fabaceae) known in Brazil as “jacaranda de espinho” or “espinheira santa nativa” is a medicinal plant commonly used in folk medicine to treat ulcers, cough and diarrhea. This study aimed to investigate the anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive effects of hydroalcoholic extracts from M. hirtum twig (HEMh) using in vivo experimental models of nociception through the involvement of transient receptor potential channels, acid-sensing ion channel (ASIC), nitrergic, opioidergic, glutamatergic, and supraspinal pathways. Our results revealed an antinociceptive effect of HEMh mediated by the opioidergic, l-arginine-nitric oxide and glutamate systems, as well as by interactions with TRPA1/ASIC channels. The anti-inflammatory effect of HEMh evaluated with a xylene-induced ear edema and by the involvement of arachidonic acid and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) showed involvement of the COX pathway, based on observed decreases in PGE2 levels. A phytochemical investigation of the HEMh led to the isolation of α-amyrin, β-amyrin, allantoin, apigenin-7-methoxy-6-C-β-d-glucopyranoside, and apigenin-6-C-β-d-glucopyranosyl-8-C-β-d-xylopyranoside. In conclusion, the acute oral administration of HEMh inhibits the nociceptive behavioral response in animals through the nitrergic, opioid, glutamatergic pathways, and by inhibition of the TRPA1 and ASIC channels, without causing locomotor dysfunction. In addition, its anti-inflammatory effect is associated with the COX pathway and decreased PGE2 levels.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (13) ◽  
pp. 4627
Author(s):  
Olivia Rastoin ◽  
Gilles Pagès ◽  
Maeva Dufies

Neovascular age-related macular degeneration (vAMD), characterized by the neo-vascularization of the retro-foveolar choroid, leads to blindness within few years. This disease depends on angiogenesis mediated by the vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF) and to inflammation. The only available treatments consist of monthly intravitreal injections of antibodies directed against VEGF or VEGF/VEGFB/PlGF decoy receptors. Despite their relative efficacy, these drugs only delay progression to blindness and 30% of the patients are insensitive to these treatments. Hence, new therapeutic strategies are urgently needed. Experimental models of vAMD are essential to screen different innovative therapeutics. The currently used in vitro and in vivo models in ophthalmic translational research and their relevance are discussed in this review.


Ulcers ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Buenor Adinortey ◽  
Charles Ansah ◽  
Isaac Galyuon ◽  
Alexander Nyarko

Peptic ulcer is among the most serious gastrointestinal diseases in the world. Several orthodox drugs are employed for the treatment of the disease. Although these drugs are effective, they produce many adverse effects thus limiting their use. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in alternative therapies, especially those from plants due to their perceived relative lower side effects, ease of accessibility, and affordability. Plant medicines with ethnomedicinal use in peptic ulcer management need to be screened for their effectiveness and possible isolation of lead compounds. This requires use of appropriate animal models of various ulcers. The limited number of antiulcer models for drug development against gastric and duodenal ulcer studies has hindered the progress of targeted therapy in this field. It is, therefore, necessary to review the literature on experimental models used to screen agents with potential antigastroduodenal ulcer activity and explain their biochemical basis in order to facilitate their use in the development of new preventive and curative antiulcer drugs. Clinical trials can then be carried out on agents/drugs that show promise. In this paper, current in vivo animal models of ulcers and the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying their induction, their limitations, as well as the challenges associated with their use have been discussed.


Author(s):  
Verônica Assalin Zorgetto-Pinheiro ◽  
Alexandre Meira de Vasconcelos ◽  
Rafael Sanaiotte Pinheiro ◽  
Danielle Bogo ◽  
Iandara Schettert Silva

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune and chronic pathological condition characterized by an inflammatory process of the joints It is a complex and multifactorial, involving genetic, epigenetic and environmental factors and the use of experimental models is required to better understand its pathology and for drug testing. The aim of this study was to perform a systematic literature review on experimental models in rheumatoid arthritis using IRAMUTEQ, a software that analysis, qualitatively and quantitatively, text fragments, as a methodological tool. After searching for articles published in the last five years on Scopus database and applying the exclusion criteria, we ended with 84 articles. The most commonly employed experimental models was the arthritis induction by inoculation of the Complete Freund's Adjuvant (CFA), followed by the use of combined methodologies and the collagen-induced arthritis (CIA). The analyses of abstracts by the IRAMUTEQ software provided a classification according to their textual elements in four classes, which were grouped into three main themes: in vivo models (class 1), clinical practice and traditional medicine (classes 2 and 3) and in vitro models (class 4) and it was also possible to build a similarity tree of the terms present in the abstracts and a word cloud with the most cited terms. Thus, the use of the IRAMUTEQ software as a methodological tool has been satisfactory, since it was possible to identify the main experimental models used, keywords, pathological processes and molecules involved in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis free of the researchers’ bias, in addition to being a tool for visual and intuitive results.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Masato ◽  
Nicoletta Plotegher ◽  
Andrea Thor ◽  
Stephen Adams ◽  
Michele Sandre ◽  
...  

Dopamine dyshomeostasis has been acknowledged to be among the determinants of nigrostriatal neuron degeneration in Parkinson's disease (PD). Several studies in experimental models and postmortem PD patients underlined increasing levels of the aldehydic dopamine metabolite 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (DOPAL), which is highly reactive towards proteins. DOPAL has been shown to covalently modify the presynaptic protein αSynuclein (αSyn), whose misfolding and aggregation represent a major trait of PD pathology, triggering αSyn oligomerization in dopaminergic neurons. Here, we demonstrated that DOPAL elicits αSyn neuronal accumulation and hampers αSyn clearance at synapses and the soma. By combining cellular and in vivo models, we provided evidence that DOPAL-induced αSyn buildup lessens neuronal resilience, compromises synaptic integrity, and overwhelms protein quality control pathways, specifically at neuronal projections. The resulting progressive decline of neuronal homeostasis leads to dopaminergic neuron loss and motor impairment, corroborating the αSyn-DOPAL interplay as an early event in PD neurodegeneration.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 8471-8491

Bioprospecting has contributed to the work of pharmaceutical chemists in the development and commercial disposal of new drugs. Currently, the pharmaceutical industry has emphasized drugs produced from bioactive compounds extracted from natural sources, based on popular medicine discussed in the literature, such as secondary metabolites isolated from the stem bark and seeds of the Amburana cearensis, rich in coumarin derivatives, flavonoids, and phenolic acids and is popularly used in the treatment of respiratory diseases and with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant bioactivity. This review is a study of the structure/activity and structure/property (SAR/SPA) relationship with the physicochemical properties calculated by the algorithms of the MarvinSketch software for the secondary metabolites of A. cearensis, as well as their correlation with in silico test values the SwissADME and admetSAR 2.0 servers and in vitro and in vivo models of the dataset from the PreADMET, GUSAR Online and PASS Online servers. The results showed that substances derived from coumarin, flavonoids, and phenolic acids have attributes of good permeability and low efflux, which favor their oral bioavailability, since phenolic heterosides, amburoside analogs, and biflavonoids are effective in local action as subcutaneous application, constituting promising antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant therapeutic actions in their proper administration routes.


Cancers ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 1677 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose J. G. Marin ◽  
Elisa Herraez ◽  
Elisa Lozano ◽  
Rocio I. R. Macias ◽  
Oscar Briz

The lack of response to pharmacological treatment constitutes a substantial limitation in the handling of patients with primary liver cancers (PLCs). The existence of active mechanisms of chemoresistance (MOCs) in hepatocellular carcinoma, cholangiocarcinoma, and hepatoblastoma hampers the usefulness of chemotherapy. A better understanding of MOCs is needed to develop strategies able to overcome drug refractoriness in PLCs. With this aim, several experimental models are commonly used. These include in vitro cell-free assays using subcellular systems; studies with primary cell cultures; cancer cell lines or heterologous expression systems; multicellular models, such as spheroids and organoids; and a variety of in vivo models in rodents, such as subcutaneous and orthotopic tumor xenografts or chemically or genetically induced liver carcinogenesis. Novel methods to perform programmed genomic edition and more efficient techniques to isolate circulating microvesicles offer new opportunities for establishing useful experimental tools for understanding the resistance to chemotherapy in PLCs. In the present review, using three criteria for information organization: (1) level of research; (2) type of MOC; and (3) type of PLC, we have summarized the advantages and limitations of the armamentarium available in the field of pharmacological investigation of PLC chemoresistance.


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