Indigenous Therapeutics of Alzheimer: A Review of Ayurvedic Herbs from its Ethnobotany to Phytotherapy

Ayurveda, often known as Ayurvedic medicine, is a customized system of the traditional system of medicine with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. This alternative medicine system has been used for more than 5,000 years in India, and it is grounded on a holistic view of treatment that stimulates and supports equilibrium in diverse facets of human life: the body, soul, and mind. A great variety of herbs and plants are used in Ayurveda for numerous advantages; however, the popular Ayurvedic medicinal plants and formulations that are used to delay the aging of the human brain and improve memory consist of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera), Turmeric (Curcuma longa), Brahmi (Bacopa monnieri), Shankhpushpi (Convolvulus pluricaulis, Evolvulus alsinoides, and other species), gotu kola (Centella asiatica), and guggulu (Commiphora mukul and correlated species) and a preparation identified as Brāhmī Ghṛita, containing Brahmi, Vacā (Acorus calamus), Kuṣṭha (Saussurea lappa), Shankhpushpi, and Purāṇa Ghṛita (old clarified butter/old ghee). One of the extremely common progressive neurodegenerative disorders is Alzheimer s disease (AD), which is characterized by profound memory loss ample enough to hinder social and occupational functioning. Globally, more than 20 million people are affected by this most common form of dementia. AD is characterized by a stealthy loss of memory, allied functional decline, and behavioral disturbances. With modern scientific methods, it is anticipated that this description can be further explored to disclose novel therapeutic pointers and push-start additional studies on the use of Ayurvedic medicine to prevent and treat AD. This paper reviews the clinical effects of a number of generally used types of herbal medicines to treat AD.

Evolvulus alsinoides (Linn.) Linn.: A Revitalizer

Herbal medicines are utilized as traditional and alternative therapy to precisely restore declining metabolic functions. Herbal bioactive claims its rewards for their effectiveness, safety, and acceptability. Evolvulus alsinoides (Linn.) Linn. is a Virya herb from Convolvulaceae with Tridoshhara, Majjadhatu Rasayan, Vajikarak, Chedan, and Nidrajanan properties. In Ayurvedic medicine, the whole plant is used in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases as brain tonic, amnesia and asthma, epilepsy and as a hepatoprotective. The phytochemical analysis has reported the existence of biomolecules such as β-sitosterol, scopolin, scopoletin, umbelliferon, triacontane, shankpushpine and betaine. A thorough review of classical as well as contemporary literature study has been done on Evolvulus alsinoides (Linn.) Linn. to validate the pharmacological actions and cytotoxicity effects on various cell lines.

Genome Characterization, Comparison and Phylogenetic Analysis of Complete Mitochondrial Genome of Evolvulus alsinoides Reveals Highly Rearranged Gene Order in Solanales

Mitogenome sequencing provides an understanding of the evolutionary mechanism of mitogenome formation, mechanisms driving plant gene order, genome structure, and migration sequences. Data on the mitochondrial genome for family Convolvulaceae members is lacking. E. alsinoides, also known as shankhpushpi, is an important medicinal plant under the family Convolvulaceae, widely used in the Ayurvedic system of medicine. We identified the mitogenome of E. alsinoides using the Illumina mate-pair sequencing platform, and annotated using bioinformatics approaches in the present study. The mitogenome of E. alsinoides was 344184 bp in length and comprised 46 unique coding genes, including 31 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 12 tRNA genes, and 3 rRNA genes. The secondary structure of tRNAs shows that all the tRNAs can be folded into canonical clover-leaf secondary structures, except three trnW, trnG, and trnC. Measurement of the skewness of the nucleotide composition showed that the AT and GC skew is positive, indicating higher A’s and G’s in the mitogenome of E. alsinoides. The Ka/Ks ratios of 11 protein-coding genes (atp1, ccmC, cob, cox1, rps19, rps12, nad3, nad9, atp9, rpl5, nad4L) were <1, indicating that these genes were under purifying selection. Synteny and gene order analysis were performed to identify homologous genes among the related species. Synteny blocks representing nine genes (nad9, nad2, ccmFc, nad1, nad4, nad5, matR, cox1, nad7) were observed in all the species of Solanales. Gene order comparison showed that a high level of gene rearrangement has occurred among all the species of Solanales. The mitogenome data obtained in the present study could be used as the Convolvulaceae family representative for future studies, as there is no complex taxonomic history associated with this plant.