Skip to main content

The Immunomodulatory Activity of Some Maltese Medicinal Plants: Tradition, Science and Future Prospects | Chapter 5 | Trends in Pharmaceutical Research and Development Vol. 1

Aims: To review previous studies conducted on some Maltese medicinal plants for their immunomodulatory effects on lymphocytes. Methodology: Human peripheral lymphocytes were obtained from the whole blood of human healthy volunteers. Several extracts were obtained from Olea europea L., Ephedra fragilis Desf., Aster squamatus (Sprengel) Hieron., Glebionis coronaria (L.) Tzvelev, Calendula arvensis L., Carlina involucrata Poir., Dittrichia viscosa (L.) Greuter, Galactites tomentosa Moench, Inula crithmoides L., Leontodon tuberosus L., Reichardia picroides (L.) Roth, Sonchus oleraceus L. and Ecballium elaterium (L.) A. Rich. These extracts, pure metabolites and phytohaemagglutinin were tested on both resting and stimulated lymphocytes. The blastogenic transformation was monitored by morphological observations and biochemical tests using the WST-1 tetrazolium reagent and the LDH cytotoxicity assay. Results: This current study collates all previous studies. Most of the extracts tested exhibited lymphocyte activation, with the blastogenic transformation. Some extracts exhibited comparable activity to that of PHA. Metabolites showing such effects include oleuropein, ephedrine, cucurbitacin E and flavonoids. Extensive research on cucurbitacin E reveals that, in lymphocyte-cancer cell cocultures, this metabolite induces lymphocyte activation, which in turn provokes cytotoxic effect on cancer cells. Conclusion: The effects of extracts on the lymphocytes was exhibited by several extracts. In the case of oleuropein, ephedrine and cucurbitacin E, the relationship between structure and function can be deduced. However, the extracts from the Asteraceae family contained flavonoids, but no further chemical characterization was carried out. This review recommends further chemical characterization of the extracts and in depth analysis of the mechanisms for lymphocyte activation by plant metabolites. On the other hand, this study shows the potential use of these extracts to boost the immune system, alongside chemotherapeutic agents.

Author(s) Details

Ms. Tamara Attard
Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, University of Malta, Msida, MSD 2080, Malta.

Prof. Everaldo Attard
Division of Rural Sciences and Food Systems, Institute of Earth Systems, University of Malta, Msida, MSD 2080, Malta.
View Book: - http://bp.bookpi.org/index.php/bpi/catalog/book/156

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Greening Regional Airports: A Vision for Carbon Neutral Infrastructure | Chapter 12 | Contemporary Perspective on Science, Technology and Research Vol. 3

 This study provides an overview of the energy demand of a regional airport, divided into individual time horizons. The electrification of aircraft systems raises the question of whether airports will be among the largest electricity consumers in our infrastructure in the future. Sustainability and especially emission reductions are significant challenges for airports that are currently being addressed. The Clean Sky 2 project GENESIS addresses the environmental sustainability of hybrid-electric 50-passenger aircraft systems in a life cycle perspective to support the development of a technology roadmap for the transition to sustainable and competitive electric aircraft systems. This article originates from the GENESIS research and describes various options for ground power supply at a regional airport. Potential solutions for airport infrastructure with a short (2030), medium (2040), and long (2050) time horizon are proposed. In addition to the environmental and conservation benefi...
Post a Comment
Read more

There is No Standard Model of ZFC and ZFC2 | Chapter 03 | Advances in Mathematics and Computer Science Vol. 1

In this Chapter we obtain a contradictions in formal set theories under assumption that these theories have omega-models or nonstandard model with standard part. An possible generalization of Lob’s theorem is considered. Main results are: (i) ¬Con(ZF C+ ∃ M ZFC st ), (ii) ¬Con(N F+ ∃ M NF st ), (iii) ¬Con(ZF C 2 ), (iv) let k be an inaccessible cardinal then ¬Con(ZF C+ ∃ κ), (v) ¬Con(ZF C+ (V=L)), (vi) ¬Con(ZF+ (V=L)). Author   Details: Jaykov Foukzon Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel Men'kova Elena Romanovna All-Russian Research Institute for Optical and Physical Measurements, Moscow, Russia Read full article: http://bp.bookpi.org/index.php/bpi/catalog/view/46/221/408-1 View Volume: https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/amacs/v1
Post a Comment
Read more

Study on Processing Method Influences the Effect of Cassava (Manihot esculenta) Consumption on Blood Lipid Profile in Rats | Chapter 8 | Current Research and Development in Chemistry Vol.1

Cassava is consumed in many tropical countries and is fast becoming the major raw material of many diets, especially in the bakery, brewery and pharmaceutical industries. In a study to determine the effects of various formulations of Cassava feeds on blood lipid profile in rats. Forty adult Wistar rats weighing between 120 and 150 g were divided into 4 groups of 10 rats each. The rats were acclimatized for one week; fed with different formulations of Cassava feeds adlibitum, after which the rats were allotted into groups. Group 1 was fed on Garri; group 2 on Cassava flour; group 3 on Tapioca, and the control group (group 4) on normal chow. After 4 weeks, each animal was anaesthetized by exposure to chloroform vapour and blood samples collected by cardiac puncture. Group 1 diet (Garri) significantly increased HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C) concentration and significantly decreased LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C) concentration (p<0.05) compared with the control group. In Group 2 (Cassava flour), t...
Post a Comment
Read more