his article gives an overview of the potential hazards of polyphenol consumption, as reported during the round-table discussion at the 1st International Conference on Polyphenols and Health, held in Vichy, France, November 2003. Adverse effects of polyphenols have been evaluated primarily in experimental studies.
The trade in traditional medicines in South Africa is estimated to be worth R2.9 billion per year, representing 5.6% of the National Health budget. With 27 million consumers, the trade is vibrant and widespread. There are at least 133 000 people employed in the trade, with a large percentage of rural women. The plant trade is a key rural industry and business incubator.
Sixty-seven crude ethanol extracts from 50 plants (31 families), which are used in North Cote-d’Ivoire as traditional remedies for bacte- ˆ rial diseases, were screened for in vitro activity against Gram negative (Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and Gram positive (Staphyloccocus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus pyogenes and Bacillus subtilis) bacteria.
Trichomes diversity from the study of foliar epidermal anatomy has been studied for 51 species belonging to 40 genera and 20 families. In the studied plant species, 10 different types of trichomes were observed for both glandular and eglandular types. Among these species, 38 are amphitrichomic while the remaining 13 are either epitrichomic or hypotrichomic.
The chemical constituents of some species of Euphorbia, which grow mostly in semi-desert areas in Iran and on the Alborz Mountains in the north of Tehran, have been found to include chemotaxonomically important myrsinane diterpenoids and cycloartane triterpenoids.
Fresh and dried Euphorbia heterophylla leaf was assessed for proximate composition and nutrient contents. Phytochemical screening was conducted using standard methods. Proximate analysis (total protein, fats, carbohydrate, ash and moisture contents) were carried out following methods of Association of Official analytical chemist.
The presence, yield and composition of secondary metabolites in plants, viz. the volatile components and those occurring in essential oils, can be affected in a number of ways, from their formation in the plant to their final isolation.
Euphobia heterophylla is a local medicinal plant used in ethnomedicine for the treatment of
constipation, bronchitis and asthma. The aqueous decoction and the methanolic extracts were
subjected to anti-inflammatory activity using experimental animal model, in the presence of the positive
In this review we describe and discuss several approaches to selecting higher plants as candidates for drug development with the greatest possibility of success. We emphasize the role of information derived from various systems of traditional medicine (ethnomedicine) and its utility for drug discovery purposes.