The Clinical Importance of Herb-Drug Interactions and Toxicological Risks of Plants and Herbal Products

Approximately 70% of the world’s population has been using medicinal herbs as a complementary or alternative medicine that has grown tremendously in both developed and developing countries over the past 20 years (World Health Organization Drugs Strategy 2002–2005). This increase in consumer demand for medicinal plants continues, although scientific data are rare to create safety and efficacy profiles. Its popularity is also related to easy availability, cost-effectiveness leading to better purchasing power, and various factors that perceive that they are generally safe. Herbs are often administered simultaneously with therapeutic drugs for the treatment of major ailments, and herb-drug interactions (HDIs) increase their potential. The main routes proposed for HDIs include cytochrome P450 (CYP450)-mediated inhibition or induction and transport and flow proteins. In our review, we highlighted herbal medicines used for the treatment of various diseases with pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic analysis and case reports together with their adverse effects and herb-drug interactions. Therefore, this review can be used as a quick reference database for physicians and healthcare professionals involved in therapy, aiming to maximize clinical outcomes by reducing the negative and toxic effects of plants along with avoiding herb-drug interactions

Antimicrobial Activity Of Three Scutellaria L. Species From Turkey

Plant-sourced antimicrobials are known for their therapeutic potency against multi-drug-resistant pathogens. The members of Scutellaria L. have been used to cure several diseases in East Asia, Europe, and North America. The genus Scutellaria belonging to Lamiaceae family is composed of around 360 species worldwide and 18 species in Turkey. In this study, 36 extracts prepared with different solvents from aerial parts and roots of S. salviifolia Benth., S. diffusa Benth. and S. pontica C. Koch were investigated for their antimicrobial activity against four bacteria (Escherichia soli ATCC 25922, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213) and three yeasts (Candida albicans ATCC 90028, C. krusei ATCC 6258, C. parapsilosis ATCC 90018) by using the broth microdilution method. Gentamicin, vancomycin and fluconazole were used as positive control. According to our results, all of the tested extracts showed stronger antimicrobial activity against yeasts than bacteria. The chloroform extract of S. salviifolia root showed the highest antifungal effect against C. krusei with 32 mu g/ml MIC value compared with all the tested extracts and the positive control fluconazole (64 mu g/ ml MIC value).WoSScopu