A Systematic Review of Iran’s Medicinal Plants With Anticancer Effects

Increase in cases of various cancers has encouraged the researchers to discover novel, more effective drugs from plant sources. This study is a review of medicinal plants in Iran with already investigated anticancer effects on various cell lines. Thirty-six medicinal plants alongside their products with anticancer effects as well as the most important plant compounds responsible for the plants’ anticancer effect were introduced. Phenolic and alkaloid compounds were demonstrated to have anticancer effects on various cancers in most studies. The plants and their active compounds exerted anticancer effects by removing free radicals and antioxidant effects, cell cycle arrest, induction of apoptosis, and inhibition of angiogenesis. The investigated plants in Iran contain the compounds that are able to contribute effectively to fighting cancer cells. Therefore, the extract and active compounds of the medicinal plants introduced in this review article could open a way to conduct clinical trials on cancer and greatly help researchers and pharmacists develop new anticancer drugs. © 2015, © The Author(s) 2015

The role of medicinal plants in the treatment of diabetes: a systematic review.

INTRODUCTION Diabetes is a serious metabolic disorder and plenty of medical plants are used in traditional medicines to treat diabetes. These plants have no side effects and many existing medicines are derived from the plants. The purpose of this systematic review is to study diabetes and to summarize the available treatments for this disease, focusing especially on herbal medicine. METHODS Required papers about diabetes and effective plants were searched from the databases, including Science direct, PubMed, Wiley, Scopus, and Springer. Keywords in this study are "medicinal plants", "diabetes", "symptom", "herbal", and "treatment". Out of the 490 collected articles (published in the period between 1995 and 2015), 450 were excluded due to non-relevance or lack of access to the original article. RESULTS Diabetes is mainly due to oxidative stress and an increase in reactive oxygen species that can have major effects. Many plants contain different natural antioxidants, in particular tannins, flavonoids, C and E vitamins that have the ability to maintain β-cells performance and decrease glucose levels in the blood. CONCLUSION According to published results, it can be said that medical plants are more affordable and have less side effects compared synthetic drugs, and are more effective in treatment of diabetes mellitus

A review on medicinal plant of Apium graveolens

Background and aims: Medicinal plants are used in traditional medicine to treat many diseases. Celery (Apium graveolens) is a native medicinal plant to Europe. This plant has a very wide range of usage and cultivation. The wild type was found in countries such as Algeria, the Caucasus, Iran, India and America. However, due to increasing value and the special place of the plant in the new pharmaceutical industry, it is necessary to recognize the potential in the field of manufacturing and processing. This article presents morphological characteristics, vegetation compounds and evaluation of the therapeutic properties of this valuable medicinal plant. Methods: The information of this review article have been gathered from accessible journals in databases such as Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Embase, SID and Iran Medex. The search terms wer

Phytochemistry, pharmacology, and therapeutic uses of black seed (Nigella sativa)

Black seed (Nigella sativa) is an annual flowering plant from Ranunculaceae family, native to southwest Asia. This plant has many food and medicinal uses. The use of its seeds and oil is common for treatment of many diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, inflammatory diseases, diabetes and digestive diseases. The purpose of this study was to provide a comprehensive review on the scientific reports that have been published about N. sativa. The facts and statistics presented in this review article were gathered from the journals accessible in creditable databases such as Science Direct, Medline, PubMed, Scopus, EBSCO, EMBASE, SID and IranMedex. The keywords searched in Persian and English books on medicinal plants and traditional medicine, as well as the above reputable databases were “Black seed”, ”Nigella sativa“, “therapeutic effect”, and “medicinal plant”. The results showed that N. sativa has many biological effects such as anti-inflammatory, anti-hyperlipidemic, anti-microbial, anti-cancer, anti-oxidant, anti-diabetic, anti-hypertensive, and wound healing activities. It also has effects on reproductive, digestive, immune and central nervous systems, such as anticonvulsant and analgesic activities. In summary, it can be used as a valuable plant for production of new drugs for treatment of many diseases

The effect of hydro-alcoholic extract of celery on male rats in fertility control and sex ratio of rat offspring

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Celery (Apium graveolens), in traditional medicine is known as appetite and libido stimulant, and also there has been referred to its effect on miscarriage and catamenia. This plant with known plant compounds could be an option for fertility control. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of hydro-alcoholic extract of celery on male rats in fertility control and sex ratio of rat offspring. METHODS: In this experimental study, 20 male rats were divided randomly into 4 groups, 5 in each group. Control group received no treatment; Sham group received 1 ml normal saline and the treatment groups 1 and 2 received hydro-alcoholic extract of celery in doses of 100 and 200 mg/Kg/BW respectively for 5 weeks. After mating each male rat with two female rats, the number of delivered mice and the number of offspring and their sex were recorded and compared 30 days after the birth. FINDINGS: There was no significance difference between the experimental and control group (p>0.05). The result showed a significant decrease in the number of offspring in doses of 100 and 200 mg/kg (4.25±0.25 and 4.50±0.32 respectively) compared to the control group (7.11±0.26), also a significant increase in the sex ratio in dose of 100 mg/kg (2.93±0.30) compared to the control group (0.98±0.11) was observed (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: It seems that consumption of celery in male decreases the number of offspring and increases the male genesis; because it does not affect on childbirth. It may be useful safely in pregnancy controlling. © 2014, Babol University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved

The effect of Halcoholic extract of celery leaves on the delivery rate (fertilization and stillbirths), the number, weight and sex ratio of rat off spring

Objectives: Infertility is one of the most common health problems in the world. Different plants are used in traditional medicine to treat infertility. Celery is rich in flavonoids and vitamins E and C. The present study investigated the effect of hydroalcoholic extract of celery leaves on the delivery rate, number, weight and sex ratio of rat offspring. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, 45 Wistar rats were randomly divided into three groups of fifteen (five male and 10 female rats per group). The control group received 1 ml of distilled water, and experimental groups received respectively doses of 100 and 200 mg/kg/BW celery extract for five weeks by gavage. During the fifth week each male rat was mated with two female rats from the same group in a separate cage. After a week, every female rat was kept in the separate cages. Females received celery extract during pregnancy and until childbirth. Finally, the number of the delivery females, number, weight and sex ratio of offspring were recorded. The data were analyzed by one-way ANOVA test using SPSS15 software. Results: The number of the delivery rats in the experimental groups was not significantly different than the control group (P>0.05). The number of newborns was significantly increased in each experimental group compared to the control group (P0.05). Conclusions: Celery improved fertility due to have flavonoid and antioxidant activity, and its consumption in both sexes can be useful in the treatment of infertility. © 2014 AENSI Publisher All rights reserved

Effective Medicinal Plant in Cancer Treatment, Part 2.

Cancer is the second cause of death after cardiovascular diseases. With due attention to rapid progress in the phytochemical study of plants, they are becoming popular because of their anticancer effects. The aim of this study was to investigate the effective medicinal plants in the treatment of cancer and study their mechanism of action. In order to gather information the keywords "traditional medicine," "plant compounds," "medicinal plant," "medicinal herb," "toxicity," "anticancer effect," "cell line," and "treatment" were searched in international databases such as ScienceDirect, PubMed, and Scopus and national databases such as Magiran, Sid, and Iranmedex, and a total of 228 articles were collected. In this phase, 49 nonrelevant articles were excluded. Enhancement P53 protein expression, reducing the expression of proteins P27, P21, NFκB expression and induction of apoptosis, inhibition of the PI3K/Akt pathway, and reduction of the level of acid phosphatase and lipid peroxidation are the most effective mechanisms of herbal plants that can inhibit cell cycle and proliferation. Common treatments such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy can cause some complications. According to results of this study, herbal extracts have antioxidant compounds that can induce apoptosis and inhibit cell proliferation by the investigated mechanisms

The effects of hydro-alcoholic extract of celery on lipid profile of rats fed a high fat diet

Background and Objectives: Decrease in serum lipids by dietary or pharmacological intervention prevents progression of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of hydro-alcoholic extract of celery (Apium graveolens) on lipid profile of rats fed a high fat diet. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, 24 Wistar rats were randomly allocated into four groups. The control group received saline with high-fat diet and treatment groups did hydroalcoholic extract at doses of 100 and 200 mg/kg/BW with high fat diet by gavage over a 30-day period. Afterwards, the serum levels of lipids (triglyceride, cholesterol, LDL, HDL, and VLDL) were determined. The data were analyzed by one-way ANOVA test using SPSS15 software. Results: Hydro-alcoholic extract of celery significantly decreased cholesterol and LDL in treatment groups compared with control group (P≤0.05); but had no significant effects in serum levels of triglyceride, HDL, and VLDL (P>0.05). Conclusions: Probably celery consumption due to the antioxidant properties leads to appropriate changes in serum lipid profiles and reduces them. Therefore it could be useful in the treatment of hyperlipidemia. © 2014 AENSI Publisher All rights reserved

The effects of celery leave extract on male hormones in rats

Introduction: Celery (Apium graveolens) belongs to the Umbelliferae family, and has a plenty of nutritional and pharmaceutical applications. The presence of phytoestrogenic compounds has been reported in this plant. These compounds may affect the pituitary-gonad axis. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of hydro-alcoholic extracts of celery leaves on serum levels of testosterone, LH and FSH in male rats. Methods: In this experimental study, 32 male Wistar rats were divided into four groups, eight rats included in each. The control group did not receive any treatment. The placebo group received distilled water and the case groups received 200 and 300 mg/kg/B.W of hydro-alcoholic celery leaf extract for 20 consecutive days by oral administration. After completion of the treatment, the rats were anesthetized and blood sampling from their heart was carried out. Then, serum levels of testosterone, LH and FSH were measured using immunoassay methods. The obtained data were analyzed by the SPSS using the statistical ANOVA test. Results: The level of LH in the case group receiving 200 mg/kg B.W of celery extract showed a significant decrease compared with the control and placebo groups (P&lt;0.05). The level of FSH and testosterone in case groups did not show any significant difference in comparison with the control group (P&gt;0.05). Conclusion: The result of the present study shows that in the administered dose, celery extract does not have any considerable side effect on the secretion of hormones in male rats.</p

Therapeutic and pharmacological potential of <em>Foeniculum vulgare</em> Mill: a review

Introduction: Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill) is one of the oldest spice plants which, due to its economic importance and significant pharmaceutical industry applications, is considered as one of the world&rsquo;s most important medicinal plants. The purpose of this study is to investigate and collect scientific reports such as morphological characteristics, phytochemical compounds and evaluation of the therapeutic properties of this valuable medicinal plant that have been published. Methods: In order to gather the information the keywords Fennel and Foeniculum vulgare mill, therapeutic, and pharmacology have been searched until January 1, 2015 from journals accessible in databases such as ScienceDirect, Scopus, EBSCO, Medline, PubMed, Embase, SID and Iran Medex. Results: The results showed that this plant has various pharmacological properties including antioxidant, anti-cancer activity, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, anti-bacterial and estrogenic effects which are probably due to the presence of aromatic compounds such as anethole, estragole and fenshon. Conclusion: Fennel possesses various pharmacological properties and the fennel bioactive molecules play an important role in human health, hence, it might be used for different drug productions.</p