Document Detail


Echinacea and trypanasomatid parasite interactions: growth-inhibitory and anti-inflammatory effects of Echinacea.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  20731557     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
CONTEXT/OBJECTIVE: Herbal preparations derived from various species and parts of Echinacea (Asteraceae) have been advocated for various medical applications, as a result of the many antimicrobial and immunomodulatory activities attributed to them.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: In order to investigate their effects on parasites, four preparations of Echinacea, with distinct chemical compositions, were evaluated for growth inhibition of three species of trypanosomatids: Leishmania donovani, Leishmania major, and Trypanosoma brucei. In addition one Echinacea preparation was tested for anti-inflammatory activity in cell culture models designed to measure pro-inflammatory cytokines induced by L. donovani.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: All Echinacea preparations inhibited growth of the organisms, though with different relative potencies, and in some cases morphological changes were observed. However, there was no obvious correlation with the composition of the marker compounds, alkylamides, caffeic acid derivatives, and polysaccharides. L. donovani stimulated the production of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and IL-8 in human bronchial epithelial cells and in human skin fibroblasts, but in both cases the standardized ethanol extract of E. purpurea (L.) Moench (Echinaforce) abolished the stimulation, indicating anti-inflammatory activity of this extract.
CONCLUSIONS: Thus various Echinacea extracts can inhibit the proliferation of these parasites and at least one can reverse the pro-inflammatory activity of Leishmania donovani.
Authors:
Judith Canlas; James B Hudson; Manju Sharma; Devki Nandan
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Publication Detail:
Type:  Comparative Study; Journal Article    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Pharmaceutical biology     Volume:  48     ISSN:  1744-5116     ISO Abbreviation:  Pharm Biol     Publication Date:  2010 Sep 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2010-08-24     Completed Date:  2011-01-13     Revised Date:  -    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  9812552     Medline TA:  Pharm Biol     Country:  England    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  1047-52     Citation Subset:  IM    
Affiliation:
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / chemistry,  pharmacology*
Antiprotozoal Agents / chemistry,  pharmacology*
Cell Line
Cell Proliferation / drug effects
Cells, Cultured
Cytokines / metabolism
Echinacea / chemistry*
Epithelial Cells / drug effects,  metabolism,  parasitology
Fibroblasts / drug effects,  metabolism,  parasitology
Humans
Leishmania donovani / drug effects*
Leishmania major / drug effects*
Leishmaniasis, Cutaneous / drug therapy,  metabolism
Nonprescription Drugs / chemistry,  pharmacology
Phytotherapy
Plant Extracts / chemistry,  pharmacology*
Skin / cytology
Trypanocidal Agents / chemistry,  pharmacology
Trypanosoma brucei brucei / drug effects*
Chemical
Reg. No./Substance:
0/Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal; 0/Antiprotozoal Agents; 0/Cytokines; 0/Nonprescription Drugs; 0/Plant Extracts; 0/Trypanocidal Agents

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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