Chemical profile and in vivo hypoglycemic effects of Syzygium jambos, Costus speciosus and Tapeinochilos ananassae plant extracts used as diabetes adjuvants in Puerto Rico.

BACKGROUND: The increasing numbers of people who use plant-based remedies as alternative or complementary medicine call for the validation of less known herbal formulations used to treat their ailments. Since Puerto Rico has the highest rate of Type 2 diabetes within all the states and territories of the United States, and Puerto Ricans commonly use plants as diabetes adjuvants, it is important to study the plants' physiological effects, and identify their bioactive compounds to understand their role in modulation of blood glucose levels. We present the phytochemical profiles and hypoglycemic effects of Tapeinochilus ananassae, Costus speciosus and Syzygium jambos. METHODS: Phytochemicals in methanolic and aqueous extracts were analyzed by thin layer chromatography (TLC). Alkaloids (Bromocresol green, λ=470 nm), flavonoids (AlCl3, λ=415 nm), saponins (DNS, λ=760 nm), tannins (FeCl3/K4Fe(CN)6, λ=395 nm) and phenolics (Folin-Ciocalteau, λ=765 nm) were quantified. Male C57BLKS/J (db/db) and C57BL/J (ob/ob) genetically obese mice were orally gavaged with aqueous extracts of lyophilized plant decoctions for 10 wks. RESULTS: Our results show that T. ananassae had significantly greater amounts of flavonoids and tannins, while S. jambos showed the greatest concentration of phenolics and C. speciosus exhibited higher amounts of alkaloids. C57BLKS/J db/db treated with plant extracts show better glucose modulation when the extracts are administered in complement with an insulin injection. Finally, C57BL/J ob/ob mice on T. ananassae and S. jambos treatments show better blood glucose modulation over time. CONCLUSION: These results document for the first time the chemical profile of T. ananassae and provide evidence for a potential anti-diabetic efficacy of T. ananassae and S. jambos.

A screening for antimicrobial activities of Caribbean herbal remedies.

BACKGROUND: The TRAMIL program aims to understand, validate and expand health practices based on the use of medicinal plants in the Caribbean, which is a "biodiversity hotspot" due to high species endemism, intense development pressure and habitat loss. The antibacterial activity was examined for thirteen plant species from several genera that were identified as a result of TRAMIL ethnopharmacological surveys or were reported in ethnobotanical accounts from Puerto Rico. The aim of this study was to validate the traditional use of these plant species for the treatment of bacterial infections, such as conjunctivitis, fever, otitis media and furuncles. METHODS: An agar disc diffusion assay was used to examine five bacterial strains that are associated with the reported infections, including Staphylococcus saprophyticus (ATCC 15305), S. aureus (ATCC 6341), Escherichia coli (ATCC 4157), Haemophilus influenzae (ATCC 8142), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 7700) and Proteus vulgaris (ATCC 6896), as well as the fungus Candida albicans (ATCC 752). The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values were determined for each of the extracts that showed inhibitory activity. RESULTS: The decoctions of Pityrogramma calomelanos, Tapeinochilus ananassae, and Syzygium jambos, as well as the juice of Gossypium barbadense, showed > 20% growth inhibition against several bacteria relative to the positive control, which was the antibiotic Streptomycin. Extracts with the best antimicrobial activities were S. jambos that showed MIC = 31 µg/mL and MBC = 1.0 mg/mL against P. vulgaris and T. ananassae that showed MIC = 15 µg/mL against S. aureus. CONCLUSION: This report confirms the traditional use of P. calomelanos for the treatment of kidney infections that are associated with stones, as well as the antimicrobial and bactericidal effects of T. ananassae against P. vulgaris and S. saprophyticus and the effects of S. jambos against S. aureus and S. saprophyticus.

TRAMIL ethnopharmacological survey: knowledge distribution of medicinal plant use in the southeast region of Puerto Rico.

BACKGROUND: TRAMIL network aims to understand, validate and expand health practices based on the use of medicinal plants in the Caribbean, a "biodiversity hotspot" due to high species endemism, intense development pressure and habitat loss. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to document both the medicinal plants that are frequently used to treat health conditions prevalent in the southeastern region of the archipelago of Puerto Rico and the trends in their use among the study population. METHODS: An ethnopharmacological survey was conducted in the study region. The results were analyzed using univariate and multivariate statistical analyses. RESULTS: Overall, 118 medicinal plants were recorded as being used to treat depression, nervousness, chronic sinusitis, gastritis, gastroesophageal reflux disease, allergic rhinitis, rhinofaryngitis, asthma, arthritis and migraine. The plant species with significant use were Citrus aurantium L., Citrus aurantifolia (Christm.) Swingle, Pluchea carolinensis (Jacq.) G. Don in Sweet, and Mentha piperita L. The use of medicinal plants is more frequent among single women with a high educational level, a trend similar to the use of CAM in the US. CONCLUSION: Ethnopharmacological knowledge and the use of medicinal plants is decreasing in the study region due to an increase in the use of conventional medical care and to self-medication with over-the-counter pharmaceutical products. Four botanical species with significant uses that were not previously recorded in the Caribbean Herbal Pharmacopoeia have been identified. This report will be followed by the scientific validation and toxicity studies of these plant species and the TRADIF activities in the study region.