The G115 standardized ginseng extract: an example for safety, efficacy, and quality of an herbal medicine.

Ginseng products on the market show high variability in their composition and overall quality. This becomes a challenge for both consumers and health-care professionals who are in search of high-quality, reliable ginseng products that have a proven safety and efficacy profile. The botanical extract standardization is of crucial importance in this context as it determines the reproducibility of the quality of the product that is essential for the evaluation of effectiveness and safety. This review focuses on the well-characterized and standardized ginseng extract, G115, which represents an excellent example of an herbal drug preparation with constant safety and efficacy within the herbal medicinal products. Over the many decades, extensive preclinical and clinical research has been conducted to evaluate the efficacy and safety of G115. In vitro and in vivo studies of G115 have shown pharmacological effects on physical performance, cognitive function, metabolism, and the immune system. Furthermore, a significant number of G115 clinical studies, most of them double-blind placebo-controlled, have reinforced the findings of preclinical evidence and proved the efficacy of this extract on blood glucose and lipid regulation, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, energy, physical performance, and immune and cognitive functions. Clinical trials and 50 years of presence on the market are proof of a good safety profile of G115.

Terms and nomenclature used for plant-derived components in nutrition and related research: efforts toward harmonization.

Many terms for plant-derived food components are commonly used in the literature, but there is a notable lack of standardization and definition of nomenclature. The use of terms is often field-specific, leading to misunderstanding and problems with literature searches and systematic reviews, and results in isolated and divided research; this impacts not only publication quality but also innovation, regulatory compliance, and enforcement. To begin to address this issue, this narrative review describes the current use and definition of terms. The terms are either chemical and/or origin-based, such as phytochemical (chemicals from plants), or function-based, such as phytonutrient, bioactive, or nutraceutical. The ultimate goal is to establish a common harmonized, evidence-based understanding for when to use each term, thereby providing clarity and a specific scientific basis for such nomenclature. Neither the quality nor the quantity of evidence needed to allow the use of functional terms such as phytonutrient or nutraceutical is specifically discussed here; rather, it is simply noted that evidence is needed to apply these terms. The next step would be to define the evidence necessary for a compound to have a functional descriptor. The aim in this article is to establish scientific criteria for definitions that could be applied to clearly define and differentiate commonly used terms and thus ensure their consistent application in the scientific literature.

Flowers from Kalanchoe pinnata are a rich source of T cell-suppressive flavonoids.

The chemical composition and immunosuppressive potential of the flowers from Kalanchoe pinnata (Crassulaceae) were investigated. We found that the aqueous flower extract was more active than the leaf extract in inhibiting murine T cell mitogenesis in vitro. Flavonoids isolated from the flower extract were identified and quantitated based on NMR and HPLC-DAD-MS analysis, respectively. Along with quercetin, four quercetin glycosyl conjugates were obtained, including quercetin 3-O-beta-D-glucuronopyranoside and quercetin 3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside, which are described for the first time in K. pinnata. All flavonoids inhibited murine T cell mitogenesis and IL-2 and IL-4 production without cell toxicity. This is the first report on the pharmacological activity of flowers of a Kalanchoe species, which are not used for curative purposes. Our findings show that K. pinnata flowers are a rich source of T-suppressive flavonoids that may be therapeutically useful against inflammatory diseases.

Rapid and efficient purification of naphthodianthrones from St. John's wort extract by using liquid-liquid extraction and SEC.

Hypericin and pseudohypericin, the main naphthodianthrones present in Hypericum species are among the most promising natural products, but the research concerning their biological activities is hindered by their low content in the plant. In this paper a method for the rapid isolation of hypericin and pseudohypericin from Hypericum perforatum hydro-alcoholic dried extracts has been developed. Briefly, the method consists of a partition of the extract between organic and aqueous layers and further purification of the richest extract in naphthodianthrones with Sephadex LH-20 column chromatography. A final separation of hypericin from pseudohypericin was achieved using Sephadex LH-60 column chromatography. All partitions were carried out in triplicate and monitored by LC-MS and NMR analyses. The best results were obtained by successive extraction with n-hexane, Et(2)O and EtOAc. A three-step fractionation resulted in 98% content in total naphthodianthrones. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report on the separation of hypericin from pseudohypericin using size exclusion chromatography.

Oral metabolism and efficacy of Kalanchoe pinnata flavonoids in a murine model of cutaneous leishmaniasis.

Leishmaniasis is a parasitic disease that threatens 350 million people worldwide. In a search for new antileishmanial drugs, the in vitro activity of flavonoids from Kalanchoe pinnata (Crassulaceae) was previously demonstrated in infected cells. In order to demonstrate the safety and oral activity of K. pinnata, flavonoids were evaluated in vivo in a murine model of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Daily oral doses of quercetin 3-O-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl (1-->2)-alpha-L-rhamnopyranoside, quercetin 3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranoside, and free quercetin (16 mg/kg body weight) all were able to control the lesion growth caused by Leishmania amazonensis and to significantly reduce parasite load. These flavonoids were as effective as the crude K. pinnata aqueous extract given at 320 mg/kg body weight. HPLC-DAD-MS analysis of the plasma of extract-treated mice suggested that quercetin and quercetin glucuronides are the main metabolites of K. pinnata quercetin glycosides. Our results indicate that K. pinnata quercetin glycosides are important active components of the aqueous extract and that they possess potent oral efficacy against cutaneous leishmaniasis.