Common chicory is a somewhat woody, perennial herbaceous plant of the family Asteraceae, usually with bright blue flowers, rarely white or pink. Native to the Old World, it has been introduced to North America and Australia. Many varieties are cultivated for salad leaves, chicons, or roots, which are baked, ground, and used as a coffee substitute and food additive. In the 21st century, inulin, an extract from chicory root, has been used in food manufacturing as a sweetener and source of dietary fiber.
Lactucarium is the milky fluid secreted by several species of lettuce, especially Lactuca virosa, usually from the base of the stems. It is known as lettuce opium because of its sedative and analgesic properties. It has also been reported to promote a mild sensation of euphoria. Because it is a latex, lactucarium physically resembles opium, in that it is excreted as a white fluid and can be reduced to a thick smokable solid.
Sesquiterpene lactones (SLs) are a class of sesquiterpenoids that contain a lactone ring. They are most often found in plants of the family Asteraceae. Other plant families with SLs are Umbelliferae and Magnoliaceae (magnolias). A collection of colorless, lipophilic solids, SLs are a rich source of drugs. They can be allergenic and toxic in grazing livestock causing severe neurological problems in horses. Some are also found in corals such as Maasella edwardsi.
Lactuca virosa is a plant in the Lactuca (lettuce) genus, often ingested for its mild analgesic and sedative effects. It is related to common lettuce, and is often called wild lettuce, bitter lettuce, laitue vireuse, opium lettuce, poisonous lettuce, tall lettuce, great lettuce or rakutu-karyumu-so.
Saussurea is a genus of about 300 species of flowering plants in the tribe Cardueae within the family Asteraceae, native to cool temperate and arctic regions of East Asia, Europe, and North America, with the highest diversity in alpine habitats in the Himalayas and East Asia. Common names include saw-wort and snow lotus, the latter used for a number of high altitude species in East Asia.
Lactucin is a bitter substance that forms a white crystalline solid and belongs to the group of sesquiterpene lactones. It is found in some varieties of lettuce and is an ingredient of lactucarium. It has been shown to have analgesic and sedative properties. It has also shown some antimalarial effects. It is also found in dandelion coffee.
Sceletium tortuosum is a succulent plant commonly found in South Africa, which is also known as Kanna, Channa, Kougoed —which literally means, 'chew(able) things' or 'something to chew'.
Helenalin, or (-)-4-Hydroxy-4a,8-dimethyl-3,3a,4a,7a,8,9,9a-octahydroazuleno[6,5-b]furan-2,5-dione, is a toxic sesquiterpene lactone which can be found in several plants such as Arnica montana and Arnica chamissonis subsp. foliosa. Helenalin is responsible for the toxicity of the Arnica spp. Although toxic, helenalin possesses some in vitro anti-inflammatory and anti-neoplastic effects. Helenalin can inhibit certain enzymes, such as 5-lipoxygenase and leukotriene C4 synthase. For this reason the compound or its derivatives may have potential medical applications.
Bulbocapnine is an alkaloid found in Corydalis and Dicentra, genera of the plant family Fumariaceae which have caused the fatal poisoning of sheep and cattle. It has been shown to act as an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, and inhibits biosynthesis of dopamine via inhibition of the enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase. Like apomorphine, it is reported to be an inhibitor of amyloid beta protein (Aβ) fiber formation, whose presence is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Bulbocapnine is thus a potential therapeutic under the amyloid hypothesis. According to the Dorlands Medical Dictionary, it "inhibits the reflex and motor activities of striated muscle. It has been used in the treatment of muscular tremors and vestibular nystagmus".
Mesembrine is an alkaloid present in Sceletium tortuosum (kanna). It has been shown to act as a serotonin reuptake inhibitor (Ki = 1.4 nM), and more recently, has also been found to behave as a weak inhibitor of the enzyme phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) (Ki = 7,800 nM). Still more recently, in an in vitro study published in 2015, scientist concluded that "a high-mesembrine Sceletium extract exerts its anti-depressant effect by acting primarily as monoamine releasing agent, rather than as selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitor." As such, mesembrine likely plays a dominant role in the antidepressant effects of kanna. The levorotatory isomer, (−)-mesembrine, is the natural form.
Kaempferia galanga, commonly known as kencur, aromatic ginger, sand ginger, cutcherry, is a monocotyledonous plant in the ginger family, and one of four plants called galangal. It is found primarily in open areas in Indonesia, southern China, Taiwan, Cambodia, and India, but is also widely cultivated throughout Southeast Asia.
Galangin is a flavonol, a type of flavonoid.
Cissus quadrangularis is a perennial plant of the grape family. It is commonly known as Pirandai (Tamil),veldt grape, devil's backbone, adamant creeper, asthisamharaka, or asthisamhara and hadjod. The species is native to tropical Asia, Arabia, and much of Africa.
Coronaridine, also known as 18-carbomethoxyibogamine, is an alkaloid found in Tabernanthe iboga and related species, including Tabernaemontana divaricata for which it was named.
Artemisia herba-alba, the white wormwood, is a perennial shrub in the genus Artemisia that grows commonly on the dry steppes of the Mediterranean regions in Northern Africa, Western Asia and Southwestern Europe. It is used as an antiseptic and antispasmodic in herbal medicine.
Elephantopus scaber is a tropical species of flowering plant in the sunflower family. It is native to tropical Africa, Eastern Asia, Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, and northern Australia. It has become naturalized in tropical Africa and Latin America. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.
Paeonol is a phenolic compound found in peonies such as Paeonia suffruticosa, in Arisaema erubescens, and in Dioscorea japonica. It is a chemical compound found in some traditional Chinese medicines.
Corydaline is an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor isolated from Corydalis yanhusuo.
Corydalis yanhusuo is a plant species in the genus Corydalis. The Chinese name for Corydalis yanhusuo is yan hu suo. The Japanese common name is engosaku (エンゴサク) and the Korean common name is hyeonhosaek (현호색). English common names include yanhusuo, corydalis, and Asian corydalis. The tuber of this plant, frequently mislabeled as the root, is an important therapeutic agent in traditional Chinese medicine. It is native to high-altitude grasslands across China including in the provinces of Anhui, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang, but is more widely cultivated.
Arglabin is a sesquiterpene lactone belonging to the guaianolide subclass bearing a 5,7,5-tricyclic ring system which is known to inhibit farnesyl transferase. It is characterized by an epoxide on the cycloheptane as well as an exocyclic methylene group that is conjugated with the carbonyl of the lactone. Arglabin is extracted from Artemisia glabella, a species of wormwood, found in the Karaganda Region of Kazakhstan. Arglabin and its derivatives are biologically active and demonstrate promising antitumor activity and cytoxocity against varying tumor cell lines.
