Cited by 285Medicinal Plants and NeuroprotectionAlzheimer's disease research and treatmentsGinkgo biloba and Cashew Applications

Medicinal plants and Alzheimer’s disease: From ethnobotany to phytotherapy

Open access
Perry, Elaine K, Pickering, Anne T, Wang, Wei Wei, Houghton, Peter J, Perry, Nicolette S L·1999·Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology

Abstract

The use of complementary medicines, such as plant extracts, in dementia therapy varies according to the different cultural traditions. In orthodox Western medicine, contrasting with that in China and the Far East for example, pharmacological properties of traditional cognitive- or memory-enhancing plants have not been widely investigated in the context of current models of Alzheimer's disease. An exception is Gingko biloba in which the gingkolides have antioxidant, neuroprotective and cholinergic activities relevant to Alzheimer's disease mechanisms. The therapeutic efficacy of Ginkgo extracts in Alzheimer's disease in placebo controlled clinical trials is reportedly similar to currently prescribed drugs such as tacrine or donepezil and, importantly, undesirable side effects of Gingko are minimal. Old European reference books, such as those on medicinal herbs, document a variety of other plants such as Salvia officinalis (sage) and Melissa officinalis (balm) with memory-improving properties, and cholinergic activities have recently been identified in extracts of these plants. Precedents for modern discovery of clinically relevant pharmacological activity in plants with long-established medicinal use include, for example, the interaction of alkaloid opioids in Papaver somniferum (opium poppy) with endogenous opiate receptors in the brain. With recent major advances in understanding the neurobiology of Alzheimer's disease, and as yet limited efficacy of so-called rationally designed therapies, it may be timely to re-explore historical archives for new directions in drug development. This article considers not only the value of an integrative traditional and modern scientific approach to developing new treatments for dementia, but also in the understanding of disease mechanisms. Long before the current biologically-based hypothesis of cholinergic derangement in Alzheimer' s disease emerged, plants now known to contain cholinergic antagonists were recorded for their amnesia- and dementia-inducing properties.

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Crossref · 10.1211/0022357991772808

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Authors
Perry, E. K., Pickering, A. T., Wang, W. W., Houghton, P. J., & Perry, N. S. L.
Affiliations
  • Medical Research Council (GB)
  • Newcastle University (GB)
  • King's College London (GB)
Corresponding author
Perry, Elaine K
Venue
Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology
Published
1999-05-01
Volume
51
Issue
5
Pages
527-534
ISSN
  • 0022-3573 (ISSN-L)
  • 2042-7158
OpenAlex
W1997343208
Cited by
285
References
45
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 14 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 12 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 15 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 8 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 17 · 2013: 12 · 2012: 10
FWCI
7.71
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Newcastle University ePrints (Newcastle Univesity)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Medicinal Plants and Neuroprotection
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Ginkgo biloba and Cashew Applications
Keywords
Alzheimer's disease, medicinal plants, ethnobotany, herbal medicine, Ginkgo biloba, cholinergic activity, Salvia officinalis, lemon balm, memory enhancement, traditional medicine, dementia, drug development, cholinergic hypothesis, neuroprotection, antioxidant activity
MeSH terms
Alzheimer Disease, China, Dementia, Humans, Medicine, Chinese Traditional, Phytotherapy, Plants, Medicinal, Saliva, Cholinergic Agents, Ethnobotany, Ginkgo biloba

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