A brief review of potential neuroprotective roles of the culinary herb Ocimum basilicum
Neurodegenerative diseases commonly affect elderly population and are characterised by progressive neuronal loss. Oxidative stress is highly associated with neurodegeneration. The targeted herbal plant in this review, Ocimum basilicum (O. basilicum), is typically used in Indochina and Italian...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Pusat Perubatan Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
2018
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| Online Access: | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/20603/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/20603/1/2_ms0235_pdf_19591.pdf |
| Summary: | Neurodegenerative diseases commonly affect elderly population and are
characterised by progressive neuronal loss. Oxidative stress is highly associated with
neurodegeneration. The targeted herbal plant in this review, Ocimum basilicum
(O. basilicum), is typically used in Indochina and Italian cuisine. Pharmacological
studies on O. basilicum have demonstrated potent antioxidant activities with
some reports of neuroprotective actions. This brief review highlights the potential
neuroprotective roles of O. basilicum by discussing previously documented
antioxidative actions of the plant extract, essential oils and its phytochemical
compounds on the nervous system based on in vitro and in vivo studies.
Accumulating evidence on the neuroprotective action of O. basilicum points to a
notion that neuroprotection is made possible by way of its antioxidant properties
and largely due to the presence of polyphenol compounds such as rosmarinic acid
which has been identified as the major constituent. Although the mechanisms of
O. basilicum antioxidant action have been proposed, further studies are required
for better understanding of its antioxidant action leading to neuroprotective roles.
It is also possible that the antioxidant actions of O. basilicum are mediated through
synergism of a mixture of various naturally-occurring bioactive compounds in
the plant, as is with many other plant-based food supplements, to produce the
putative effects instead of a single bioactive compound from the plant. Therefore,
specific targeting of neuroprotection by means of antioxidant actions warrants
further preclinical and clinical studies investigating the therapeutic potentials of O.
basilicum particularly in view of the prevention of neurodegenerative processes. |
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