Nitric oxide and its biomedical significance
AssigneeThe Research Foundation at State University of New York
InventorsGeorge Stefano, Wei Zhu, Kirk Mantione
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Abstract
The invention relates to nitric oxide (NO) stimulating extracts from various plants. Such extracts contain compounds known as healthin I and healthin II. Specifically, the invention provides partially purified plant extracts that have NO stimulating activity, methods of isolating and partially purifying such extracts from plant materials. In addition, the invention provides methods and materials for treating diseases and conditions that require modification of cellular levels of NO, for example, diseases and conditions involving inflammation.
Claims16
A pharmaceutical composition for stimulating nitric oxide production in mammalian cells, said composition comprising an effective amount of an water soluble extract of a plant selected from the group consisting of Allium vineale, salix alba, Agropyrum spp., Petroselinium crispum, Taraxacum officinale, Panax quinquefolium, Medicago spp., Piper methysticum, Anthemis spp., Tumera diffusa, Verbascum densiflorum, Ocimum spp., Maranta arundinaceae, Coriandrum sativum, Artemesia dracunculus, Lavendula augustifolia, Mentha pulegium, Centella asiatica, Ginko biloba and Vitis vinifera.
A method for the treatment of inflammation in a mammal comprising the steps of administering to a mammal an extract of a plant species selected from the group consisting of Allium vineale, salix alba, Agropyrum spp., Petroselinium crispum, Taraxacum officinale, Sesamum indicum, Medicago spp., Piper methysticum, Anthemis spp., Tumera diffusa, Verbascum densiflorum, Ocimum spp., Maranta arundinaceae, Coriandrum sativum, Artemesia dracunculus, Lavendula augustifolia, Mentha pulegium, Centella asiatica, Ginko biloba and Vitis vinifera in an amount effective to alleviate the inflammation.
A method for the treatment of bacterial infection in a mammal comprising the steps of administering to a mammal an extract of a plant species selected from the group consisting of Allium vineale, salix alba, Agropyrum spp., Petroselinium crispum, Taraxacum officinale, Sesamum indicum, Medicago spp., Piper methysticum, Anthemis spp., Tumera diffusa, Verbascum densiflorum, Ocimum spp., Maranta arundinaceae, Coriandrum sativum, Artemesia dracunculus, Lavendula augustifolia, Mentha pulegium, Centella asiatica, Ginko biloba and Vitis vinifera in an amount effective to inhibit the growth of said bacteria.
A method for the treatment of a viral infection in a mammal comprising the steps of administering to a mammal an extract of a plant species selected from the group consisting of Allium vineale, salix alba, Agropyrum spp., Petroselinium crispum, Taraxacum officinale, Sesamum indicum, Medicago spp., Piper methysticum, Anthemis spp., Turnera diffusa, Verbascum densiflorum, Ocimum spp., Maranta arundinaceae, Coriandrum sativum, Artemesia dracunculus, Lavendula augustifolia, Mentha pulegium, Centella asiatica, Ginko biloba and Vitis vinifera in an amount effective to alleviate the viral infection.
A method for the treatment of asthma in a mammal comprising the steps of administering to a mammal an extract of a plant species selected from the group consisting of Allium vineale, salix alba, Agropyrum spp., Petroselinium crispum, Taraxacum officinale, Sesamum indicum, Medicago spp., Piper methysticum, Anthemis spp., Tumera diffusa, Verbascum densiflorum, Ocimum spp., Maranta arundinaceae, Coriandrum sativum, Artemesia dracunculus, Lavendula augustifolia, Mentha pulegium, Centella asiatica, Ginko biloba and Vitis viniferain an amount effective to alleviate the asthma.
A process for the preparation of a low molecular weight aqueous extract of plant material capable of stimulating NO production in mammalian cells comprising:
- (a) homogenizing plant parts in water and acid to form a homogenate;
- (b) extracting said homogenate with a mixture of chloroform and alcohol;
- (c) centrifuging the extracted homogenate;
- (d) subjecting the supernatant to solid phase extraction to elute the low molecular weight components.
A pharmaceutical composition for treating bacterial infections, viral infections, asthma, and/or inflammation in a mammal, said composition comprising an effective amount of an extract of a plant in a pharmaceutically acceptable vehicle, said plant being selected from the group consisting of Allium vineale, salix alba, Agropyrum spp., Petroselinium crispum, Taraxacum officinale, Sesamum indicum, Medicago spp., Piper methysticum, Anthemis spp., Tumera diffusa, Verbascum densiflorum, Ocimum spp., Maranta arundinaceae, Coriandrum sativum, Artemesia dracunculus, Lavendula augustifolia, Mentha pulegium, Centella asiatica, Ginko biloba and Vitis vinifera, prepared by a process comprising:
- (a) homogenizing the plant parts;
- (b) preparing an extract from said plant parts;
- and
- (c) substantially removing components from said extract of molecular weight greater than about 5000 Daltons.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.