Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Yam (Dioscorea sp.) extracts have been shown to possess a vast array of medicinal properties such as antihypocholesterolemic, antiatherogenic and antihypertensive bioactivity. However, the compounds conferring its antihypertensive bioactivity have not been fully explored.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Annona muricata L. was identified as a popular medicinal plant in treatment regimens among cancer patients in Jamaica by a previously conducted structured questionnaire. Ethnomedically used plant parts, were examined in this study against human prostate cancer cells for the first time and mechanisms of action elucidated for the most potent of them, along with the active phytochemical, annonacin.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFtrees grow well in Jamaica and their parts are popularly used locally for various purposes and ailments. Antioxidant activities in samples from different parts of the world have different ranges. This study was initiated to determine the antioxidant activity of Moringa oleifera grown in Jamaica.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: We reported that Jamaican bitter yam (Dioscorea polygonoides) has antilipemic potential in rats; however there is limited data on the toxicological profile of the yam. We therefore investigated the effects of bitter yam consumption for 6 or 12 weeks on renal and hepatic function in rats fed a high (4%) cholesterol diet.
Methods: Twenty four rats were divided into six groups (n = 4); three of which were used for each investigation (6 or 12 weeks).
A sapogenin-rich preparation from Jamaican bitter yam (Dioscorea polygonoides) has been shown to reduce blood cholesterol concentrations in hypercholesterolemic rats and mice. Also, diosgenin supplementation has been reported to have antilipemic effects in several animal species. We investigated potential mechanisms of the lipid-lowering actions of bitter yam and also whether the actions were mediated by diosgenin.
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