Background Khat (Catha edulis) chewing is a highly prevalent habit in the Arabian Peninsula and East Africa, and has recently spread to Western countries. The association between khat chewing and oral mucosal lesions is well documented in the literature. However, there is no concrete evidence on the association between khat chewing and periodontal disease. The purpose of this systematic review ...

The current study focussed on documenting the ethnobotanical knowledge of herbal medicines used by the Bapedi traditional healers to treat reproductive ailments in the Limpopo Province, South Africa. Fifty one healers from 17 municipalities covering Capricorn, Sekhukhune and Waterberg districts of the Limpopo Province were interviewed between January and July 2011. Semi-structured interviews, o...

BACKGROUND The medicinal herb, Pinellia ternata, is purported to be an anti-emetic with analgesic and sedative effects. Alkaloids are the main biologically active compounds in P. ternata, especially ephedrine that is a phenylpropylamino alkaloid specifically produced by Ephedra and Catha edulis. However, how ephedrine is synthesized in plants is uncertain. Only the phenylalanine ammonia lyase (...

The leaves of khat (Catha edulis Forsk.) are chewed as a social habit for the central stimulant action of their cathinone content. This review summarizes the prevalence of the habit worldwide, the actions, uses, constituents and adverse health effects of khat chewing. There is growing concern about the health hazards of chronic khat chewing and this review concentrates on the adverse effects on...

Khat (Catha edulis Forsk) is a flowering evergreen plant in Eastern Africa and Southwestern Arabia. Consumption of Khat has been associated with the development of oral cancer, but its mechanism of action on the molecular level remains unclear. The present study demonstrated the cytotoxic effect of khat extracts on the human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231. Trypan blue exclusion assays, flow...

BACKGROUND A new trend among users of new psychoactive substances' the consumption of "herbal highs": plant parts containing psychoactive substances. Most of the substances extracted from herbs, in old centuries were at the centre of religious ceremonies of ancient civilizations. Currently, these herbal products are mainly sold by internet web sites and easily obtained since some of them have n...