A. annua is so named because it is almost the only member of the genus with an annual cycle. It is a shrub, often growing over 2 m high (Ferreira et al., 1997; see Figure 3.1 and Figure 3.2). Its leaves and flowers contain artemisinin, first isolated in China in 1971; this is the constituent with the greatest antimalarial activity (see Table 3.3). Artemisinin has been found in only two other sp...

Haemonchus contortus is the most detrimental gastrointestinal parasite in small ruminants worldwide. The problem is increasing due to the developing resistance of the parasite to commercially available anthelmintics. Medicinal plants with their biologically-active compounds may provide a viable alternative to synthetic anthelmintics, but sound scientific evaluation of such compounds is lacking....

The clinical assays of Jerome Munyangi in RDC [1,2] following those of Patrick Ogwang in Uganda [3] have clearly shown that Artemisia annua has prophylactic properties against malaria, but it is not known how and why. Artemisia plants are rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) which generate prostaglandins and stimulate monocytes. PUFAs possess well documented antimalarial and prophylactic ...

This article treats Chinese medical theories and concepts as cultural constructs that arose as much from practice-oriented concerns as from socio-political negotiations within the medical field. It further explores the interface of the biological and cultural. It is often futile to investigate how Chinese medical descriptions relate to biological processes, because the local biologies that the ...

Artemisia annua is currently the only commercial source of the sesquiterpene lactone artemisinin. Although artemisinin is a major bioactive component present in this Chinese herb, leaf flavonoids have shown a variety of biological activities. The polyphenolic profile of extract from leaves of A. annua was assessed as a source of natural antioxidants. Total phenolic content and total flavonoid c...

The present paper is a continuation of our study on the Chinese traditional herb Arternisia annua L. [1— 5], describing several additional constituents: quinghaosu IV and V (V, VII), quinghao acid (VIII) [6], chrysosplenol (VIa) [7] and a paraffinic alcohol; V, VII and VIII are compounds with unreported structures.

Artemisinin is the first-line drug for anti-malaria recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). As the sole natural plant source of artemisinin, ecotypes of Artemisia annua L. vary widely in artemisinin content between nations, and China is the main producing area of A. annua. Here we present a three-dimensional evaluation on ecotypic diversity of A. annua from 12 main producing areas i...

Wickham Chen, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX, 75275. Phone: 214-768-1402. Fax: 214-768-3573. Email: [email protected] Cheng-An Yang, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX, 75275. Phone: 214-768-1641. Fax: 214-768-4095. Email: [email protected] Junheng Zhang, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX, 75275. Phone: 214-768-1402. Fax: 214-768-3573. Email: [email protected]...

The large amount of coastal plant species available makes them ideal candidates for energy production. In this study, thermogravimetric analysis was used to evaluate the fuel properties of two coastal plant species, and the distributed activation energy model (DAEM) was employed in kinetic analysis. The major mass loss due to devolatilization started at 154 and 162°C at the heating rate of 10°C...