Senna reticulata (Willd.) H. S. Irwin & Barneby (Fabaceae) is a pioneer tree which colonizes open areas in Amazonian floodplains. It is very abundant throughout Amazonia along the nutrientrich whitewater rivers, and can be considered to be one of the most efficient colonizers of open areas. It possesses a very high tolerance towards flooding of the roots and stem, and performs extremely high ph...

A microplate assay and a thin-layer chromatography (TLC) "in situ" assay based on the Ellman assay was used to screen for acetylcholinesterase inhibitors from ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of Brazilian medicinal plants of families that, according to the literature, have traditional uses that might be connected with acetylcholinesterase inhibition. Eighteen species belonging to Convolvulac...

Proanthocyanidins (PA) in Senna alata leaves were investigated by thiolysis with benzyl mercaptan, LC-MS and NMR and consisted of almost pure propelargonidins with <6% procyanidins, had B-type linkages and a mean degree of polymerisation of three. Epiafzelechin was the major flavan-3-ol subunit (>94%) and epicatechin a minor constituent (6.4%) in residual PA and mainly detected as an extension ...

background: the abortifacient claim of senna alata (s. alata) was scientifically validated recently with alkaloids speculated to be the bioactive agent. this speculation is yet to be substantiated or refuted by scientific evidence. the present study was aimed to investigate the pregnancy terminating effects of the alkaloids from s. alata leaves. methods: twenty four pregnant rats (143.99±1.21 g...

Methanol extracts of leaves, roots and bark of Senna racemosa (Mill.) H.S. Irwin & Barneby (syn. Cassia racemosa Mill.) were tested for antiprotozooal activity against Giardia intestinalis and Entamoeba histolytica. All of the tested extracts showed good activity against both protozoa species. Extracts from stem bark and leaves were most active, with an IC(50) of 2.10 microg/mL for Giardia inte...

A calcium sennoside was extracted by developed microwave assisted extraction technique from Senna leaves. Microwave extraction was carried out at 250 W for 20 minutes, 350 W for 15 minutes and 450 W for 10 min heating period, these produced increase yields of calcium sennosides when compared to conventional heating. The yield of calcium sennosides obtained by microwave extraction was found to b...

BACKGROUND Thrombus formed in blood vessels lead to atherothrombotic diseases such as myocardial or cerebral infarction. Thrombolytic agents are used to dissolve the already formed clots in the blood vessels; however, these drugs sometimes cause serious and fatal consequences. Herbal preparations have been used since ancient times for the treatment of several diseases although they show little ...

A young woman with a previous history of anorexia nervosa presented with severe finger clubbing. Urine samples intermittently contained significant amounts of aspartylglucosamine. Liver biopsy showed abnormal cytoplasmic inclusions in phagocytic cells. The patient was found to be abusing senna laxative.

In recent years, the use of anthraquinone laxatives, in particular senna, has been associated with damage to the intestinal epithelial layer and an increased risk of developing colorectal cancer. In this study, we evaluated the cytotoxicity of rhein, the active metabolite of senna, on human colon adenocarcinoma cells (Caco-2) and its effect on cell proliferation. Cytotoxicity studies were perfo...