BABUNA

Matricaria recutita is a herbaceous plant belonging to the Asteraceae family. The present study reports the chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of M. recutita essential oil and its main compounds.

Matricaria recutita has been traditionally used as a long-term anti-inflammatory herb, thus giving scope for anti-inflammatory studies. The study was conducted to investigate in vitro anti-inflammatory and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitory activities of dried flower extracts of Matricaria recutita.

Acanthamoeba is a widely distributed genus worldwide and it has been isolated from many environments such as water, soil, dust and many others (Lorenzo-Morales et al., 2015).

This work aimed to evaluate the antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of methanolic extract of some plant (Ricinus communis, Matricaria recutita and Zygophyllum coccineum) extracts used in herbal remedy and folk medicine in Saudi Arabia, Results indicated that, the total extract the studied plants showed activity against the tested microbes, the highest activity was observed by using Matricaria chamomilla at conc.

Anxiety and depression are the most commonly reported psychiatric conditions and frequently occur as comorbid disorders. While the advent of conventional drug therapies has simplified treatment, a large segment of the population goes untreated or declines conventional therapy for financial, cultural, or personal reasons. The current study explores data from a 2009 clinical chamomile trial in humans to determine if chamomile provides clinically meaningful antidepressant activity versus a placebo.

Chamomile is most popular used medicinal plant and extensively consumed as a tea or tisanes. Traditionally this plant was used for treatment of many ailments such as allergy disorders and inflammatory mediated diseases. We investigated the effects of anti-allergic activity of Matricaria recutita L. on mast cell mediated allergic models.

Oxidative stress plays a key role in pathophysiology of many neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and so on. Although Matricaria recutita L. (Asteraceae), German chamomile, is traditionally used for central nervous system (CNS)-related diseases, its antistress properties have received little attention.

Medicinal plant research is universally on the rise. Researchers, as well as the general public, recognize that natural products, predominantly those derived from plants, may exhibit health benefits. The tendency is to consider natural products as non-toxic and presenting fewer side effects than those used by conventional medicine.

The effect of plants on human health has been documented for thousands of years. Herbs have been integral to both traditional and non-traditional forms of medicine dating back at least 5000 years. The enduring popularity of herbal medicines may be explained by the tendency of herbs to work slowly, usually with minimal toxic side effects.

Chamomile is a common flowering plant and a member of the daisy family. There are two primary types: German chamomile (Matricaria recutita) and Roman chamomile (Anthemis nobilis). Most research has focused on German chamomile. Chamomile is one of the most widely used herbs in the world, especially in children. It is used topically for rashes, eczema, and hemorrhoids or orally as a mild sedative or for indigestion, diarrhea, and colic.

Demonstration of the innocuousness of this product is important in that the product could produce undesirable reactions in individuals who use it. Demonstrating that it does not produce toxic effects can lead to other tests that will allow it to be registered as a new medicine.

The demonstration of this product has a sedative effect is important due to its potential as a new, plant-based medication, with its associated low toxicity. This was demonstrated by us in a previous work, allowing us to enter the product as a new medication in the appropriate Register.

The dried flowers of Chamaemelum nobile (L.) All. have been used in traditional medicine for different conditions related to the spasm of the gastrointestinal system. However, there have been no experimental studies to support the smooth muscle relaxant effect of this plant.

Phytotherapy is a source of finding new remedies for migraine. Traditional chamomile oil (chamomile extraction in sesame oil) is a formulation in Persian medicine (PM) for pain relief in migraine.

The oral mucositis is a common infammation in patients with malignant neoplasms, undergoing antineoplastic therapy; its symptoms predispose the oncological patient to various serious complications. Itsincidence is 75–100% among patients who perform hematopoietic stem cell transplantation; 40– 85% of incidences occur in patients during chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy.

There were 164 evaluable and well-stratified patients equally randomized to both treatment groups. There was no suggestion of any stomatitis difference between patients randomized to either protocol arm. There was also no suggestion of toxicity. Subset analysis did reveal unsuspected differential effects between males and females that could not be explained by reasons other than chance.

Cerebrovascular diseases (CVD) include some of the most common devastating disorders such as ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, cerebrovascular anomalies, etc. They cause two lacks deaths each year and are major cause of disability (Wade et al., 2005). Stroke has been ranked third most common cause of death worldwide and cerebrovascular diseases are considered second most frequent causes of projected deaths in the year 2020.

According to the World Health Organization, leishmaniasis is considered as a major neglected tropical disease causing an enormous impact on global public health. Available treatments were complicated due to the high resistance, toxicity, and high cost. Therefore, the search for novel sources of anti-leishmania agents is an urgent need. In the present study, an in vitro evaluation of the leishmanicidal activity of the essential oil of Tunisian chamomile (Matricaria recutita L.) was carried out.

The exact etiology of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is not known yet and thus effective management of IBS is still a challenge. Visceral hypersensitivity in the development of pain or discomfort, gut dysmotility, 5-hydroxy tryptamine (5-HT) dysregulation, stress and psychological disturbances, previous infection, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, food intolerance, inflammation, immune activation, and oxidative stress seem involved in the pathophysiology of IBS.

Herbal formulations are getting more importance in the treatment of diabetes, cancer and hepatic disorder because of the hazardous adverse effects of the current therapy. Especially diabetes can be controlled by Allopathic medicine as well as Herbal medicine.

Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla), a popular herb valued for centuries as a traditional medicine, has been used to treat various human ailments; however, its anticancer activity is unknown.

Fungi are ubiquitous in the environment, and infection due to fungal pathogens has become more frequent. Fungal diseases represent a critical problem to health and they are one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Dermatophytoses, although very fastidious and difficult to manage, are less serious problems with respect to life-threatening invasive fungal infections.

We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebocontrolled efficacy and tolerability trial of Matricaria recutita (chamomile) extract therapy in patients with mild to moderate generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

Dysfunctions in stress biology are hypothesized to contribute to anxiety disorders, and to be ameliorated during successful treatment, but limited clinical data exist to support this hypothesis. We evaluated whether increases in morning cortisol and the diurnal cortisol slope, markers of stress biology, are associated with clinical response to chamomile therapy among subjects with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

The effect of anise oil, dwarf-pine oil and chamomile oil against different thymidine-kinase-positive (aciclovir-sensitive) and thymidine-kinase-negative (aciclovir-resistant) herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) strains was examined. Clinical HSV-1 isolates containing frameshift mutations in the thymidine kinase (TK) gene, an insertion or a deletion, yield a non-functional thymidine kinase enzyme resulting in phenotypical resistance against aciclovir.

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders with no age, racial, social, sexual, or geographical boundaries and affects about 50 million people worldwide. In developed countries where drugs are easily available, epilepsy responds to treatment in up to 70% of patients.

Itching and scratching are important factors in the maintenance of symptoms of skin diseases especially in patients with atopic dermatitis (Wahlgren, 1999). Histamine is well known to be present in skin mast cells and considered to be an important mediator of itchiness, however, the itch of atopic dermatitis is generally resistant to antihistamines.

The antipruritic effects of the diets containing Gern1an chamomile on the compound 48/80-induced scratching in ddY mice were examined. Since it is reported that an injec­tion of compound 48/80, but not histamine, induced scratching behaviour due to itch but not to pain in ddY mice (Kuraishi et al., 1995), compound 48/80-induced scratching in ddY mice seems to be a suitable parameter for evaluating antipruritic agents independent of histamine receptor antagonism.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are generated by normal metabolic processes in all organisms utilizing oxygen. However, excessive ROS production can overcome cellular antioxidant defenses and can lead to a condition termed oxidative stress. Of particular importance, oxidative stress has been implicated in the installation and progression of several degenerative diseases, via either DNA mutation, protein oxidation and/or lipid peroxidation.

Diarrhea is a major health problem, especially for children under the age of 5 years in developing countries including Tunisia (Bryce et al., 2005). This disease is responsible for about 5 million deaths annually (Heinrich et al., 2005). Diarrhea is characterized by a discharge of semisolid or watery fecal matter from the bowel three or more times in one day (Suleiman et al., 2008) leading to inflammatory response and oxidative stress (Song et al., 2011).

In order to prolong the storage life of vegetable oils, various synthetic antioxidants such as tert-Butylhydroquinone (TBHQ), butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), and butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) are currently used, but these substances have toxic and carcinogenic effects on the human health.

Persistent hyperglycemia induces abnormal changes, such as increased formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and polyol pathway flux, and the overactivation of protein kinase C isoforms. Diabetic complications including neuropathy, nephropathy, cataracts, and retinopathy are considered to be caused by the accumulation of sorbitol, which is produced from glucose by aldose reductase in the polyol pathway.

Chamomile (Matricaria recutita L.) is one of the most widely used and well-documented medicinal plants in the world (Salamon 1992). It has been included for centuries in the pharmacopoeia of several countries including Tunisia. The phytochemical screening of this plant revealed that it is rich in cytoprotective active molecules such as phenolic compounds (McKay and Blumberg 2006).

Matricaria recutita (Matricaria chamomilla) commonly known as chamomile, German chamomile, is an annual plant of the composite family Asteraceae. M. recutita can be found near populated areas all over Europe and Asia, and it has been widely introduced in North America and Australia (Singh et al., 2011). The dried flowers of chamomile contain many terpenoids and flavonoids contributing to its medicinal properties.

Infectious agents are the most changeable risk factors for human diseases. Because of the increasing global problem of emerging resistance of pathogens against antibiotics, there is an increased demand to discover new, effective, easy-to-obtain natural medicinal substances. Chamomile (Matricaria recutica L.) is a very popular and widely used herb in traditional folk medicine.

Chamomile has long been used in traditional medicine for the treatment of inflammation-related disorders. In this study we investigated the inhibitory effects of chamomile on nitric oxide (NO) production and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression, and explored its potential anti-inflammatory mechanisms using RAW 264.7 macrophages.

There is increasing evidence that longstanding inflammation plays a critical role in the initiation and development of various human illnesses, including cancer. Inflammation and disease are linked through the production of inflammatory mediators by macrophages and neutrophils.