RECENT RESEARCH
olive leaf extract, propolis, and sage – rhubarb formulations, demonstrate potential benefits in managing herpes labialis with favorable safety profiles. Future well-designed, large-scale RCTs employing standardized methodologies are necessary to confirm these findings and to establish optimal treatment protocols for diverse patient populations( Inplasy protocol number: 202350038).
Pote S, Salve P, Gudasi S, Gurav S. Unravelling the Anti-inflammatory Potential of Mitragyna parvifolia: A Mechanistic and Data-Driven Approach to Herbal Medicine. Journal of Herbal Medicine. 2025; 101038. https:// doi. org / 10.1016 / j. hermed. 2025.101038
Introduction: Inflammation is a protective physiological response, but its chronic manifestation leads to adverse health outcomes. Current antiinflammatory treatments often have significant side effects, necessitating safer alternatives. Mitragyna parvifolia, a medicinal plant, has demonstrated anti-inflammatory potential, though its mechanisms remain underexplored. The current study was designed to explore the anti-inflammatory mechanisms of M parvifolia, emphasising its potential as therapeutic agent for inflammatory diseases.
Methods: This study employed in silico approaches, including network pharmacology, molecular docking, and molecular dynamic simulations, to identify interactions between M parvifolia phytocompounds and inflammatory targets. Experimental validation was conducted using supercritical CO2 leaf extract, evaluated for cytotoxicity, protein denaturation, COX-2 inhibition, and HRBC membrane stabilisation and phytochemical profiling using LC- QTOF-MS analysis.
Results: Thirteen phytocompounds of M parvifolia were found to modulate 97 inflammatory targets, significantly impacting Interleukin-17 and TNF signalling pathways. Molecular docking revealed strong binding of compounds to key targets, including
MMP9 and PTGS2, with the MMP9- Corynan-17-ol complex showing the highest stability in simulations. LC- QTOF-MS analysis identified 10 major bioactive constituents, supporting in silico predictions. Experimental assays confirmed low cytotoxicity(> 90 % cell viability) and demonstrated potent antiinflammatory effects: 73.71 % ± 1.5 % inhibition of COX-2 activity, 73.9 % ± 0.4 % inhibition of protein denaturation, and 75.5 % ± 0.83 % HRBC membrane stabilisation at maximum concentrations.
Conclusions: M parvifolia exhibits significant anti-inflammatory properties through modulation of key pathways and targets, combined with strong experimental validation of its efficacy and safety. These findings position M parvifolia as a promising candidate for developing natural, safer antiinflammatory therapies.
Coopoosamy R, Singh K, Naidoo K, Nadasan DS. The role of phytomedicine: Bridging the gap between the past, present, and future. Journal of Medicinal Plants for Economic Development. 2025; 2616-4809.
Background: Over the last two decades, medical healthcare has increased at an exponential rate. The discovery of new infectious diseases and the development of conventional new drugs have increased the health sector’ s reliance on alternative remedies such as holistic healing, Chinese traditional medicines, African traditional medicines, and Ayurvedic medicines. These traditional remedies have been around since time immemorial.
Aim: This study reviewed literature and discussed the historical role of phytomedicine in the development of synthetic treatments, the current state of phytomedicine research, and the future implication of such research.
Setting: This review provides a world overview of the use of phytomedicine.
Method: This paper summarises previous research on the use of phytomedicine as a source of healthcare over decades using scientific internet databases.
Results: Medicinal plants are heavily exploited for the therapeutic properties. Over the years, plants displayed a phenomenal benefit to human health problems worldwide. Advancement in plant research to combat multiple human ailments has drastically increased from the past to the present. Currently, researchers are using a computational platform to evaluate the potential of plant bioactive compounds towards novel, effective, and affordable drug development candidates to gain a better understanding of drug interactions with the body’ s biochemical pathways.
Conclusion: Medicinal plants are still important in global healthcare systems. Literature reveals that there is a resurgence of interest in plant-based medicines for the prevention and treatment of a variety of human ailments.
Homeopathy
Doherty R, Pracjek P, Luketic CD, Straiges D, Gray AC. The Application of Artificial Intelligence in Acute Prescribing in Homeopathy: A Comparative Retrospective Study. Healthcare( Basel). 2025; 13( 15): 1923. doi: 10.3390 / healthcare13151923. PMID: 40805956; PMCID: PMC12345833.
Background / objective: The use of artificial intelligence to assist in medical applications is an emerging area of investigation and discussion. The researchers studied whether there was a difference between homeopathy guidance provided by artificial intelligence( AI)( automated) and live professional practitioners( live) for acute illnesses. Additionally, the study explored the practical challenges associated with validating AI tools used for homeopathy and sought to generate insights on the potential value and limitations of these tools in the management of acute health complaints.
Method: Randomly selected cases at a homeopathy teaching clinic( n = 100) were entered into a commercially available
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