The Liver Repair Toolkit - Natural, non-drug supplements for liver detoxification & repair by Lee James

Author:Lee, James [Lee, James]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2013-12-30T18:30:00+00:00

Addendum 2 – Report from the Iranian Journal of Basic Medical Sciences

“Silymarin”, a Promising Pharmacological Agent for Treatment of Diseases

Gholamreza Karimi, Maryam Vahabzadeh, [...], and Mohammad Moshiri

Abstract

Widespread use of herbal drugs because of their protective effects on different organs toxicity has been shown in many studies. These protective effects have been illustrated in the fields of nephrotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, viral hepatitis, cancer, in vitro fertilization, neurotoxicity, depression, lung diseases, prostate diseases etc. Silymarin has cytoprotection activities due to its antioxidant activity and radical scavenging. The possible known mechanisms of action of silymarin protection are blockade and adjustment of cell transporters, p-glycoprotein, estrogenic and nuclear receptors. Moreover, silymarin anti-inflammatory effects through reduction of TNF-α, protective effects on erythrocyte lysis and cisplatin-induced acute nephrotoxicity have been indicated in some studies. Silymarin has also inhibited apoptosis and follicular development in patients undergoing IVF. Basis on such data, silymarin can be served as a novel medication in complementary medicine.

Introduction

Silybum marianum L. (Milk thistle), a member of Carduus marianum family, is an ancient medicinal plant which has been used for centuries for treatment of different diseases such as liver and gallbladder disorders, protecting liver against snake bite and insect stings, mushroom poisoning and alcohol abuse (1). This plant can be found in Kashmir, North America, Canada and Mexico with large leaves and a reddish-purple flower that are all thorny and the medicinal part of the plant is either the seeds or fruits (2).

Milk thistle was first grown in Europe and used as a liver tonic as it was said to be able to open the obstructions of the liver and spleen, and thereby was good for jaundice (Nicolas Culpepper, 1616-1654)(3). Moreover, this herb has been used for centuries as a natural treatment for upper gastrointestinal tract and digestive problems, liver and biliary tract diseases, menstrual disorders and varicose veins (4,5).

The very first usage of Milk thistle, however, was for its hepatoprotectant and antioxidant activities. Silymarin is the active component of this herb, which is a complex of other components, mainly silybin A, silybin B, isosilybin A, isosilybin B and also other flavonolignants such as silychristin, neosilyhermin, silyhermin and silydianin which exists in its fruit and seeds more than the other parts (Figure 1) (2, 6-8).

Silymarin effects have also been indicated in various illnesses of different organs such as prostate, lungs, CNS, kidneys, pancreas, and skin (9).

Silymarin has besides antifibrotic, immunomodulating, anti-inflammatory effects as well as antioxidant properties by scavenging free radicals and increasing the glutathione concentrations, so that it can be used in hepatitis and hepatic cirrhosis treatment and in mushroom poisoning (5,7,10).

According to pharmacological studies, silymarin has been accepted as a safe herbal product, since using the physiological doses of silymarin is not toxic unless the improper administration of therapeutic dosages (10-12).

The main adverse effects reported are headaches, gastroenteritis and dermatological symptoms, among them gastrointestinal symptoms are the most common (1).

Milk thistle extract is now marketing as silymarin and silybinin capsules and tablets with an improved bioavailability under the trade names like Livergol, Silipide and Legalon (6).

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.