Natural products have been used as medicine since ancient times. With the advancement of research methods nowadays, the pharmacological properties of herbal plants have become an important role in the development and designation of drugs for different diseases. Calophyllum inophyllum is a large tree which grows well in different parts of the world. Various parts of Calophyllum inophyllum have been investigated for the pharmacological actions and some of the active constituents have been identified and isolated successfully. Furthermore, certain molecular mechanisms underlying the pharmacological effects have been revealed by different research groups across the world in recent years. This paper aims to review the different pharmacological actions of Calophyllum inophyllum together with recently discovered active constituents and mechanistic details. The published information on the pharmacological properties of Calophyllum inophyllum was gathered by using different database platforms including Google Scholar, PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus and SciFinder. The results show different pharmacological actions including anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antioxidant, wound healing, osteogenic, antimicrobial, lipid-lowering and antidiabetic effects of different parts of Calophyllum inophyllum. This review will provide the researchers with the background of the therapeutic potential of Calophyllum inophyllum and the extent of discovery that will lead to develop therapeutic agents for different pathological states in future.

Background Hypertension is one of the major public health problems worldwide, and is one of the recognized causes of premature deaths every year in the world. The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations between the + 138 insertion/deletion of adenine (Ins/del A) and + 5665 guanine-to-thymine (G/T) polymorphisms of the endothelin-1 gene and hypertension in the residents of Magway Township, Myanmar. Methods This study was a cross-sectional comparative study including 60 hypertensive patients and 60 control subjects in Magway Township, Myanmar. The inclusion criterion for hypertension was blood pressure ≥ 140/90 mmHg or previous diagnosis by a physician as hypertension and/or taking antihypertensive drugs. The control group had blood pressure < 140/90 mmHg and no previous diagnosis of hypertension. The genotyping was done by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism method. Results In this study, the genotype distribution of the + 138 Ins/del A variant was significantly different between hypertensive patients and the control group, especially in the 3A4A genotype (odds ratio [OR], 2.451; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.138–5.280; P = 0.022). Adenine insertion genotypes (3A4A and 4A4A) were significantly associated with hypertension in the dominant model (OR, 2.494; 95% CI, 1.179–5.276; P = 0.017). In addition, there was a significant association between the 4A allele and hypertension (OR, 1.771; 95% CI, 1.026–3.056; P = 0.040). The genotype and allelic distributions of the + 5665 G/T polymorphism were not significantly different between the hypertensive patients and the control group (P > 0.05). In this study, there was no significant association between the genotype and allele frequency, and hypertension (P > 0.05). The linkage disequilibrium was weak between the + 138 Ins/del A and + 5665 G/T loci (D’ = 0.108, r2 = 0.009). Conclusions This study provides evidence that the + 138 Ins/del A rather than + 5665 G/T polymorphism is associated with hypertension in Burmese people.

Abstract:Annona squamosa is a medicinal plant which has been used in alternative medicine from ancient times. Different parts of Annona squamosa such as fruits, seeds, leaves and barks have been used to treat many diseases. Some of the active constituents have been identified and investigated for biological actions while the rest are yet to be explored. Current understanding of pharmacological properties of Annona squamosa not only supports alternative medicine but also contributes to the development of potential drugs for certain diseases. Therefore, an updated review on pharmacological actions of Annona squamosa is in urgent need. The purpose of this review is to provide current understanding of important pharmacological properties of Annona squamosa. The information provided in this article could be used to proceed to the designation and development of new pharmacological agents prepared from Annona squamosa for commonly encountered diseases.

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