Pikuni-Blackfeet traditional medicine: Neuroprotective activities of medicinal plants used to treat Parkinson’s disease-related symptoms

Abstract

Ethnopharmacological relevance Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a multifactorial neurodegenerative disorder affecting 5% of the population over the age of 85 years. Current treatments primarily involve dopamine replacement therapy, which leads to temporary relief of motor symptoms but fails to slow the underlying neurodegeneration. Thus, there is a need for safe PD therapies with neuroprotective activity. In this study, we analyzed contemporary herbal medicinal practices used by members of the Pikuni-Blackfeet tribe from Western Montana to treat PD-related symptoms, in an effort to identify medicinal plants that are affordable to traditional communities and accessible to larger populations. Aim of the study The aims of this study were to (i) identify medicinal plants used by the Pikuni-Blackfeet tribe to treat individuals with symptoms related to PD or other CNS disorders, and (ii) characterize a subset of the identified plants in terms of antioxidant and neuroprotective activities in cellular models of PD. Materials and Methods Interviews of healers and local people were carried out on the Blackfeet Indian reservation. Plant samples were collected, and water extracts were produced for subsequent analysis. A subset of botanical extracts was tested for the ability to induce activation of the Nrf2-mediated transcriptional response and to protect against neurotoxicity elicited by the PD-related toxins rotenone and paraquat. Results The ethnopharmacological interviews resulted in the documentation of 19 medicinal plants used to treat various ailments and diseases, including symptoms related to PD. Seven botanical extracts (out of a total of 10 extracts tested) showed activation of Nrf2-mediated transcriptional activity in primary cortical astrocytes. Extracts prepared from Allium sativum cloves, Trifolium pratense flowers, and Amelanchier arborea berries exhibited neuroprotective activity against toxicity elicited by rotenone, whereas only the extracts prepared from Allium sativum and Amelanchier arborea alleviated PQ-induced dopaminergic cell death. Conclusions Our findings highlight the potential clinical utility of plants used for medicinal purposes over generations by the Pikuni-Blackfeet people, and they shed light on mechanisms by which the plant extracts could slow neurodegeneration in PD.

Lumbee traditional medicine: Neuroprotective activities of medicinal plants used to treat Parkinson's disease-related symptoms

“…Participants of the first category are traditional healers who learned herbal medicine from their ancestors or received the “gift” of healing and practice a combination of herbal and Christian faith healing. Information provided by one healer highlighted the importance of praying rituals in Lumbee traditional medicine, consistent with the results of a previous study (Boughman and Oxendine, 2004) and with practices reported by other Native American groups including the Pikuni-Blackfeet Indians (de Rus Jacquet et al, 2017). Participants of the second category undertake a combination of medicinal practices inherited from their family or learned from herbal books and health stores.…”

“…Interestingly, some of the botanicals documented in this article were also described in our study of Pikuni-Blackfeet traditional medicine (de Rus Jacquet et al, 2017). Notably, Arnica sp., Hypericum perforatum , Mentha × piperita, Sambucus sp., and Valerian sp.…”

“…The participants were informed about the anonymity of the survey and the fact that they could terminate the interview process at any time. The interview objectives and process were defined as described previously (de Rus Jacquet et al, 2014) and in the accompanying article (de Rus Jacquet et al, 2017). Briefly, open-ended interviews were performed to question the participants about medicinal plants used to treat symptoms related to PD.…”

“…Botanical extracts were prepared as described in the accompanying article (de Rus Jacquet et al, 2017). Plant material was harvested or obtained in dried form from Friends of the Trees Society (Hot Springs, MT).…”

“…An adenovirus encoding enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) downstream of the minimal promoter of the mouse heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) gene (Alam et al, 1999) was prepared as described in the accompanying article (de Rus Jacquet et al, 2017). The construct, which has two antioxidant response elements (AREs) in the SX2 enhancer and is referred to as pAd-ARE-EGFP-TKpolyA, was packaged into virus via lipid-mediated transient transfection of the HEK293A packaging cell line.…”