Review of natural antioxidant plants to overcome the neurotoxic effects of methamphetamine

Abstract

Background: Methamphetamine (METH) is a psychostimulant substance known for its substantial abuse potential and neurotoxic properties. METH is a second-line drug in certain conditions such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), severe obesity, or narcolepsy. Objective: This study aims to compare natural plant antioxidants to overcome neurotoxicity caused by methamphetamine. Method: The authors used a literature review method and collected articles from "PubMed", "Google Scholar", "ScienceDirect", "Scopus" from 2010 - 2023 without excluding old works that are often cited and trusted using the terms “Methamphetamine”, “Neurotoxicity”, “Ipomoea batatas L.”, “Scutellaria baicaleinsis Georgi ”, “Cinnamomum cassia”, “Laurus nobilis L.”, “Aronia melanocarpa”, “Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. f.”, “Gingko biloba L.”, "Centella asiatica (L.)", "Curcuma longa Linn.", "Brassia oleracea L." as inclusion criteria. Result: Several reviewed natural antioxidant plants exhibit pathways and substantial evidence from both in vivo and in vitro studies addressing methamphetamine-induced neurotoxicity. However, Aronia melanocarpa demonstrates a superior LD50 profile, making it the safest choice for consumption. Conclusion: Aronia melanocarpa had the highest LD50 value at 5 g/kg of body weight. Further research is needed to investigate the efficacy of Aronia melanocarpa in addressing methamphetamine-induced neurotoxicity.