Sucupira as a Potential Plant for Arthritis Treatment and Other Diseases

Abstract

Trees of the genus Pterodon, commonly known as “sucupira-branca” or “faveira,” are native to central Brazil. The Pterodon fruits are traditionally used in ethnomedicine as an infusion, in small doses, and at regular time intervals as an antirheumatic, anti-inflammatory, tonic, and depurative agent. The various compounds present in the Pterodon class are, generally, water-insoluble and derived from the fusion of high-molecular weight pentacarbonate units. Scientific research has shown that the major compounds isolated from Pterodon species are linear and/or tetracyclic diterpenes with vouacapane skeletons that partly underlie the pharmacological activities of the fruit-derived oil. Material from Pterodon species has several biological properties, such as analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer effects. Therefore, recent studies have sought to microencapsulate these extracts to protect them from potential chemical degradation and improve their water solubility, ensuring greater stability and quality of the end products. This review presents a succinct overview of the available scientific evidence of the biological activity and toxicity of Pterodon species in addition to other important aspects, including phytochemical and technological features.

Sucupira Oil-Loaded Nanostructured Lipid Carriers (NLC): Lipid Screening, Factorial Design, Release Profile, and Cytotoxicity

“…Essential oils (EOs) are odorant liquid oily products, consisting of a complex mixture of lipophilic and volatile compounds obtained from a plant raw material by one of three distinct procedures: Dry distillation, driving by steam of water or suitable mechanical method without heating [1][2][3][4][5][6]. Among their most abundant constituents, terpenes, sesquiterpenes and flavonoids are receiving increasing attention as potential natural agents for the treatment of several human diseases [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory diseases, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and metabolic syndrome [16][17][18]). Among chronic diseases, diabetes mellitus (DM) is recognized the epidemy of the 21st century.…”

Pterodon emarginatus oleoresin-based nanoemulsion as a promising tool for Culex quinquefasciatus (Diptera: Culicidae) control

“…Pterodon emarginatus Vogel is a traditional plant species with a wide range of folk use in Brazil, being popularly known as “sucupira” or “sucupira-branca” [29]. Terpenoids from seeds of sucupira, especially vouacapan diterpenes, develop a main role as bioactive compounds of this plant [30, 31], being major constituents of the ambar coloured oleoresin obtained from its seeds.…”

“…Terpenoids from seeds of sucupira, especially vouacapan diterpenes, develop a main role as bioactive compounds of this plant [30, 31], being major constituents of the ambar coloured oleoresin obtained from its seeds. This oily material was subjected to some studies aiming to develop emulsions with submicrometer droplets [29, 32]. Considering the larvicidal potential of sucupira oleoresin and its terpenoids against Aedes aegypti [33, 34], a promising larvicidal nanoemulsion against this vector larvae was prepared using this raw material [25].…”

Essential oil of Pterodon polygalaeflorus Benth attenuates nociception in mice

“…It has great regional importance because of the widespread use of its shell and seeds in popular medicine as hydroalcoholic infusions for the treatment of chronic diarrhea (16), pharyngitis (15), and chronic pain and inflammation, such as in arthritis (17) and rheumatic diseases.…”