The Ethnopharmacological and Nutraceutical Relevance of Launaea taraxacifolia (Willd.) Amin ex C. Jeffrey

Abstract

Launaea taraxacifolia (Willd.) Amin ex C. Jeffrey is a herb found mostly in tropical Africa. The plant, commonly found in West Africa, is used in the management of many diseases including cardiovascular, respiratory, haematological, endocrine, and metabolic diseases in Ghana, Nigeria, Benin, Serra Leone, and Senegal. This piece provides comprehensive and updated information on the traditional uses, phytochemical constituents, and pharmacological and toxicological information available on Launaea taraxacifolia to support its medicinal uses and also unearth knowledge gaps for future studies. An electronic literature search using search engines, namely, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, and PubMed, was carried out to obtain information on the plant. Both common and scientific names of the plant were used as keywords for the search process. This paper captured information on Launaea taraxacifolia from 1985 to 2018. The search revealed that the leaves of the plant possess nutritional/pharmacological effects on diseases such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cancer, malaria, bacterial infections, and arthritis. The leaf has been shown to be a rich source of phytoconstituents such as flavonoids, phenolic acids, tannins, alkaloids, glycosides, coumarins, triterpenoids, ascorbic acid, lycopene, and β-carotene. Also, isolated phytoconstituents as well as the safety profile of the plant have been documented. This review on Launaea taraxacifolia has provided a one-stop documentation of information in support of the several purported ethnopharmacological uses of the plant. It also reveals information gaps such as the need to research into its pharmacokinetics, interactions with drugs of importance, and its development into a plant-based drug in order to expand its clinical use.

Chemical Profile of Launaea nudicaulis Ethanolic Extract and Its Antidiabetic Effect in Streptozotocin-Induced Rats

“…We have previously reported the chemical characterization, antioxidant and phytotoxic activities of essential oils of three Launaea plants including L. nudicaulis [ 10 ]. Due to the history of the genus in addition to the potent biological activities of L. nudicaulis especially, antioxidant potentiality, existing evidence suggested that it has potential antidiabetic activity [ 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ].…”

Cytotoxic and Antioxidant Potential of Launaea mucronata Forssk Essential Oil Growing in Northern Saudi Arabia

“…They are produced from mevalonic acid (MVA), which is the primary source of the active isoprene unit isopentenyl diphosphate, which is a unit of isoprene. The variety of volatile components in this structure has drawn researchers and experts to investigate their significance in relation to industrial and biological activities [6,7]. Throughout history and in all cultures, aromatic herbal plants have been extensively medicinally used to prevent, treat, and control a wide range of ailments [5,[8][9][10].…”

Screening for Bioactive Compounds of Solvent Extracts of Some Selected Vegetables

“…Launaea taraxacifolia has a medicinal capability (Borokini & Labumi, 2017) as a result of its phytochemical constituents, and pharmacological potency which is useful in eliminating migraine, in treating conjunctivitis (Sakpere & Aremu, 2008). African lettuce helps to treat urinary tract problem, diabetes mellitus (Adinortey et al, 2018), in preventing whooping cough and to increase the production of milk by feeding the lactating cows (Bello et al, 2018). It can be incorporated in our daily diet either by mixing it with salad or cooking with sauce or soups (Sakpere & Aremu, 2008).…”