The Great Healing Potential Hidden in Plant Preparations of Antioxidant Properties: A Return to Nature?

Abstract

The application of chemicals in industry and agriculture has contributed to environmental pollution and exposure of living organisms to harmful factors. The development of new pharmaceutical agents enabled successful therapy of various diseases, but their administration may be connected with side effects. Oxidative stress has been found to be involved into etiology of numerous diseases as well as harmful action of drugs and chemicals. For some time, plant origin substances have been studied as potential protective agents alleviating toxicity of various substances and symptoms of diseases. The aim of the current review was to present the diversity of the research performed during the last five years on animal models. The outcomes showed a huge protective potential inherent in plant preparations, including alleviating prooxidative processes, strengthening antioxidant defence, ameliorating immune parameters, and reversing histopathological changes. In many cases, plant origin substances were proved to be comparable or even better than standard drugs. Such findings let us suggest that in the future the plant preparations could make adjuvants or a replacement for pharmaceutical agents. However, the detailed research regarding dose and way of administration as well as the per se effects needs to be performed. In many studies, the last issue was not studied, and in some cases, the deleterious effects have been observed.

Evaluation of the in vitro and in vivo antioxidant potential of Punica granatum L. against toluene-induced liver injuries in rats

“…At present, the return to natural products has become one of the significant directions of several research projects. Plant substances and extracts, as well as their essential oils, seeds, and peel powders, have been demonstrated to play basic roles in the prevention or attenuation of the physiological disruptions stemming from exposure to different chemicals [1]. Among the plants that have attracted great interest, Punica granatum, which is popularly known as pomegranate, is a small fruit tree of the Punicaceae family that grows in countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, Pakistan, India, and Iran [2].…”