Tradition to Pathogenesis: A Novel Hypothesis for Elucidating the Pathogenesis of Diseases Based on the Traditional Use of Medicinal Plants

Abstract

Traditional medicines embody knowledge on medicinal plants that has been accumulated through cultural evolution over millennia. In the latter half of the 20th century, two approaches to medicinal plant research have been established: the “Bench to Bedside” and the “Bedside to Bench” approaches which serve primarily for the development of more efficient therapeutics. Here, we propose a third, novel approach: from “Tradition to Pathogenesis” which aims to understand the pathogenesis of diseases based on the cultural evolution of their respective empirical treatments. We analyse multiple examples of diseases where the acting mechanism of traditional treatments across multiple cultures points to the pathogenesis of the respective disease. E.g., many cultures traditionally treat rheumatism with anti-bacterial botanical drugs, which is at odds with our current understanding that rheumatism is an aseptic inflammation. Furthermore, gastric ailments have traditionally been treated with anti-infectious botanical drugs indicating local infections, as demonstrated by the discovery of Helicobacter pylori as a common cause of gastric ulcer. Understanding traditional treatments can thus help to elucidate the pathogenesis of the disease.

Anti-Inflammatory and Antioxidant Properties of the Aqueous Extracts of the Leaves of <i>Opilia amentacea</i> (Opiliaceae)

“…Plants have been used to treat various ailments since several millennia ago [3] [35] [36]. Nonetheless, the need to validate or deny the traditional use of these plants through rigorous scientific methods is crucial.…”

Proportion of Over-The-Counter Medicines Containing a Plant Component and Those with Synthetic Substances Administered among Children in a Bulgarian Population

“…The medicinal plants common yarrow ( Achillea millefolium L.) and chamomile ( Matricaria chamomilla L.), which have been written into the European Pharmacopeia, have been used since the time of the Neanderthals and so have poplar buds ( Populus spec. L.) [ 5 , 6 , 7 ].…”

Identification of Novel Cannabinoid CB2 Receptor Agonists from Botanical Compounds and Preliminary Evaluation of Their Anti-Osteoporotic Effects

“…The chemical entities that exert various biological activities within these plants provide versatile lead structures that are active against lots of pharmacological targets. Some botanical compounds have been developed into clinical medicines, such as artemisinin, paclitaxel, vincristine, and morphine [ 24 ]. To rapidly and efficiently identify drugs that may act as CB2R agonists, we developed a double luciferase screening system to screen CB2R agonists from 69 botanical compounds; evaluated their agonistic activity on CB2R using cAMP levels, molecular docking, and molecular dynamics simulations; and then further verified their anti-osteoporotic activities on osteoblasts and osteoclasts, hoping that the results could provide novel clues for discovering anti-osteoporotic drugs.…”