Other Health benefits of Silbinolâ
A.Role in
maintaining healthy cholesterol levels
Extracts of P.
marsupium were tested on the serum lipid levels of rats. The results were as follows:
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The
ethyl acetate-soluble fraction of an aqueous decoction of P. marsupium’s heartwood
significantly reduced the serum cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL, and VLDL of hyperlipidemic
rats who received an oral dose of 120 mg/kg body weight. Significant reductions were also
observed in rats that received the aqueous decoction (1 ml/kg body weight).
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Pterosupin and liquiritigenin, two active
principles of P. marsupium, were also effective in reducing diet-induced hyperlipidemia in
rats. These constituents reduced total cholesterol, LDL, and the atherogenic index and
raised HDL and the HDL/total cholesterol ratio. Pterosupin’s activity was comparable
to cholestyramine, a well known hypocholestrolemic agent (Figures 1-4).
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Click
the Image for larger view
Figure 1: Effect of oral administration of major flavonoid constituents of Pterocarpus
marsupium heartwood on Total Cholesterol, HDL-Cholesterol and Triglyceride levels in
rats fed hyperlipidemic diet |
 Figure 2: Effect of oral administration of
major flavonoid constituents of Pterocarpus marsupium heartwood on LDL-Cholesterol
and VLDL-Cholesterol levels in rats fed hyperlipidemic diet |
 Figure 3: Effect of oral administration of
major flavonoid constituents of Pterocarpus marsupium heartwood on Atherogenic
Index in rats fed hyperlipidemic diet* |
 Figure 4: Effect of oral administration of
major flavonoid constituents of Pterocarpus marsupium heartwood on
HDL-Cholesterol/Total Cholesterol ratio in rats fed hyperlipidemic diet* |
* Cholestyramine dose: 150
mg/kg body wt/day for 14 days Liquiritigennin, Marsupin, Pterosupin: each at 40 mg/kg body
wt/day for 14 days
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Reduction
in HDL/total cholesterol ratio is of great importance because it is a major factor in
predicting coronary heart disease in human beings. An increase in this ratio is believed
to furnish a beneficial effect.
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B.
Antimicrobial Properties
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Ointments
prepared from alcoholic and aqueous extracts of P. marsupium wood furnished considerable
antifungal activity in fifty patients suffering from skin diseases caused by infection
with microscopic fungi, Tinea cruris and Tinea carporis.
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The
therapeutic effectiveness of the ointments was evaluated by the appearance of the lesions
and graded on a scale of excellent to poor (poor (no response), moderate (symptoms
disappeared but disease persisted), good (symptoms as well as vesiculation and exfoliation
disappeared but mild inflammation persisted), and excellent (disease was completely cured)
(Figure 5).
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Figure 5: Evaluation of the antifungal activity of aqueous and alcoholic
extracts of P. marsupium.
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The cure
rate was 64% and 55% only after 3 days of treatment with the alcoholic and aqueous based
ointments, respectively. |
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Cure rates
of 78% and 93% were observed in patients who received the alcoholic extract for 7 and 10
days, respectively.
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No
side effects were reported after continuous use of the drug for 10 days.
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Antimicrobial
experiments were conducted in vitro with ethanol extracts of the bark and heartwood of P.
marsupium. Eight gram positive, three gram negative bacteria, and twelve strains of
fungi were tested. Both extracts of P. marsupium exhibited considerable antimicrobial
activity, but overall the ethanol extract of the heartwood furnished more pronounced
effects against the fungi.
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Eight
compounds, pterostilbene, isoliquiritigenin, liquiritigenin, carpusin, propterol,
propterol-B, oleanolic acid, and marsupol, were isolated from the heartwood of P.
marsupium and tested for their antibacterial activity against Streptococcus faecalis
R (gram positive), Staphylococcus aureus R (gram positive), and Escherichia
coli (gram negative). The compounds were more active against the gram positive
organisms. In comparison to penicillin G, propterol was nearly 36-60% effective in
inhibiting Streptococcus faecalis R. and Staphylococcus aureus R. The P.
marsupium compounds did not only inhibit the growth of the gram positive organisms but
adequate concentrations (50-80 m g/ml) actually killed them (Figure 6).
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 Figure 6. Antibacterial activity of compounds isolated from P.
marsupium(N=3) |
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