Lemon balm contains a high amount of flavonoids, rosmaric acid, gallic acid, phenolic contents.

PMID: 

J Evid Based Complementary Altern Med. 2017 07 ;22(3):385-394. Epub 2016 Sep 11. PMID: 27620926

Abstract Title: 

Melissa officinalis L: A Review Study With an Antioxidant Prospective.

Abstract: 

Melissa officinalis is a plant cultivated in some parts of Iran. The leaves of lemon balm, Melissa officinalis L (Lamiaceae), are used in Iranian folk medicine for their digestive, carminative, antispasmodic, sedative, analgesic, tonic, and diuretic properties, as well as for functional gastrointestinal disorders. This review article was aimed not only to introduce Melissa officinalis (its growth condition, its chemical compounds, and its traditional usages) but also to overview its antioxidant properties in detail. This review was carried out by searching studies in PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, and IranMedex databases up to 2016. The search terms used were"Melissa officinalis L,""antioxidant properties,"oxidative stress,""oxidative damage","ROS."Articles whose full texts were not available were excluded from the study. In this study, firstly, traditional usage of this herb was reviewed, including antimicrobial activity (antiparasitic, antibacterial, antiviral, etc), antispasmodic, and insomnia properties. Then, its antioxidant properties were overviewed. Various studies have shown that Melissa officinalis L possesses high amount of antioxidant activity through its chemical compounds including high amount of flavonoids, rosmaric acid, gallic acid, phenolic contents. Many studies confirmed the antioxidative effects of Melissa officinalis; thus, its effect in preventing and treating oxidative stress-related diseases might be reliable.

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Lemon balm improves systemic symptoms associated with dysmenorrhea.

PMID: 

Iran J Pharm Res. 2018 ;17(Suppl2):214-223. PMID: 31011354

Abstract Title: 

The Effects of Lemon balm on Menstrual Bleeding and the Systemic Manifestation of Dysmenorrhea.

Abstract: 

We conducted a double-blind randomized placebo controlled trial to evaluate the impact of Lemon balm (L.) on the bleeding and systemic manifestations of menstruation. A total of 90 students were randomly assigned to treatment or placebo group. Bleeding and systemic manifestations were evaluated with a menstrual pictogram and multidimensional verbal scale before and during 2 consecutive menstrual cycles, respectively. Statistical tests indicated that in both groups, the severity of the systemic symptoms associated with dysmenorrhea significantly decreased (= 0.001). Among the systemic symptoms, the mean severity of fatigue, the lethargy, and nervous changes in the two groups decreased after the treatment, which was statistically significant. There was no significant difference between the two groups regarding fatigue in the three cycles, but there was a significant difference between the two groups regarding lethargy in the first cycle (= 0.05) and the second cycle (= 0.001) after the treatment. The present study demonstrated thatdecreases the severity of the systemic signs associated with menstruation. It showed that the herb does not increase the severity of bleeding and the duration of menstruation. However, it reduces the mean total score of the severity of all the systemic symptoms associated with dysmenorrhea.

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The present study shows that galangin decreased oxidative stress and increased antioxidant status in diabetes.

PMID: 

Redox Rep. 2017 Nov ;22(6):290-300. Epub 2016 Dec 28. PMID: 28030991

Abstract Title: 

Galangin, a dietary flavonoid, improves antioxidant status and reduces hyperglycemia-mediated oxidative stress in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

Abstract: 

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effect of galangin on hyperglycemia-mediated oxidative stress in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats.METHODS: Diabetes was induced by intraperitoneal administration of low-dose STZ (40 mg/kg body weight (BW)) into male albino Wistar rats. Galangin (8 mg/kg BW) or glibenclamide (600 µg/kg BW) was given orally, once daily for 45 days to normal and STZ-induced diabetic rats.RESULTS: Diabetic rats showed significantly increased levels of plasma glucose, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, lipid hydroperoxides, and conjugated dienes. The levels of insulin and non-enzymatic antioxidants (vitamin C, vitamin E, reduced glutathione) and the activity of enzymatic antioxidants (superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione-S-transferase (GST)) were decreased significantly in diabetic control rats. These altered plasma glucose, insulin, lipid peroxidation products, enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants ions were reverted to near-normal level after the administration of galangin and glibenclamide.CONCLUSION: The present study shows that galangin decreased oxidative stress and increased antioxidant status in diabetic rats, which may be due to its antidiabetic and antioxidant potential.

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Galangin potentiates human breast cancer to apoptosis induced by TRAIL through activating AMPK.

PMID: 

Biomed Pharmacother. 2017 May ;89:845-856. Epub 2017 Mar 6. PMID: 28282786

Abstract Title: 

Galangin potentiates human breast cancer to apoptosis induced by TRAIL through activating AMPK.

Abstract: 

Breast cancer is reported as the most frequent tumor with limited treatments among the female worldwide. Galangin, a natural active compound 3, 5, 7-trihydroxyflavone, is a type of bioflavonoid isolated from the Alpinia galangal root and suggested to induce apoptosis in various cancers. Tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) is an effective anti-tumor agent for human breast cancer. Promoted expression of CHOP, a down-streaming transcription factor for endoplasmic reticulum stress (ER stress), enhanced death factor 4 (DR4) activity and accelerated reactive oxygen species (ROS) as well as cell death. Adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is crucial for various cancers mortality. In the present study, galangin regulated ER stress to augment CHOP and DR4 expression levels, sensitizing TRAIL activity, leading to human breast cancer cell apoptosis through Caspase-3 activation, which was associated with AMPK phosphorylation. In addition, AMPK inhibition and silence reduced anti-cancer activity of galangin and TRAIL in combinational treatment. Hence, our study indicated that galangin could effectively stimulate human breast cancer cells to TRAIL-induced apoptosis through TRAIL/Caspase-3/AMPK signaling pathway. AMPK signaling pathway activation by galangin might be of benefit for promoting the effects of TRAIL-regulated anti-tumor therapeutic strategy.

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Galangin inhibits human osteosarcoma cells growth.

PMID: 

Biomed Pharmacother. 2017 May ;89:1415-1421. Epub 2017 Mar 20. PMID: 28340520

Abstract Title: 

Galangin inhibits human osteosarcoma cells growth by inducing transforming growth factor-β1-dependent osteogenic differentiation.

Abstract: 

Osteosarcoma is the most common primary malignancy of the musculoskeletal system, and is associated with excessive proliferation and poor differentiation of osteoblasts. Currently, despite the use of traditional chemotherapy and radiotherapy, no satisfactory and effective agent has been developed to treat the disease. Herein, we found that a flavonoid natural product, galangin, could significantly attenuate human osteosarcoma cells proliferation, without causing obvious cell apoptosis. Moreover, galangin enhanced the expression of osteoblast differentiation markers (collagen type I, alkaline phosphatase, osteocalcin and osteopontin) remarkably and elevated the alkaline phosphatase activity in human osteosarcoma cells. And galangin could also attenuated osteosarcoma growth in vivo. These bioactivities of galangin resulted from its selective activation of the transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1/Smad2/3 signaling pathway, which was demonstrated by pathway blocking experiments. These findings suggested that galangin could be a promising agent to treat osteosarcoma. In addition, targeting TGF-β1 to induce osteogenic differentiation might represent a novel therapeutic strategy to treat osteosarcoma with minimal side effects.

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Cardiovascular toxicity and mechanism of bisphenol A and emerging risk of bisphenol S.

PMID: 

Sci Total Environ. 2020 Mar 18 ;723:137952. Epub 2020 Mar 18. PMID: 32213405

Abstract Title: 

Cardiovascular toxicity and mechanism of bisphenol A and emerging risk of bisphenol S.

Abstract: 

Epidemiological and animal studies indicate that increased exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) induces various human cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), including myocardial infarction, arrhythmias, dilated cardiomyopathy, atherosclerosis, and hypertension. Bisphenol S (BPS), an alternative to BPA, is increasingly present in various consumer products and human bodies worldwide. Recently, emerging evidence has shown that BPS might be related to cardiovascular disorders. In this review, we present striking evidence of the correlation between BPA exposure and various CVDs, and show that a nonmonotonic dose-response curve (NMDRC) was common in studies of the CV effects of BPA in vivo. The CV impairment induced by low doses of BPA should be highlighted, especially during developmental exposure or during coexposure with other risk factors. Furthermore, we explored the possible underlying mechanisms of these effects-particularly nuclear receptor signaling, ion channels, and epigenetic mechanisms-and the possible participation of lipid metabolism, oxidative stress and cell signaling. As the potential risks of BPA exposure in humans are still noteworthy, studies of BPA in CVDs should be strengthened, especially with respect to the mechanisms, prevention and treatment. Moreover, the potential CV risk of BPS reported by in vivo studies calls for immediate epidemiological investigations and animal studies to reveal the relationships of BPS and other BPA alternatives with human CVDs.

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