Neuroprotective Herbs and Foods from Different Traditional Medicines and Diets
Authors
Marcello Iriti
Dipartimento di Produzione Vegetale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano, Italy
Sara Vitalini
Dipartimento di Produzione Vegetale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano, Italy
Gelsomina Fico
Orto Botanico ‘GE Ghirardi’, Università degli Studi di Milano, Toscolano Maderno, Brescia, Italy; E-Mail: [email protected] (S.V.)
Franco Faoro
Dipartimento di Produzione Vegetale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano, Italy
Keywords:
Ayurvedic medicine, Mediterranean diet, neurodegenerative diseases, nutritional therapy, phytotherapy, Traditional Chinese Medicine
Abstract
Plant secondary metabolites include an array of bioactive constituents form both medicinal and food plants able to improve human health. The exposure to these phytochemicals, including phenylpropanoids, isoprenoids and alkaloids, through correct dietary habits, may promote health benefits, protecting against the chronic degenerative disorders mainly seen in Western industrialized countries, such as cancer, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases. In this review, we briefly deal with some plant foods and herbs of traditional medicines and diets, focusing on their neuroprotective active components. Because oxidative stress and neuroinflammation resulting from neuroglial activation, at the level of neurons, microglial cells and astrocytes, are key factors in the etiopathogenesis of both neurodegenerative and neurological diseases, emphasis will be placed on the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity exerted by specific molecules present in food plants or in remedies prescribed by herbal medicines.
Keywords: Ayurvedic medicine, Mediterranean diet, neurodegenerative diseases, nutritional therapy, phytotherapy, Traditional Chinese Medicine
Author Biographies
Marcello Iriti, Dipartimento di Produzione Vegetale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano, Italy
Dipartimento Agroalimentare, CNR-IVV, Milano, Italy; E-Mail [email protected] (F.F.)
Sara Vitalini, Dipartimento di Produzione Vegetale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano, Italy
Orto Botanico ‘GE Ghirardi’, Università degli Studi di Milano, Toscolano Maderno, Brescia, Italy; E-Mail: [email protected] (S.V.)
Gelsomina Fico, Orto Botanico ‘GE Ghirardi’, Università degli Studi di Milano, Toscolano Maderno, Brescia, Italy; E-Mail: [email protected] (S.V.)
Dipartimento di Biologia, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano, Italy; E-Mail: [email protected] (G.F.)
Franco Faoro, Dipartimento di Produzione Vegetale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano, Italy
Dipartimento Agroalimentare, CNR-IVV, Milano, Italy; E-Mail [email protected] (F.F.)
Click on "Archives" to access the full archive of scientific preprints. You may use the categories and the search functionality to find select preprints you're interested in.
