Traditionelle brasilianische Pflanze zeigt unerwartete Stärke gegen Arthritis. Die Forscher beobachteten weniger Schwellungen, gesündere Gelenke und Anzeichen von Gewebeschutz. Ebenso wichtig war, dass der Extrakt in getesteten Dosen ein vielversprechendes Sicherheitsprofil zeigte.

 In Brazil, researchers from the Federal University of Grande Dourados (UFGD), the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP), and São Paulo State University (UNESP) conducted a study that confirmed the safety and anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and anti-arthritic properties of the Joseph’s Coat plant (Alternanthera littoralis). Native to the Brazilian coast, it has been used in folk medicine to combat inflammation, microbial infections, and parasitic diseases. Until now, there has been little pharmacological evidence to support these applications or analyze their safety. 

The first step of the study, published in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology, was to conduct phytochemical analyses of the plant to identify the main bioactive compounds in the ethanolic extract of its aerial parts. This analysis was conducted by Marcos Salvador, a pharmacist from the Institute of Biology (IB) at UNICAMP. Next, the team led by pharmacologist Cândida Kassuya from the Faculty of Health Sciences at UFGD evaluated the anti-inflammatory efficacy in experimental models of arthritis. “Finally, we performed the toxicological analyses under my coordination,” explains Arielle Cristina Arena, associate professor in the Department of Structural and Functional Biology at the Institute of Biosciences at UNESP’s Botucatu Campus.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378874125014126?via%3Dihub