The herb sage may hold a key to the treatment of the devastating neurological disorder, Alzheimer's disease, according to doctors in the UK. Patient trials using an extract from the plant are to begin there before the end of the year.
A human trial of a traditional Chinese herbal medicine that reduces pelvic and period pain in women, reportedly with fewer side-effects than conventional drugs, is also planned, according to a research team from Oxford University. Scientists and doctors were taking a fresh look at the benefits available from herbal medicine, stated Dr John Wilkinson of Middlesex University, who will address a session of the British Association Festival of Science this week on discoveries being made in herbal remedies.
"There is a lot of interest in herbal medicine internationally, but the science is lagging behind," he said yesterday. He described these treatments as "green medicine" and said that while there were several thousand known medicinal plants, no more than 200 were in regular use in Britain.
Taking medicines from plant material was not new, he said. The typical approach was for a pharmaceutical company to isolate a single active medicinal compound from a plant, synthesise it and then test it as a drug. Research was revealing, however, that the dozens of individual compounds initially found in plant extracts tended to have "synergistic effects".
"All of those molecules are behaving much more strongly [together] than they do individually. The whole herb is more active," Dr Wilkinson said. His team is using computers to analyse the various ingredients found in extracts of common sage, Salvia officianalis, which was traditionally used in herbal medicines to aid concentration and memory. This connection in turn made the researchers consider the herb's use in treating Alzheimer's, which has a severe effect on memory and cognitive function. They tested the compound in vitro and found that the extract could reduce the production of an enzyme, acetyocholinesterase, which in turn allowed higher levels of the neurotransmitter, acetyocholinester, to remain active in the brain.
Dr Wilkinson suggested this might help cognitive function in patients. The trial, involving 60 and 70-year-olds, will test this theory.
"We have shown in vitro that the crude extract is more effective than the single actives," he said.
He likened the difference to that between individual musical notes and chords. "If we just had single notes, music would be pretty boring."
This point was echoed by Dr Peter Hylands, chief executive officer of Oxford Natural Products, and Dr Stephen Kennedy of Oxford University. The two are collaborating on research into the use of traditional Chinese medicines in the treatment of period pains.
"Synergism is real, and more clinical studies from Germany are showing this is true," Dr Hylands said.
Trials were scheduled to begin before the end of the year, Dr Kennedy said, using a compound in capsule form extracted from three different plants. He would not say what plants were being used, but the herbs were being grown in highly controlled conditions at facilities in Beijing.
Two-thirds of women in Britain complained of period pain, he said, and three-quarters of these found the pain severe to the point of being debilitating. Traditional Chinese remedies held much promise, he added.
