Peptic ulcer is among the most serious gastrointestinal diseases in the world. Several orthodox drugs are employed for the treatment of the disease. Although these drugs are effective, they produce many adverse effects thus limiting their use. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in alternative therapies, especially those from plants due to their perceived relative lower side effects, ease of accessibility, and affordability. Plant medicines with ethnomedicinal use in peptic ulcer management need to be screened for their effectiveness and possible isolation of lead compounds. This requires use of appropriate animal models of various ulcers. The limited number of antiulcer models for drug development against gastric and duodenal ulcer studies has hindered the progress of targeted therapy in this field. It is, therefore, necessary to review the literature on experimental models used to screen agents with potential antigastroduodenal ulcer activity and explain their biochemical basis in order to facilitate their use in the development of new preventive and curative antiulcer drugs. Clinical trials can then be carried out on agents/drugs that show promise. In this paper, currentin vivoanimal models of ulcers and the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying their induction, their limitations, as well as the challenges associated with their use have been discussed.

Background. Till date, there is no known antidote to cure diabetes mellitus despite the discovery and development of diverse pharmacotherapeutic agents many years ago. Technological advancement in natural product chemistry has led to the isolation of analogs of vitexin and isovitexin found in diverse bioresources. These compounds have been extensively studied to explore their pharmacological relevance in diabetes mellitus. Aim of the Study. The present review was to compile results from in vitro and in vivo studies performed with vitexin and isovitexin derivatives relating to diabetes mellitus and its complications. A systematic online literature query was executed to collect all relevant articles published up to March 2020. Results. In this piece, we have collected data and presented it in a one-stop document to support the multitargeted mechanistic actions of vitexin and isovitexin in controlling diabetes mellitus and its complications. Conclusion. Data collected hint that vitexin and isovitexin work by targeting diverse pathophysiological and metabolic pathways and molecular drug points involved in the clinical manifestations of diabetes mellitus. This is expected to provide a deeper understanding of its actions and also serve as a catapult for clinical trials and application research.

Background. Available data indicate that diabetes mellitus leads to elevated cost of healthcare. This imposes a huge economic burden on households, societies, and nations. As a result many Ghanaians, especially rural folks, resort to the use of phytomedicine, which is relatively less expensive. This paper aims at obtaining information on plants used in Ghana to treat diabetes mellitus, gather and present evidence-based data available to support their uses and their mechanisms of action, and identify areas for future research.Method. A catalogue of published textbooks, monographs, theses, and peer-reviewed articles of plants used in Ghanaian traditional medicine between 1987 and July 2018 for managing diabetes mellitus was obtained and used.Results. The review identified 76 plant species belonging to 45 families that are used to manage diabetes mellitus. Leaves were the part of the plants frequently used for most preparation (63.8%) and were mostly used as decoctions. Majority of the plants belonged to the Euphorbiaceae, Lamiaceae, Asteraceae, and Apocynaceae families. Pharmacological data were available on 23 species that have undergonein vitrostudies. Forty species have been studied usingin vivoanimal models. Only twelve plants and their bioactive compounds were found with data on both preclinical and clinical studies. The records further indicate that medicinal plants showing antidiabetic effects did so via biochemical mechanisms such as restitution of pancreaticβ-cell function, improvement in insulin sensitivity by receptors, stimulating rate of insulin secretion, inhibition of liver gluconeogenesis, enhanced glucose absorption, and inhibition of G-6-Pase,α-amylase, andα-glucosidase activities.Conclusion. This review contains information on medicinal plants used to manage diabetes mellitus, including their pharmacological properties and mechanisms of action as well as models used to investigate them. It also provides gaps that can form the basis for further investigations and development into useful medications for effective treatment of diabetes mellitus.

Phcog Rev, Official publication of Pharmacognosy Network Worldwide, India Phcog Rev, Official publication of Pharmacognosy Network Worldwide, India

Data onHelicobacter pylori(H. pylori) infection and virulence factors in countries across West Africa are scattered. This systematic review seeks to present an update on the status ofH. pyloriinfection focusing on prevalence rate, distribution of virulent genes, and their link to clinical outcomes across countries in the western part of Africa. This information is expected to broaden the knowledge base of clinicians and researchers regardingH. pyloriinfection and associated virulence factors in West African countries.Search Method.A comprehensive search of the scientific literature in PubMed and ScienceDirect was conducted using the search terms including “Helicobacter pyloriinfection in West Africa”. Databases were sourced from January 1988 to December 2018.Results.Data on the incidence ofH. pyloriinfection and related pathological factors were found for some countries, whereas others had no information on it. Smoking, alcohol, exposure to high levels of carcinogens and diet were reported to be involved in the pathogenesis of gastroduodenal diseases and gastric cancer. Besides the environmental factors and genetic characteristics, there are important characteristics ofH. pylorisuch as the ability to infect, replicate, and persist in a host that have been associated with the pathogenesis of various gastroduodenal diseases.Concluding Remarks.This systematic search has provided information so far available onH. pylorivirulence factors and clinical outcomes in West Africa. Accordingly, this piece has identified gaps in the body of knowledge highlighting the need for more studies to clarify the role ofH. pylorivirulence factors and associated clinical outcomes in the burden of this bacterial infection in West Africa, as data from these countries do not give the needed direct relation.