Phytotherapeutic potentials of selected Middle East natural products
5th International Conference and Exhibition on Pharmaceutics & Novel Drug Delivery Systems
March 16-18, 2015 Crowne Plaza, Dubai, UAE

Maha Aboul-Ela, Karim Raafat and Abdalla El-Lakany

Scientific Tracks Abstracts: Pharm Anal Acta

Abstract:

The Middle East region is a major source of phytotherapeutic natural products. Different pharmacological studies on the Middle East medicinal plants revealed their significant importance as new sources of drugs. Focusing on endocrinal and neurological diseases, a number of Middle East plants had shown significant potentials towards these diseases. Salvia libanotica fruticosa, Centaurea horrida; Hordeum spontaneum and Rheum ribes are herbal plants indigenous to ME region and had shown notable effects on Diabetes mellitus and one of its related complication; the painful diabetic neuropathy. Diabetic neuropathy is the leading cause of neuropathy in the world today. Diabetic neuropathy has a few approved therapies for the management of pain with limited efficacy and side effects. With the aim to explore and develop new phytotherapeutic agents, we investigated the antidiabetic and antihyperalgesic properties of some Middle East natural products in alloxaninduced diabetic mice. The results of our experiments indicated that, these plants exhibited a remarkable effect against diabetic neuropathy. More experiments should be done to complete these plants? profile before their dispensing in suitable dosage forms to facilitate their delivery to the targeted sites.

Biography :

Maha Aboul Ela, graduate of Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Alexandria, Egypt. Ph D in Pharmaceutical Sciences (Pharmacognosy) 1991, University of Alexandria-Egypt and Technical University of Berlin-Germany. She had done her Postdoctoral fellowship, from School of Pharmacy, University of London, UK. She is Member of the American Society of Pharmacognosy. She is also Member of the editorial board of many international scientific journals. Currently, she is head of department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Beirut Arab University, Lebanon.She is Expert in QA in Higher Education. Research interest: Phytochemistry, Phytotherapy, discovering new drugs from natural sources and participation in drug development through applying different pharmaceutical approaches, more than 55 publications in the field of phytochemistry, medicinal plants and phytotherapy.