marapuama

The goal of acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (AChEIs) used to treat Alzheimer's patients is an improvement in cholinergic transmission. While currently available AChEIs have limited success, a huge impediment to the development of newer ones is access to the relevant brain areas. Promnesic, anti-amnesic and AChEI properties were identified in a standardized ethanol extract from Ptychopetalum olacoides (POEE), a medicinal plant favored by the elderly in Amazon communities. The purpose of this study was to provide conclusive evidence that orally given POEE induces AChE inhibition in brain areas relevant to cognition...

UNLABELLED: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is expected to affect more than 22 million people worldwide by 2025, causing devastating suffering and enormous costs to families and society. AD is a multifactorial disease, with a complex pathological mosaic. In rodents, AD-like dementia can be induced by cerebral microinjection of Aβ peptide, leading to amyloid deposits, amnesia and various features of neurodegeneration. Marapuama (Ptychopetalum olacoides) is regarded as a "brain tonic" in the Amazon region and shows a nootropic profile in rodents...

With the recognition that high levels of sustained stress are associated with the natural course of countless illnesses, effective anti-stress agents have gained importance. Improved endurance to particularly stressful periods is one of the medicinal claims for Marapuama (Ptychopetalum olacoides Bentham, PO), a popular Amazonian herbal. The purpose of this study was to evaluate if PO possesses anti-stress properties. To this end, an extract from PO (POEE) was evaluated on anxiety and glucose levels in mice submitted to the unpredictable chronic mild stress (UCMS) paradigm...

Depression has become of universal major importance, and it is therefore vital to expand the armamentarium for treating the condition. Lack of motivation and lassitude are major symptoms treated with the use of Marapuama (Ptychopetalum olacoides, PO) remedies by communities in the Brazilian Amazon. Considering the prominence of such symptoms in depression, the present study was designed to verify the effects of a standardized PO ethanol extract (POEE) on the forced swimming (FST) and tail suspension tests (TST)...

Nootropic, antioxidant, and neuroprotective properties have been shown in a standardized ethanol extract of Ptychopetalum olacoides (POEE), a medicinal plant traditionally used by the Amazonian elderly population. It has been revealed that POEE mechanisms of action include anticholinesterase effects, and involve beta-adrenergic and dopamine D(1) receptors. The purpose of this study was to verify the role of serotonin receptors in the promnesic effects of this standardized extract. The step-down task in mice and selective serotonin antagonists were used...

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY RELEVANCE: Ptychopetalum olacoides Bentham (PO) (Olacaceae), known as Marapuama, is regarded as a "nerve tonic" in the Amazon. Traditional uses include states of lassitude with noticeable lack of desire/motivation, and to manage particularly stressful (physical and/or psychological) circumstances. Suggestive of antidepressant activity, we have established that a specific PO ethanol extract (POEE) significantly decreases immobility in the tail suspension and forced swimming tests...

A new derivative spectrophotometric (DS) method was proposed and validated for quantification of total flavonoids from in O/W emulsion with polyacrylamide (and) C13-14 isoparaffin (and) laureth-7 containing Catuaba (Trichilia catigua Adr. Juss) (and) Marapuama (Ptychopetalum olacoides Bentham) extract. DS method was optimized to perform the assay in most favorable conditions. Linearity, specificity and selectivity, recovery (Rc, %), precision (R.S.D., %), accuracy (E, %), detection (LOD, microg ml(-1)) and quantification limits (LOQ, microg ml(-1)) were established for method validation...

Alcohol infusions of roots of Ptychopetalum olacoides Benth. (PO), known as Marapuama or Muirapuama, are used in the Brazilian Amazon as a 'nerve tonic'. Over the years PO has been found increasingly in phytoformulations and regarded as a stimulant, claimed to enhance physical and mental performances. This study determined that a P. olacoides ethanol extract (30, 100 and 300 mg/kg) decreased exploratory behaviour in the hole-board test, without interfering with locomotion or motor coordination (rota-rod test)...