U of G prof developing holistic solutions to health issues

JOEY SABLJIC, FOR THE MERCURY

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the second instalment of Mind and Bodies – a series that will look at University of Guelph research into improving people’s lives and health. These articles are written by participants in the Students Promoting Awareness of Research Knowledge (SPARK) program at the university.

GUELPH — The natural-medicine industry has bloomed from a small, niche market two decades ago, to a multi-billion dollar industry today. Yet, despite plant-based supplements and medicines becoming increasingly mainstream, relatively little is known about their effects on human health — or, for that matter, how to safely cultivate and reap their medicinal rewards.

University of Guelph plant agriculture Prof. Praveen Saxena wants to change all that. In his Guelph lab, he and his research team are combining cloning, tissue culture and controlled environment greenhouses to grow and mass-produce medicinal plants that are renowned in different cultures and traditions around the world, starting with Ayurveda.

Ayurveda is a traditional medicine system native to India. It uses botanical and medicinal knowledge to help its practitioners select the most effective plants to treat and prevent sickness and disease. Saxena says Ayurveda offers people natural ways to fight signs of aging, boost their immune systems, reduce stress, combat depression and even prevent the progression of other related neurological disorders.
“If Canadians start growing (Ayurveda) plants which then became part of a regular diet, it could be really positive,” he says. “People’s enthusiasm in holistic lifestyle is increasing rapidly and they are starting to wake up to medicinal plants.”

One such plant being cultivated by Saxena is tulsi, or holy basil, a plant that has been used for thousands of years in sacred cultural and spiritual practices. Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum) is consumed on a daily basis as a tea, as a powder, and as a food additive in Southeast Asia, where it’s highly regarded for its reported antibiotic, antiviral and antifungal properties.

Research has shown that tulsi, along with many other Ayurvedic plants, popularly referred to as “brain tonic” can help improve certain brain functions and possibly delay the onset of some neurological diseases. .

Saxena says a plant’s medicinal content is drawn mostly from the phytochemicals it releases to repel insects and other predators, and to adapt to harsh climates. But in a natural field setting, no two plants are chemically identical, meaning that the amount of desirable medicinal compound in them can vary widely.

That’s where Saxena comes in. Through cloning and tissue culture growth in controlled environment chambers and in his greenhouse, he’s able to select plants with the highest amounts of medicinal compounds. Then, using tissue culture from one of the plants’ roots or leaves, he can generate thousands of genetically identical plants—all featuring the same medicinal content—in a safe and contamination-free greenhouse environment.

And thanks to the rich literature on Ayurvedic medicine, the best time to harvest, process, and eat certain plants for the ideal results has already been made widely available.

“Plant medicines are a big business today and introducing safe and reliable products from medicinal plants commonly consumed by growing ethnic populations can be profitable for the Canadian economy” says Saxena. “The key lies in the fact that we need to introduce novel plants that have been proven safe and effective over a period of time in many cultures and populations with proven benefits.”

Other plants being investigated in the Saxena lab include St. John’s wort (also known as “nature’s Prozac,” whose contents can help ease depression) and ginseng, which is reported to have anti-diabetic and anti-cancer properties.
This research receives funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, the Ontario Research Fund and the Gosling Foundation

http://news.guelphmercury.com/News/Local/article/705933

http://bionutritionalresearch.olhblogspace.com

http://back2basicnutrition.com/