Background and Aims: Inhabitants of the Purépecha Plateau preserve an excellent ancestral knowledge on medicinal plants used for dermatological affections, which has not been documented. An ethnopharmacological survey was carried out in this region to gather information on the use of medicinal plants and herbal preparations for treating dermatological affections, to disseminate the Purépecha indigenous knowledge and identifying promising plants for developing new formulations for cutaneous conditions.Methods: The study was conducted in the 21 municipalities that compose the Purépecha Plateau. A total of 86 local inhabitants (62 women and 24 men) were interviewed. The data were quantitatively analyzed through the determination of the use value, fidelity level and informant consensus factor.Key results: A total of 97 plant species belonging to 47 families were documented for treating 19 dermatological conditions on the Purépecha Plateau. Asteraceae was the leading family among the collected medicinal plants (20.61%), followed by Lamiaceae (13.40%) and Solanaceae (5.15%). The largest number of plants was used for the treatment of cuts (40.20%), skin inflammation (37.11%) and rash (37.11%). The aerial parts were the most commonly used (34.75%). The medicinal plant species with larger use values were Heterotheca inuloides (0.53), Aloe vera (0.37) and Oenothera rosea (0.21). The comparison of results with ethnomedicinal literature worldwide revealed that 8.25% of plants used on the Purépecha Plateau were recorded for the first time for the treatment of dermatological affections.Conclusions: This study provides new information on medicinal plants used on the Purépecha Plateau to treat cutaneous diseases. Future pharmacological and toxicological investigations are required to demonstrate the efficacy and safety of these species for treating dermatological affections.

No abstract

Tars are one of the most effective, unknown, and oldest therapies for psoriasis. They include coal tar (CT) and biomass‐derived products. These treatments, particularly the CT, have proven to be cost‐effective with long remission times compared to other systemic or topical treatments. However, they have hardly evolved in recent years, as they are not well‐embraced by clinicians or patients because of concerns regarding cosmesis and safety. This review summarizes current knowledge about the chemical characterization, mechanism of action, toxicity, and clinical studies supporting the use of tars for psoriasis over the last decade. Trends within these above aspects are reviewed, and avenues of research are identified. CT is rich in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, whereas biomass‐derived tars are rich in phenols. While the activation of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor is involved in the antipsoriatic effect of CT, the mechanism of action of biomass‐derived products remains to be elucidated. No conclusive evidence exists about the risk of cancer in psoriasis patients under CT treatment. Large, randomized, double‐blind, controlled clinical trials are necessary to promote the inclusion of tars as part of modern therapies for psoriasis.

La psoriasis es una enfermedad cutánea incurable que afecta a 2.9 % de la población mexicana, por lo que es trascendente analizar el impacto de la medicina traslacional en el desarrollo de medicamentos antipsoriásicos. En esta revisión se discuten conceptos etiopatogénicos de la enfermedad y se analizan artículos publicados entre 2005 y 2017 en torno a medicamentos en desarrollo, además, se presenta un análisis crítico sobre las perspectivas futuras en el desarrollo de nuevos tratamientos. El uso de estrategias bidireccionales de la medicina traslacional ha permitido incrementar significativamente el número de tratamientos antipsoriásicos disponibles. Se encontraron 18 nuevos fármacos en exploración. La caracterización de antígenos responsables de la activación inmunológica, la identificación de biomarcadores predictivos de eficacia farmacológica, el desarrollo de modelos más representativos de la enfermedad, así como la integración de aspectos farmacogenómicos a estrategias de medicina traslacional fueron identificados como elementos relevantes que deben ser incorporados en el desarrollo de nuevas opciones terapéuticas.

No abstract