Artemisia scoparia and Metabolic Health: Untapped Potential of an Ancient Remedy for Modern Use

Abstract

Botanicals have a long history of medicinal use for a multitude of ailments, and many modern pharmaceuticals were originally isolated from plants or derived from phytochemicals. Among these, artemisinin, first isolated from Artemisia annua, is the foundation for standard anti-malarial therapies. Plants of the genus Artemisia are among the most common herbal remedies across Asia and Central Europe. The species Artemisia scoparia (SCOPA) is widely used in traditional folk medicine for various liver diseases and inflammatory conditions, as well as for infections, fever, pain, cancer, and diabetes. Modern in vivo and in vitro studies have now investigated SCOPA’s effects on these pathologies and its ability to mitigate hepatotoxicity, oxidative stress, obesity, diabetes, and other disease states. This review focuses on the effects of SCOPA that are particularly relevant to metabolic health. Indeed, in recent years, an ethanolic extract of SCOPA has been shown to enhance differentiation of cultured adipocytes and to share some properties of thiazolidinediones (TZDs), a class of insulin-sensitizing agonists of the adipogenic transcription factor PPARγ. In a mouse model of diet-induced obesity, SCOPA diet supplementation lowered fasting insulin and glucose levels, while inducing metabolically favorable changes in adipose tissue and liver. These observations are consistent with many lines of evidence from various tissues and cell types known to contribute to metabolic homeostasis, including immune cells, hepatocytes, and pancreatic beta-cells. Compounds belonging to several classes of phytochemicals have been implicated in these effects, and we provide an overview of these bioactives. The ongoing global epidemics of obesity and metabolic disease clearly require novel therapeutic approaches. While the mechanisms involved in SCOPA’s effects on metabolic, anti-inflammatory, and oxidative stress pathways are not fully characterized, current data support further investigation of this plant and its bioactives as potential therapeutic agents in obesity-related metabolic dysfunction and many other conditions.

Green synthesis of copper nanoparticles using Artemisia annua aqueous extract and its characterization, antioxidant and burn wound healing activities

“…Artemisia plants, which belong to the Asteraceae family, are among the most common traditional and modern herbal remedies across Asia and Central Europe. They comprise hundreds of species and have been traditionally used to treat respiratory disorders, cancers, infections, digestive problems, malaria, hypertension, and allergies [12]. Additionally, some of them were identi ed as promising compounds in the wound healing by reducing the in ammatory cells and improving the keratinocytes in ltration [13].…”

An Artemisia scoparia extract attenuates glucocorticoid‐induced lipolysis in adipocytes

“…Extracts of the plant species Artemisia scoparia (SCO) have long been used in parts of Europe and Asia as homeopathic remedies for a variety of ailments, including inflammatory conditions and diabetes [32]. Previous studies have shown that an SCO extract significantly reduced tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα)-stimulated lipolysis in adipocytes in vitro [33].…”

Inhibitory Effects of Sesquiterpenoids Isolated from Artemisia scoparia on Adipogenic Differentiation of 3T3-L1 Preadipocytes

“…It is distributed in Korea, Japan, Mongolia, Russia, Northern India, Central Asia, and Europe. Young shoots of A. scoparia have been traditionally used in folk medicine to treat fever, gout, jaundice, and urinary and skin disorders [ 25 , 26 ]. Flavonoids, coumarins, phenols, alkynes, terpenoids, sterols, and essential oils [ 27 , 28 ] have been isolated from A. scoparia , and various biological activity studies, such as anti-cancer, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, and antibacterial, have been published testing A. scoparia extracts and active compounds [ 28 ].…”