Salvia Species as Sources of Natural Products with Antiprotozoal Activity

Abstract

Natural products from plants have been used since ancestral times to treat a wide variety of diseases worldwide. Plants of the genus Salvia (Sage) have been reported to be used for the prevention and treatment of various diseases and ailments. In particular, some Salvia species have been used in traditional medicine to treat diseases caused by protozoan parasites of the genera Trypanosoma, Leishmania and Plasmodium and scientific studies have demonstrated the activity of various isolated constituents from these plants against these pathogens. The current review attempts to give a critical overview of published information about the antiprotozoal activity of species of the genus Salvia and their chemical constituents. It is meant to give a unified overview of these results in order to avoid repetitions caused, e.g., by limited access to some primary reports, and to stimulate further research to possibly facilitate the development of new molecular leads against protozoal neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) based on Salvia constituents.

Antihyperglycemic and Lipid Profile Effects of Salvia amarissima Ortega on Streptozocin-Induced Type 2 Diabetic Mice

“…Three of these were preliminarily identified as terpene compounds, which could be inferred by their positive reaction to ceric sulphate, in which the color observed changed from purple to red. Plants of this family (Lamiaceae) contain a high quantity of terpenoids (monoterpenes, diterpenes, and triterpenes) [ 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 ], as in the case of S. amarissima , having been identified as neo-clerodane diterpenes, such as amarisolides, amarissinins, and teotihuacanine [ 24 , 25 , 26 , 38 , 41 ].…”

Antiparasitic phytotherapy perspectives, scope and current development

“…Diterpenes of the abietane group represent the most active compounds against T. brucei and Plasmodium falciparum, whereas phenolic compounds seem to show higher activity against Leishmania spp. The only flavonoid isolated so far from Salvia species-salvigenin -and tested against protozoa did not show any promising results 5 .…”

“…These diseases are also responsible for over 500,000 deaths per year and are characterized by long-term disability and severe pain. Both the lack Current treatment options are associated with various limitations including widespread drug resistance, severe adverse effects, lengthy treatment duration, unfavorable toxicity profiles, and complicated drug administration procedures [2][3][4][5] .…”

“…Natural products remain an interesting source of research for the discovery of new drugs to fight NTDs 9 . Several studies of crude plant extracts have already identified potential compounds to treat Chagas' disease, Leishmaniasis, Toxoplasmosis, Giardiasis, Malaria among other protozoan parasites [2][3][4][5][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27] . Natural compounds of medicinal plants have shown lower toxicity together with higher specificity, creating an optimistic view of new treatments for diseases, since they contain countless molecules with a great variety of structures and pharmacological activities.…”

Essential Oils as a Potential Treatment Option for Pediculosis

“…The genus Salvia comprises roughly 1000 species that have been demonstrated to possess significant antitumor [89], antiprotozoal [90], and insecticidal activities against Anopheles, Aedes, and Culex mosquitoes [91]. Some species, such as Salvia officinalis (sage), were reported to be effective against head lice [32].…”