The Potency of the Genus Uncaria from East Borneo for Herbal Medicine Purposes: A Mini-review

Abstract

Uncaria is a genus of plants that are widely distributed in the tropics. There are about 5 of the 38 species of this genus growing in the tropical rain forests of East Borneo, Indonesia. For a long time, Uncaria is commonly used as a traditional medicine to treat various diseases by the Dayak tribe in Kalimantan, traditional people believe that Uncaria may be cured cancer, tumors, mioms, and cycts. Based on previous studies, the activity of the genus Uncaria has been widely reported such as cytotoxic, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antidiabetic, and thrombolytic activities. This article aims to summarize the potential of the Uncaria genus, focusing on 5 species from East Borneo, namely Uncaria nervosa, Uncaria longiflora, Uncaria gambir, Uncaria tomentosa and Uncaria cordata. The method used in this article is a literature study by collecting previous research articles related to the Uncaria genus. The results of the literature study show that the Uncaria genus in East Borneo has many secondary metabolites with diverse chemical structures that show good biological potential so that they can be used as broad and promising insights for drug discovery and development. This paper is also expected to provide input for the policy of conservation of medicinal plants in the forests of East Borneo.

Cytotoxic Activity, Cell Migration and Apoptosis Effects of Uncaria nervosa Elmer Leaf Fractions on MCF-7 HER 2 Cells

“…It was reported that this plant had moderate activity on MCF-7 cancer cells with an IC50 of 22.74μg/ml. 25,26…”

Uncaria-derived alkaloids: A review on the mechanism in inducing apoptosis in oral squamous cell carcinoma

“…The Uncaria genus has around 34 species that are geographically spread in tropical regions, specifically Asia, Africa and Southeast America [20], [22]. Recently, many studies have been conducted regarding the genus Uncaria and reported that plants of the genus Uncaria have various pharmacological effects [23], such as treating wounds and ulcers, fever, asthma, rheumatism, hyperpyrexia, anti-inflammatory, hypertension, antioxidant, gastrointestinal diseases, antibacterial, antifungal, antiprotozoal, antiviral, anticancer, anticonvulsant, antidepressant, antithrombotic, antidiabetic, stroke, epilepsy and neurodegenerative diseases [24 -30]. Based on phytochemical studies carried out, alkaloids are secondary metabolite compounds that are proven to be the most common and found in the genus Uncaria [26], [31 -34].…”

GC-MS and LC-MS/MS Analysis of Secondary Metabolites in the Methanolic Extract of Uncaria callophylla Blume ex Korth. Stems

“…The water comes out from the cut stems, usually drunk, to increase or restore stamina while working in the forest. The dried powder of the stem is often used to treat scabs and wounds by sprinkling them on top of the wound, which has been practiced for hundreds of years (Almeida et al, 2022).…”

“…The potential for the development of leads from Uncaria continues to grow, particularly in the area of immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory and vascular-related conditions (Heitzman et al, 2004;Zhang et al, 2015;Qin et al, 2021). Uncaria species that most studied are Uncaria gambir, Uncaria nervosa, Uncaria longiflora, Uncaria tomentosa, Uncaria cordata, Uncaria macrophylla, Uncaria rhynchophylla, and Uncaria hirsuta (Almeida et al, 2022;Munggari et al, 2022;Huang et al, 2021). Uncaria callophylla is one of the Uncaria species that is still under-researched.…”