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Review
. 2018 Aug 21:9:557.
doi: 10.3389/fphar.2018.00557. eCollection 2018.

Berberine: Botanical Occurrence, Traditional Uses, Extraction Methods, and Relevance in Cardiovascular, Metabolic, Hepatic, and Renal Disorders

Maria A Neag  1 , Andrei Mocan  2 , Javier Echeverría  3 , Raluca M Pop  1 , Corina I Bocsan  1 , Gianina Crişan  2 , Anca D Buzoianu  1
Affiliations
Review

Berberine: Botanical Occurrence, Traditional Uses, Extraction Methods, and Relevance in Cardiovascular, Metabolic, Hepatic, and Renal Disorders

Maria A Neag et al. Front Pharmacol. .

Abstract

Berberine-containing plants have been traditionally used in different parts of the world for the treatment of inflammatory disorders, skin diseases, wound healing, reducing fevers, affections of eyes, treatment of tumors, digestive and respiratory diseases, and microbial pathologies. The physico-chemical properties of berberine contribute to the high diversity of extraction and detection methods. Considering its particularities this review describes various methods mentioned in the literature so far with reference to the most important factors influencing berberine extraction. Further, the common separation and detection methods like thin layer chromatography, high performance liquid chromatography, and mass spectrometry are discussed in order to give a complex overview of the existing methods. Additionally, many clinical and experimental studies suggest that berberine has several pharmacological properties, such as immunomodulatory, antioxidative, cardioprotective, hepatoprotective, and renoprotective effects. This review summarizes the main information about botanical occurrence, traditional uses, extraction methods, and pharmacological effects of berberine and berberine-containing plants.

Keywords: berberine; biological activities; botanical occurrence; extraction methods; traditional uses.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Berberine structure (according to ChemSpider database).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Short view on berberine extraction methods.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Therapeutic effects of berberine in vivo. Mechanisms of berberine in regulation of metabolism, immunity and oxidative reactions. Phosphodiesterase (PDE), cyclic 3′,5′-adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), phosphoinositide 3-kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/AKT), Janus kinase/signal transducers and activators of transcription (JAK/STAT), glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK3β), superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA), nitric oxide (NO), cholesterol acyltransferases (ACAT2), dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP 4), proprotein convertase subtilisin kexin 9 (PCSK9).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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