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Today, the term buchu refers to the two species in commerce, Agathosma betulina (P.J.Bergius) Pillans and Agathosma crenulata (L.) Pillans (Rutaceae). Its traditional use in urinary tract infections and related ailments made it a popular remedy, specifically in the US, in 19th century, but with the advent of antibiotics it became largely obsolete. Recent focus is on technological use and on the essential oil for use in the perfume and food-flavouring industry. A review of the scarce pharmacological research revealed moderate antimicrobial activity for a leaf extract but not the essential oil of both species in the MIC assay. In the 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) assay the essential oil of both species revealed IC50 values of 50.37 ± 1.87 μg/ml and 59.15 ± 7.44 μg/ml, respectively. In another study 98% inhibitory activity was determined for 250 μg/ml of an ethanolic extract of A. betulina on cyclooxygenase (COX)-1 and a 25% inhibitory activity on COX-2. Analgesic activity of an ethanolic extract of A. betulina was shown in mice. Moderate antioxidant activity was determined for methanol:dichlormethane extracts of A. betulina and A. crenulata and an aqueous extract of A. betulina showed a Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) of 11.8 µM Trolox. Recent in vitro studies with a commercial aqueous extract of buchu revealed increased uptake of glucose added to 3T3-L1 cell line, significant inhibition of the respiratory burst of neutrophils and monocytes, reduction in the expression of adhesion molecules and inhibition of the release of IL-6 and TNF-α. In diabetic rats the ingestion of aqueous buchu extract completely normalized the glucose level and in rats receiving a high fat diet the consumption of aqueous buchu extract resulted in less weight gain and less intraperitoneal fat gain as well as reduction of elevated blood pressure to normal associated with cardioprotective effects. Limitations in the hitherto conducted research lie in the undisclosed composition of the buchu extracts used and the difficulty in extrapolating data from animal studies to humans. Health claims for buchu products need to be substantiated by randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled studies. Only then can they be promoted for their true therapeutic potential.
It is common knowledge that plants have been the world-wide most important source of medicines and that they still play this role in developing countries. However, up to now, complete lists of medicinal and aromatic plants (MAP) exist for comparatively few countries. A review of all lists know to the authors reveals the following results: A total of 20.7 % of the plant species analyzed by either publications or own research are or were used as MAP. However, regarding single countries, the differences are considerably high. Absolutely leading the list are China (36.2 %), Burkina Faso (35.2 %) and the Korean Republic (34.5 %). Also ahead of other countries or regions are the North of Benin (32.8 %) and the entire Pakistan (30.3 %). Still above average rank Great Britain (26.7 %) and Nepal (23.3 %), while the figures for Bul¬garia (21.0 %), Germany (20.2 %) and France (19.4 %) almost represent the average. Jordan (17.3 %), Vietnam (17.1 %), Sri Lanka (16.6 %), India (16.1 %) and Thailand (15.5 %) rank slightly beneath. Clearly below the average are the percentages of MAP for Hungary (12.2 %) and the USA (11.8 %). The average numbers of MAP in the Philippines (9.5 %) and Malaysia (7.7 %) fall far behind. Calculated on a worldwide scale, every fifth plant can be regarded as MAP. This number matches that from Bulgaria, France and Germany. In northern Benin, Burkina Faso, Korea, China and Pakistan, however, every third plant is or was used as MAP, whereas in Hungary and the USA only every eighth plant can be regarded as MAP. This number drops even further for the Philippines ore Malaysia where only every tenth or thirteenth plant can be attributed to medicinal or aromatic use. These differences might be due to various factors. A geographical component of the results is obvious: in most cases geographically close countries show similar percentages. A correlation between the total number of species and the fraction of those used as MAP cannot be confirmed. The countries with percentage of MAP > 30 % in common show that they belong either entirely (Burkina Faso, Benin) or at least in their rural areas to the poorest countries of the world so that it is (was) impossible for the majority of the people to buy "modern" MAP. In those countries the number of traditional healers outnumbers largely the number of modern doctors. Therefore, the tradition of folk medicine was maintained until today. Additionally, China, Korea and partially Pakistan have a very old and well documented tradition of folk medicine. Due to this documentation even in areas where today "modern MAP" are used, the knowledge was not lost. In neighboring countries or regions, which differ with respect to a more arid or a more humid climate, for the arid country (region) more MAPs are reported than for the humid one. The potential reasons for this phenomenon are discussed in the paper. For many countries the percentage given for MAP in literature is too low. But even these low values represent a striking argument for the importance of a world-wide conservation of biodiversity.