Journal of Analytical & Bioanalytical Techniques
Open Access

Abstract

The use of medicinal plants for treating diseases is the oldest existing method that humanity has tried to cope with illness, in high-income countries, the widespread use of Phytotherapy declined at the end of the first era of the twentieth century, due to the development and production of synthetic medicine, however during the past few decades, the use of Phytotherapy started to increase in low and middle income countries and even in industrial countries. Therefore complementary and alternative medicine usage would be expected to be high. Most allergy patients are self-medicate as they got bored of using medicine due to its long term usage. Histamine is one of the main allergic mediators released in episodes of bronchial asthma. Mast cells in the lungs are a rich source of the histamine released in asthma attacks, which when they are triggered immunologically (IgE/anti-IgE) or chemically (compound 48/80) they release numerous allergy molecules. Therefore this study aimed to evaluate a water herbal tea of eight herbs (chamomile, saffron, anise, fennel, caraway, licorice, cardamom and black seed) as inhibitory drug for histamine release in-vitro and in-vivo study. The inhibitory effect was compared to that of the flavonoid quercetin. The herbal tea inhibited histamine release from chemically and immunologically induced cells by 81% and 85%, respectively. The clinical results showed significant improvements of sleep discomfort cough frequency and cough intensity in addition to increased percentages of FEV1/ FVC in patients suffering from allergic asthma, who used the herbal tea compared to those who used the placebo tea.

Biography

Eman G. Haggag has received her Ph.D. through Scientific Channel program between Helwan University, Cairo, Egypt and Texas University, Austin USA. She worked in Tufts University, Boston, USA, George-August University, Germany, Dubai Pharmacy College, UAE and now she is the head, Pharmacognosy Dept., Pharmacy School, Helwan University. She has attended international conferences in Colorado, Algeria and Dubai. She has supervised more than 10 of Master and Ph.D. students? thesis in active constituents' isolation and identification from medicinal herbs. She has published more than 25 papers in reputed journals. She is a holder of an international patent for an herbal tea for treatment of bronchial asthma.