Assessing bioactivities of medicinal plants and isolated phytochemicals - A spectrum of strategies from molecular interactions to informatics

Several experimental strategies for assessing potential physiological targets and therapeutic activities of medicinal plants are outlined in this paper. The main biomedical assessment strategies presented involve bioactivities of plant extracts, purified flavonoid and non-flavonoid polyphenols, and other phytochemicals in terms of (i) antioxidant effects in assays of potential pathological relevance, e.g., neurodegenerative diseases, and (ii) effects on selected cellular signaling and transport pathways that have a wide range of biomedical implications. Beyond the molecular and cellular levels, (iii) an informatics approach is presented for assessing associations of medicinal plants with specific pathological and other biomedical parameters. We discuss and analyze relevant activities of isolated phytochemicals such as quercetin, resveratrol and ascorbate, as well as those of a cultivar of plants and plant extracts, e.g., Capsicum annuum L. (Solanacaea), Allium sativum L. (Alliaceae), Echinacea purpurea Moench (Asteracea), Vaccinium myrtillus L. (Ericacaea).