'Borthekera,' An Assamese Medicinal Plant Has Cardioprotective Potential

Slices of the ripe fruit that have been sun-dried are used in both cooking and medicine, and they have been shown to have beneficial effects on blood sugar control, nephroprotection, inflammation, and even neuroprotective activity. 

When the dried pulp of the ripe fruit of the 'Borthekera' medicinal plant was administered, it decreased the signs of cardiac hypertrophy, oxidative stress, and heart inflammation brought on by ISO. Numerous studies have suggested that Garcinia pedunculata is a rich source of antioxidants, and scientific investigations are being conducted to support these claims. The cardioprotective potential hasn't yet been investigated, though.

The potential for this medicinal plant to prevent heart diseases was investigated by researchers at the Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST), an independent institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST). For 28 days, Wistar rats received a double dose of the herb's bioactive chloroform fraction (GC) at intervals of 24 hours (85mg/kg BW).

Following the isoproterenol-induced myocardial infarction model, isoproterenol was injected to evaluate the therapeutic effect. The analysis of all the animals revealed that the disease group had significant ST wave elevation, indicating myocardial infarction, which was reversed with the administration of atenolol and GC. ST wave elevation is the segment that represents the time interval between the depolarization and repolarization of the heart's ventricles.

Cardiac troponin I, tissue lipid peroxidation, serum inflammatory markers, cardiac hypertrophy, and cardiac troponin-I were all significantly increased in the disease group but remained close to normal levels in the GC pretreated groups. The GC-treated groups also underwent changes to their endogenous antioxidants. Under the direction of Dr. Rajlakshmi Devi, Swarnali Bhattacharjee, SRF, has attributed these improvements to GC's excellent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, which helped shield the heart from damage brought on by isoproterenol

Additionally, the chemical analysis of the chloroform fraction showed the presence of active phytocompounds like hydroxycitric acid, hydroxycitric acid lactone, and parvifoliquinone in addition to substances like GB-1a, Garcinone A, 9-Hydroxycalabaxanthone, Chlorogenic acid, and Garcinol. All of these compounds are probably what caused the therapeutic effects mentioned in this study. All of these findings strongly suggest that the G. pedunculata fruit, which is widely available in Northeast India, has good cardioprotective potential.