A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW ON THE SCAVENGING AND ELUCIDATING EFFICACY OF BACOPA MONNIERI AS A THYROID STIMULANT

A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW ON THE SCAVENGING AND ELUCIDATING EFFICACY OF BACOPA MONNIERI AS A THYROID STIMULANT

Surbhi Chourasiya and Payal Mahobiya *

Endocrinology Lab, Department of Zoology, School of Biological Sciences, Dr. Harisingh Gour Vishwavidyalaya Sagar, Madhya Pradesh India.

ABSTRACT: In Indian and Chinese medicine, the herb Bacopa monnieri, (Neer Brahmi) has long been used to treat a wide range of illnesses. Brahmi offers a wide range of pharmacological advantages, including improving memory in the treatment of schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease. The effectiveness of Brahmi in scavenging and illuminating as well as comprehensive analyses based on its pharmacological effects on the thyroid are the focus of the current review. Up until April 2022, PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar were searched to find information about the effectiveness of Bacopa monnieri in treating thyroid disorders. The review's conclusions provide an overview of the information gathered over the preceding five years from various platforms and database libraries. For all calculated data, a number of outcomes were combined into verified constructs to enable direct comparisons. Four papers satisfied the criteria for inclusion in this review. This extensive study provided a summary of Bacopa monnieri's effectiveness in scavenging free radicals and deciphering thyroid disorders. It's time to move on to other prevalent problems because a recent research on Brahmi's efficacy in treating neurological conditions has generated considerable interest. In order to address thyroid hormone dysregulation and oxidative stress brought on by specific environmental stimuli, the focus of this review is on the safe application of Bacopa monnieri as a thyroid therapy. However, reproducible trial designs and rigorous statistical analysis are crucial for validating the efficacy of Bacopa monnieri in future therapies for thyroid hormone dysregulation and oxidative stress in the body.

Keywords: Bacopa monnieri, Ayurveda, Thyroid stimulants, Oxidative stress, Brahmi

INTRODUCTION: Medicinal plants have played an essential role in preventing and controlling ailments in human society from the dawn of humanity. According to the World Health Organization, herbal medicines help over 80% of the world's population, notably millions living in rural parts of poor nations. Bacopa monnieri is a medicinal plant in the Scrophulariaceae family that has been used in traditional medicine to treat a variety of neurological diseases as well as to improve memory and cognition. Neer Brahmi is the local name for this medicinal plant ¹. Bacopa monnieri is a creeping perennial herb that grows in wetlands and muddy beaches. The leaves are succulent, thick, oblanceolate, and oppositely placed on the stalk. It can be found in moist marshy and damp areas all over India. It can also be found in Nepal, Sri Lanka, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, and a few southern states in the United States ².

Bacopa monnieri extract contains bacosides, which are B triterpenoid saponins. Bacosides are a group of 12 analogs that have been identified. Bacosides I–XII are new saponins that have just been discovered. Along with D-mannitol, apigenin, hersaponin, monnierasides I–III, cucurbitacins and plantain side B, the alkaloids brahmin, nicotine, and herpes time have been cataloged. Alkaloids, saponins, and sterols are compounds responsible for Bacopa's pharmacological actions. Over 40 years ago, India identified many active ingredients, including the alkaloids Brahmin and her pastime, saponins d-mannitol and hersaponin, acid A and monnier. Betulin, stigmasterol, beta-sitosterol, and a variety of bacosides and bacopa saponins have all been discovered as active constituents ³.

The therapeutic characteristics of Bacopa monnieri have emphasized the importance of using the plant to treat a variety of illnesses. Bacopa monnieri's unique properties have led to its usage in Ayurvedic formulations and traditional medicine, either alone or in combination with other therapeutic plants. The synergistic effects of several herbs may also aid in the speedier treatment of certain disorders. Hypothyroidism is a state of hormone deficit that is caused by intrinsic dysfunction of the thyroid gland. This dysfunction impairs the synthesis and production of T4 and T3 hormones in the body, leading to hypothyroidism. Hypothyroidism, which affects five percent of the general population, is one of the endocrine diseases that are most prevalent. There is a possibility that up to 15 percent of older persons have a mild form of hypothyroidism ⁴.

Women are more likely to be affected than males. According to a survey carried out by the Indian thyroid society, one in every ten persons in India has hypothyroidism. According to the survey findings, hypothyroidism is three times more common in women than in males, particularly among people aged 46 to 54 years old. A significant section of the patient population may go undiagnosed and untreated, even though the condition will continue to hurt the daily quality of life, work performance and economic output ⁵. The herb Brahmi (Bacopa monnieri) is used to treat depression, anxiety and chronic stress ⁶. Much of the research looked at the effects of this medication combination in hypothyroidism. But no studies should be done on toxicological thyroid dysfunction due to environmental factors like pesticide toxicity ²³. Most pharmacological investigations have demonstrated that these herbal medicines can stimulate the thyroid gland to generate more T4 hormones ^7-9. Ayurvedic scriptures mention Bacopa monnieri's usage in additional pathophysiological diseases besides neuroprotection. Antidepressant activity ¹⁰, anticancer impact ¹¹, anti-inflammatory ¹², antistress action ¹³, bronchodilatory effect ¹⁴ and endocrine effect ^7, effect all assessed by researchers. Several investigations have shown that B. monnieri has therapeutic promise in a variety of diseases ¹⁵. Pretreatment with extracts of B. monnieri and bacoside reduced toxicity in animal models of diabetes, ischemia, aluminum toxicity and cigarette smoking-induced toxicity. Reduced lipid peroxidation and increased the activity of antioxidant enzymes ²⁴.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: To evaluate the effectiveness of Bacopa monnieri as a treatment for thyroid problems, searches were conducted in PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar between April (2018-2022) Fig. 1. This review was carried out over five years. The conclusions of this study are a summary of the data obtained over the last five years from various platforms and database libraries. To make it easier to do direct comparisons, several results have been gathered into validated constructs, and their values have been determined for all of the calculated data.

FIG. 1: BACOPA MONNIERI PLANT

For data retrieval keywords like "Bacopa monnieri thyroid" and "Thyroid stimulant Bacopa monnieri" are searched. Relevant articles' reference lists were also checked for trials with a comparable design. Extensive research was conducted on the effectiveness of the extracts, and any safety and tolerability information or data was compiled. The websites offering extracts containing Bacopa monnieri were investigated to see which studies satisfying the inclusion criteria of this study were provided as proof of Bacopa monnieri’s efficacy. The following inclusion criteria were used in Fig. 2 & 3.

FIG. 2: ARTICLES ANALYSIS FROM DIFFERENT DATABASES

FIG. 3: SYSTEMATIC ANALYSIS ACCORDING TO PRISMA THEME 2020

Bacopa monnieri as Free Radical Scavenger: The DPPH assay revealed that the methanol extract is more effective in preventing DNA damage than chloroform, hexane, acetone, ethyl acetate, and methanol/aqueous extracts in preventing hydroxyl radical damage. A dose-dependent free radical Russo discovered that a methanolic extract of B. monnieri had a scavenging ability and a protective impact against DNA damage ^16-17. Bacopa therapy dramatically decreased lipid peroxidation caused by FeSO₄ and cumene hydroperoxide in animal models by chelating Fe^{2+ 18}. The radical quenching efficacy of B. monnieri ethanol and aqueous extracts has also been frequently documented ¹⁹. By exposing the lung epithelial cell line, L132 cells, to a nitric oxide (NO) donor, Sodium nitroprusside (SNP), a producer of RNS, the effect of B. monnieri extract on ROS formation and lipid peroxidation is assessed. The researchers discovered that pretreatment with B. monnieri extracts decreased nitrosative stress in SNP-treated cells by reducing the production of RNS. By maintaining mitochondrial integrity, B. monnieri extract pretreatment modulated the SNP-induced up-regulation of Bax, cytochrome c and caspase 3 expression and a down-regulation of Bcl2 expression, indicating a cytoprotective role for B. monnieri extract against SNP-induced damage ²¹. B. monnieri methanolic extract and its isolated constituent bacoside A showed significant wound-healing activity ²⁰ These findings suggest that B. monnieri could be useful in treating human diseases in which free radical production is a major factor.

Bacopa monnieri as Thyroid Stimulant: Brahmi has a long history of use and study in Indian traditional medicine. The therapeutic potential of Bacopa Monnieri (200 mg/kg) leaf extracts in controlling hypothyroidism in mice were investigated. T4 concentration was enhanced by B. monnieri extract without increasing hepatic lipid peroxidation (LPO), indicating that it is a thyroid-stimulating medication ⁷.

However, only T4 levels were observed to be elevated by the Brahmi extract, not T3, indicating that it has direct conversion or releasing potency of T4 rather than T3 conversion. Furthermore, the thyroid stimulatory activity was tested independently of any induced hypothyroidism paradigm, suggesting that Brahmi has significant potential as a thyroid stimulator, equivalent to allopathic drugs available today.

There has been very little research on the efficacy of Bacopa as a thyroid stimulant in isolation; much more toxicological research is needed to demonstrate the appropriate potential of Bacopa as a thyroid stimulant and as a radical scavenger to elucidate the toxicological dysfunction and oxidative stress induced by various environmental stimulants such as pesticides and radiations in everyday life.

FIG. 4: BACOPA MONNIERI AS THYROID STIMULANT AND FREE RADICAL SCAVENGER

TABLE 1: SHOWS THE RESEARCH ARTICLES CONSIDER IN THIS STUDY

CONCLUSION: This article concludes the safe use of Bacopa monnieri in treating thyroid problems to improve thyroid hormone dysregulation and oxidative stress caused by environmental stimuli. However, repeatable study designs and thorough statistical analysis are required to validate the importance of Bacopa monnieri in further treatments of thyroid hormone malfunction and oxidative stress in the body. This review could only include four studies because they fulfilled the requirements. This comprehensive investigation reviewed and summarized the effectiveness of Bacopa monnieri in scavenging radicals and clarifying thyroid diseases. Because the success of Brahmi in treating neurological ailments has prompted a sufficient amount of research in recent years, it is time to begin looking into other widespread problems.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT: Authors gratefully acknowledge the HOD, Department of Zoology, Dr. Harisingh Gour Vishwavidyalaya, Sagar, (M.P.) India for providing infrastructure and experimental facilities and also for ICMR for providing SRF fellowship.

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST: There is no conflict of interest.

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    How to cite this article:

    Chourasiya S and Mahobiya P: A systematic review on the scavenging and elucidating efficacy of Bacopa monnieri as a thyroid stimulant. Int J Pharm Sci & Res 2023; 14(6): 2645-50. doi: 10.13040/IJPSR.0975-8232.14(6).2645-50.

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