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Medicinal properties of 'true' cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum): a systematic review.

ABSTRACT:

Background

In traditional medicine Cinnamon is considered a remedy for respiratory, digestive and gynaecological ailments. In-vitro and in-vivo studies from different parts of the world have demonstrated numerous beneficial medicinal effects of Cinnamomum zeylanicum (CZ). This paper aims to systematically review the scientific literature and provide a comprehensive summary on the potential medicinal benefits of CZ.

Methods

A comprehensive systematic review was conducted in the following databases; PubMed, Web of Science, SciVerse Scopus for studies published before 31st December 2012. The following keywords were used: "Cinnamomum zeylanicum", "Ceylon cinnamon", "True cinnamon" and "Sri Lankan cinnamon". To obtain additional data a manual search was performed using the reference lists of included articles.

Results

The literature search identified the following number of articles in the respective databases; PubMed=54, Web of Science=76 and SciVerse Scopus=591. Thirteen additional articles were identified by searching reference lists. After removing duplicates the total number of articles included in the present review is 70. The beneficial health effects of CZ identified were; a) anti-microbial and anti-parasitic activity, b) lowering of blood glucose, blood pressure and serum cholesterol, c) anti-oxidant and free-radical scavenging properties, d) inhibition of tau aggregation and filament formation (hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease), e) inhibitory effects on osteoclastogenesis, f) anti-secretagogue and anti-gastric ulcer effects, g) anti-nociceptive and anti-inflammatory activity, h) wound healing properties and i) hepato-protective effects. The studies reported minimal toxic and adverse effects.

Conclusions

The available in-vitro and in-vivo evidence suggests that CZ has many beneficial health effects. However, since data on humans are sparse, randomized controlled trials in humans will be necessary to determine whether these effects have public health implications.

SUBMITTER: Ranasinghe P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3854496 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:BackgroundDiabetes mellitus type 2 (DMT2) is a leading metabolic disorder in the world. Anti-diabetic actions of phytochemicals from various medicinal herbs have been explored as an alternative therapy in the management of DMT2 due to adverse effects of synthetic drugs used in allopathic medicine. α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitory potential and phytochemical profiling were investigated in aqueous extracts of two new Cinnamomum zeylanicum accessions, namely C. zeylanicum Sri Wijaya (SW), C. zeylanicum Sri Gemunu (SG) and commercially available C. zeylanicum (CC).MethodsMicrowave Digestion (MD), Pressurized Water Extraction (PWE), Steam Distillation (SD), Solvent Extraction (SE), Decoction Water Extraction (DWE) and Infusion Water Extraction (IWE) methods were used to prepare Cinnamon quill extracts. Total phenolic content (TPC, Folin-Ciocalteu method) and Proanthocyanidin content (PC, vanillin assay), α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibition of Cinnamon extracts were determined spectrophotometrically. The α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibition were reported in terms of IC50 value. The phytochemical profiling was accomplished by GC-MS technique.Results and discussionLowest IC50 values were observed in PWE and DWE of SW. The highest PC and TPC were also observed in PWE and DWE of SW. Pressured water and decoctions are promising methods for the extraction of antidiabetic constituents from cinnamon. Benzoic acid, cinnamyl alcohol, benzyl alcohol, and 4-Allyl-2,6-dimethoxyphenol were identified as major compounds in SW extracts. These compounds are believed to be responsible for strong enzyme inhibitory activity of the extracts.ConclusionsThis is the first study to explore the use of pressured and decoctions water to extract anti-diabetic phytochemicals from cinnamon. The extensive metabolite profiling of novel SW and SG extracts and comparison of that with commercially available CC are reported for the first time in this study. The C. zeylanicum, SW accession holds some promise in the management of diabetes.