Shagufta Perveen
King Saud University, Saudi Arabia
Title: Natural remedies from saudi herbs for treatment of certain serious health problems
Biography
Biography: Shagufta Perveen
Abstract
Cancers figure among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide, with approximately 14 million new cases and 8.2 million cancer related deaths in 2012. The deaths from cancer are projected to continuously rise worldwide, with an estimated 13.1 million deaths in 2013. Lung cancer is the second most common cancer in men, the colon and rectum cancers in combination rank third in frequency among males in the United States. Anticancer drugs are used to target all rapidly proliferating cancer cells. Chemotherapy is one of the most important therapeutic options used to treat human cancers, either alone or in combination with radiation therapy and surgery. Although a number of new anti-cancer drugs that target various key processes in cancer progression have been developed, but overall patient survival rates have mostly remained unchanged for a number of years. Hence, the use of natural products has now been looked upon thoughtfully in the control of cancer. Plant derived natural products have received considerable attention in recent years due to the presence of various bioactive compounds and their diverse pharmacological properties including cytotoxic and cancer preventive effects. Among the common fungal infections that affect women in Saudi Arabia, is yeast vaginitis. Research results indicated that 59.6% of yeast vaginitis in women from Saudi Arabia is caused by C. albicans, and 31.6% by C. glabrata. Nowadays, such infections are becoming more drug resistant, hence it would be of much importance to explore new antifungal drugs of natural origin and introduce them to the pharmaceutical industry. The aim of our work is to contribute to the knowledge of the chemical composition of Saudi medicinal flora and validate its ethnomedicinal use, trying to find a scientific justification for the traditional use of these plants. In conclusion, this study led the way to the preparation of safe and efficient herbal drugs that can be used to treat different types of cancers as well as certain fungal infections.