Researches of Eurycoma longifolia
Effects of Eurycoma longifolia Jack on sexual qualities in middle aged male rats
Author: Ang HH, Ngai TH, Tan TH.
School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University Science Malaysia, Minden, Penang, Malaysia.
Abstract::
The effects of Eurycoma longifolia Jack were studied on the sexual qualities of middle aged male rats after dosing them with 0.5 g/kg of various fractions of E. longifolia whilst the control group received 3 ml/kg of normal saline daily for 12 weeks. Results showed than E. longifolia Jack enhanced the sexual qualities of the middle aged male rats by decreasing their hesitation time as compared to controls with various fractions of E. longifolia Jack produced 865-916 (91-96), 860-914 (92-98), 850-904 (93-99), 854-890 (95-99), 844-880 (94-98), 840-875 (94-98), 830-870 (94-98), 825-860 (94-98), 820-850 (96-99), 800-840 (93-98), 750-795 (94-99) and 650-754 sec (82-95%) in contrast to controls which produced 950 (100), 934 (100), 910 (100), 900 (100), 895 (100), 890 (100), 885 (100), 880 (100), 855 (100), 860 (100), 800 (100) and 790 sec (100%) throughout the investigation period. Besides these, there was a transient increase in the % of the male rats responding to the right choice after chronic administration of 0.5 g/kg E. longifolia Jack, with more than 50% of the male rats scored right choice after 2 weeks post-treatment and the effect was more prominent at the dose of the observation period. However, there was no sexual enhancement of the middle aged male rats which consumed normal saline since only 45-55% of the male rats responded to right choice throughout the investigation period. Hence, this study shows that E. longifolia Jack enhanced the sexual qualities of the middle aged male rats, further supports the folkuse of E. longifolia Jack as an aphrodisiac.
Genetic Diversity of Eurycoma longifolia Inferred from Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms
Author: Asiah Osman, Barbara Jordan2, Philip A. Lessard, Norwati Muhammad, M. Rosli Haron, Norifiza Mat Riffin, Anthony J. Sinskey, Malaysia-MIT Biotechnology Partnership Programme (A.O., B.J., P.A.L., N.M., M.R.H., N.M.R., A.J.S., C.R.,
D.E.H.), Center for Cancer Research (A.O., B.J., D.E.H.), Department of Biology (P.A.L., A.J.S.), and
Biomaterials Science and Engineering Laboratory (C.R.), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77
Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge Massachusetts 02139; and Forest Research Institute of Malaysia, Kepong,
52109 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (A.O., N.M., M.R.H., N.M.R.)
Abstract:
Eurycoma longifolia Jack. is a treelet that grows in the forests of Southeast Asia and is widely used throughout the region because of its reported medicinal properties. Widespread harvesting of wild-grown trees has led to rapid thinning of natural populations, causing a potential decrease in genetic diversity among E. longifolia. Suitable genetic markers would be very useful for propagation and breeding programs to support conservation of this species, although no such markers currently exist. To meet this need, we have applied a genome complexity reduction strategy to identify a series of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the genomes of several E. longifolia accessions. We have found that the occurrence of these SNPs reflects the geographic origins of individual plants and can distinguish different natural populations. This work demonstrates the rapid development of molecular genetic markers in species for which little or no genomic sequence information is available. The SNP markers that we have developed in this study will also be useful for identifying genetic fingerprints that correlate with other properties of E. longifolia, such as high regenerability or the appearance of bioactive metabolites.