Antiplatelet activity of Allium ursinum and Allium sativum.
OBJECTIVE
Garlic (Allium sativum) has a well-established reputation as a protective agent against cardiovascular disease, while nearly nothing is known about its cousin Allium ursinum. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antiaggregatory mechanism of garlic and to compare the effects of A. ursinum and A. sativum.


METHODS
In a prospective study, extracts were prepared from A. sativum powder made from fresh A. sativum bulbs and fresh A. ursinum leaves by maceration. The extracts were characterized by thin layer chromatography. Their in vitro effects on human platelet aggregation were examined by light transmission aggregometry after induction by adenosine diphosphate (ADP), collagen, A23187, epinephrine and arachidonic acid (ARA) in platelets from healthy volunteers.


RESULTS
A. ursinum and A. sativum exert similar antiaggregatory effects: they inhibit platelet aggregation induced via the ADP pathway and to a lesser extent aggregation induced by epinephrine, whereas ARA-, collagen- and A23187-induced aggregation was not affected. It became clear that the alcoholic extract of A. ursinum is the potent form, while the aqueous extract exerted an unspecific activity. The effects were strictly dose related. A. ursinum and A. sativum extracts exhibited similar potencies.


CONCLUSIONS
Both A. ursinum and A. sativum exert antiaggregatory effects. Garlic extracts are acting by inhibition of the ADP pathway; their mechanisms of action are comparable to that of the clinically used drug clopidogrel. The pharmacologically active component of the extracts appears to be lipophilic rather than hydrophilic, but the precise chemical substance is still unknown. This is the first report on the antiplatelet activity of A. ursinum.
Hiyasat
Bahi
B
Department of Cardiac Surgery, Heart Center, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Sabha
Dina
D
Grotzinger
Kristina
K
Kempfert
Joerg
J
Rauwald
Johann-Wilhelm
JW
Mohr
Friedrich-Wilhelm
FW
Dhein
Stefan
S
D000244:Adenosine Diphosphate / Q000494:pharmacology; D000328:Adult; D000490:Allium / Q000737:chemistry*; D016718:Arachidonic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology; D000001:Calcimycin / Q000494:pharmacology; D003094:Collagen / Q000494:pharmacology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004837:Epinephrine / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D005737:Garlic / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008297:Male; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010974:Platelet Aggregation / Q000187:drug effects*; D010975:Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology*
D010936:Plant Extracts; D010975:Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors; D016718:Arachidonic Acid; D000001:Calcimycin; D000244:Adenosine Diphosphate; D003094:Collagen; D004837:Epinephrine