title: Biological evaluation of plants of Laos used in the treatment of tuberculosis in Lao traditional medicine.
abstract: Tuberculosis has existed in Southeast Asia for thousands of years. Many traditional treatments involve herbal remedies. Over time, these traditional treatments have had the chance to become refined based on efficacy and safety. It was therefore hypothesized that plants that were used in the past and are still used today to treat symptoms associated with tuberculosis are more likely to contain anti-tubercular compounds than plants that have not been used continuously. To try to deduce which plants were used in Laos in the past, a collection of palm leaf manuscripts was studied and a list of plants used to treat symptoms associated with tuberculosis was compiled. Interviews were then conducted with contemporary healers to see if the same plants are still being used today. Plants that were found in the manuscripts and/or are presently used by healers were collected, extracted and were evaluated in an anti-tubercular assay. This paper presents the methods used to identify and collect plants used to treat symptoms indicative of tuberculosis, and the results of anti-TB assays to test for activity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago, IL.
authors.forename: Bethany G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Elkington
authors.forename: Bounhong
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Southavong
authors.forename: Kongmany
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sydara
authors.forename: Onevilay
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Souliya
authors.forename: Manoluck
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vanthanouvong
authors.forename: Kongdeuane
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nettavong
authors.forename: Bounleuth
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Thammachack
authors.forename: Dennis H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Pak
authors.forename: Mary C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Riley
authors.forename: Scott G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Franzblau
authors.forename: D Doel
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Soejarto