Research and application of leek roots in medicinal field / 中草药·英文版

Some Chinese herbs have been used to prevent and treat diseases, and are also used as common food ingredients. These Chinese herbs are potential resource for research and development of new drugs. Leek roots is a typical medicine of food and medicine continuum. It has a long history of medicinal applications and edible food in China. In this paper, the origin, biological active components, pharmacological action and clinical application of leek roots were introduced. We hope that this review will contribute to the development of leek roots for pharmaceutical research and clinical applications, as well as related health products.

Study Of The Anti-Hyperlipidemic Effect Of The Combined Administration Of Three Natural Extracts In A Poloxamer-407 Hyperlipidemic Model And Their Lc-Esi-Ms/Ms2 And Hplc Profiling

Objective: Dyslipidaemia is considered a high-risk factor for inducing atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). This study aims to investigate the anti-hyperlipidemic effect of the co-administration of the ethanol extracts of both ginger (root and rhizome) and leek (leaves and bulbs) in addition to the aqueous extract of gum arabic.  Methods: Rats were divided into eight groups: Hyperlipidaemia was induced in rats by a single intraperitoneal injection of Poloxamer 407 (P-407) [1 g/kg], negative control [saline injected], hyperlipidemic control [P-407 injected], positive control [Atorvastatin 70 mg/kg], groups four, five and six received ginger extract (400 mg/kg), leek extract (500 mg/kg) and gum arabic aqueous extract (7.5 g/kg) respectively and groups seven and eight received a co-administration of ginger, leek and gum arabic extracts at doses A and B respectively. Lipid profile was monitored. The profiling of all the tested extracts was performed by LC-ESI/MS and HPLC. Results: A significant anti-hyperlipidemic activity (P<0.05) was seen for group eight among all the tested groups producing ≈54%, 72%, 50% and 72% decrease in the measured parameters total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) respectively. An overall of 56 and 45 compounds were tentatively identified in the ethanol extracts of ginger and leek, respectively. Galactose and arabinose sugars were found to be the major saccharides in gum arabic and glucuronic acid was the major polyuronide part. Conclusion: the co-administration of a group of natural extracts in the given concentration proved to be more effective than the use of synthetic drugs or the use of a single component.

Study of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Diversity and Its Effect on Growth and Development of Leek Plants (Allium porrum L.)

The effect of a composite endomycorrhizal inoculum, native to the rhizosphere of the olive tree, was studied on the growth of leek plants (Allium porrum L.). Inoculation of leek plants was carried out by contacting the root system of leeks with the inoculum endomycorrhizal derived from the olive tree rhizosphere. After five months of inoculation, a significant effect is observed on the growth of the inoculated plants according to witnesses. Indeed, the average values of the aerial weight (11.62 g) and root weight (18.52 g), the diameter (0.5 cm) and the number of leaves (7) of the inoculated plants are higher than those noted in the control plants, respectively 4.42 g, 7.95 g, 0.3 cm, 5.57. Moreover, the frequency and intensity of mycorrhization, respectively 96.66% and 50.33%, the arbuscules contents (44.33%) and vesicles (32.44%) are very important. The roots of control plants are not mycorrhizal. The average number of spores formed in the rhizosphere of the inoculated plants is 160 spores per 100 g of soil. These spores are those of 85 endomycorrhizal species belonging to 16 different genera: Glomus (34 species), Acaulospora (18 species), Gigaspora (5 species), Entrophospora (3 species), Scutellospora (5 species), Pacispora (2 species), Claroideoglomus (2 species), Dentiscutata (1 species), Septoglomus (1 species), Paraglomus (2 species), Rhizoglomus (2 species), Ambispora (3 species), Cetraspora (1 species), Funneliformis (1 species), Diversispora (4 species) and Viscospora (1 species). Statistical analyzes were performed by analysis of variance by the ANOVA test at the 5% level using the STATISTICA software. Leek, is a mycotrophic plant that can be used to multiply an endomycorrhizal inoculum suitable for use in nurseries, and to produce seedlings of different plant species that are vigorous and resistant to pathogens and water stress after transplantation.

Germination behaviour of seeds from herbicide treated plants of Chenopodium album L

The carry-over effect of sub-lethal herbicides was investigated on the germination of seeds collected from surviving Chenopodium album plants, which had received 1/8, 1/8 twice, 1/8 three times, 1/4, 1/2, 1/1 doses of either pre-emergence ioxynil or post-emergence bentazone in a previous onion (Allium cepa) crop. Seeds were also collected from surviving C. album plants, which had received 1/4, 1/2, 1/1 of either pre-emergence pendimethalin, propachlor and linuron, or 1/8, 1/8 twice, 1/8 three times, 1/4, 1/2, 1/1 of post-emergence ioxynil or linuron in a previous leek (Allium porrum) crop. Seeds of surviving plants were collected and tested for germination at temperature of 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25°C. The effect of different temperatures on the total number of germinated seeds was significant. Germination was minimum at low temperatures (5°C or 10°C). Herbicides did not show any effect on germination of C. album and resulted in the same final germination percentage as seeds collected from the unsprayed control plots.

Avaliou-se o efeito residual de doses sub-letais de herbicidas sobre a germinação de sementes de plantas de Chenopodium album sobreviventes em uma cultura prévia de cebola (Allium cepa), que recebeu 2x, 3x, 1/4, 1/2 ou a dose recomendada de ioxynil em pré-emergência ou bentazone em pós-emergência. As sementes foram também coletadas de plantas de C. album sobreviventes de um campo de alho-porró (Allium porrum) que havia sido tratado com 1/4, 1/2 ou a dose recomendada de pendimethalin, propachlor e linuron em pré-emergência, ou ainda 2x, 3x, 1/4, 1/2 ou a dose recomendada de ioxynil ou linuron em pós-emergência. As sementes destas plantas sobreviventes foram coletadas e testadas quanto à germinação a temperaturas de 5°C, 10°C, 15°C, 20°C e 25°C. Verificou-se que o efeito das temperaturas na germinação destas sementes foi significativa. A germinação foi mínima a baixas temperaturas (5°C e 10°C). Os herbicidas não causaram nenhum efeito na germinação das sementes de C. album tendo resultado no mesmo nível daquelas das plantas controles de culturas não pulverizadas.

Optimization of Muffins Containing Dried Leek Powder Using Response Surface Methodology

The purpose of this study was to develop a muffin containing dried leek powder. The complete analysis was conducted using the Design Expert 7 program (Stat - Easy Co., Minneapolis, MN, USA). The leek muffins were produced with varying amounts of leek powder (A), sugar (B), and butter (C). According to response surface methodology (RSM), there were 16 experimental points, including two replicates. The leek muffin formulation was optimized using rheology and sensory analyses. For the results, a quadratic model was applied in determining lightness, volume, hardness, and sensory characteristics, including flavor, texture, and overall quality; redness and height were represented by a linear model. Lightness decreased and redness increased with increasing amounts of leek powder (p<0.001). In addition, hardness displayed significant differences (p<0.001) with increasing amounts of leek powder. The sensory evaluation results showed significant differences for color, flavor, texture, and overall quality (p<0.05). Based on the numerical and graphical methods, the optimal formulation was determined as 8.30 g of leek power, 88.37 g of sugar, and 81.70 g of butter.