Ginkgo biloba,known as the "memory herb," may also prevent or reduce brain damage from a stroke, according to researchers from Johns Hopkins University. The ginkgo extract appears to help by neutralizing the activity of free radicals,explained study author Sylvain Dore.
"What is interesting here is that we are looking at a mechanism of action that has not been proposed before," Dore said.
Dore and colleagues worked with mice to mimic damage from stroke in humans. Some mice were given ginkgo for seven days, while others were not. Tests showed that mice that got the ginkgo extract had 50.9% less neurological damage and 48.2% smaller areas of brain damage than mice that didn’t get the extract.
"What we have shown here is that by induction of an antioxidant enzyme, ginkgo extract can be effective," Dore said.
The results of the trial were encouraging enough that"we have put a team together to actively continue looking at the efficacy/safety and mechanisms of action of the ginkgo extract in preclinical models of ischemic stroke that could ultimately help in the design an optimal clinical trial," he said.
Meanwhile, Chinese researchers have found that ginkgo can help improve coronary blood flow. In a double-blind, randomized,placebo-controlled study with 60 healthy elderly adults, subjects received an injectable solution of ginkgo biloba extract, or a placebo. Researchers found that those treated with ginkgo had significant increases in coronary artery (left anterior descending) blood flow.
Say the authors, "This study implies an important future therapeutic strategy of using [ginkgo extract] to counteract the detrimental effects of ageing."
Sources: Health Day,Oct 10; Phytomedicine, 2008 Feb 5
