Role of natural products as alternative of synthetic steroidal drugs

Abstract

Since the origination of human society, natural products and their derivatives especially obtained from medicinal plants have been used for the advantage of mankind due to their precious therapeutic potential. In Indian Ayurveda, different types of plant-based products have been used to cure several human diseases without any significant side effects, and that’s why an effective number of modern medicines has been isolated from natural sources involving medicinal plants. There are still some disease conditions where only synthetic drugs can be used for the treatment which quite often may lead to mild or severe side effects. It is, therefore, necessary to explore chemical compounds from Indian traditional medicinal plants as viable substitutes to the synthetic drugs in order to overcome their adverse effects and also the exorbitant cost. Glucocorticoids are widely used as potent anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive agents for the treatment of various complications such as rheumatoid arthritis, joint pain, dermatitis, asthma, allergy, etc. Unfortunately, long-term use of corticosteroids even in low amount may cause severe adverse effects such as osteoporosis, reduction in bone mass, overweight, cataract-glaucoma, blurred vision, aggression, agitations, psychiatric and cognitive disturbance, cardiovascular disorders, hyperlipidemia, growth suppression, and many more. It has therefore been realized to explore plant-based principles as alternative and complementary therapeutics with almost no toxicity. The phyto-steroids such as solasodine, diosgenin, boswellic acid, glycyrrihizin, guggulsterones, withnolides, or sarsasapogenin are reported to have structural similarity with glucocorticoids or glycosides. In addition, the saponins, lactones, and some aliphatic compounds have been reported to possess efficiency to cure those diseases in which steroids are employed. However, extensive research is needed to detect other phytochemicals which may prove to act as potential substitutes of synthetic steroidal drugs. In this chapter, we have made an endeavor to present an updated account of those medicinal plants and corresponding phytochemicals with varied therapeutic properties as effective alternative steroids to be used against different chronic diseases.