Gardenias Could Help To Treat This Rare Nervous System Disorder
Gardenias are known for their intoxicating scent and creamy white petals that create a nice contrast with their deep green leaves.
But these delicate beauties are more than just a stunning display in your flower garden—they could be budding heroes in the field of medicine.
The plant has long been sought after by herbalists and even pharmaceutical companies. For centuries, traditional healers in China used gardenia plants as a way of treating insomnia, depression, and inflammation. The Chinese also prized them for the yellow dye from their seeds.
Now, a team of scientists from several research centers in the United States has uncovered a potential treatment for a rare degenerative nervous system disorder hidden within gardenias.
They found a compound called genipin, derived from Cape jasmine, which is a relative of the gardenia plant. It can regenerate nerves that have been damaged or stunted by disease.
The chemical comes from this plant’s fruit. Generally, gardenia plants are native to tropical and subtropical regions of Asia.
But the plants are grown all over the world by horticulturists and amateur gardeners who are captivated by the beauty and scent of the flowers.
Genipin is being studied as a potential treatment for familial dysautonomia, a condition that is caused by a gene mutation and becomes evident during infancy.
“Familial dysautonomia is a devastating disorder caused by a homozygous point mutation in the gene ELP1,” wrote Dr. Kenyi Saito-Diaz in a new study.
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“Familial dysautonomia specifically affects development and causes degeneration of the peripheral nervous system.”
The central nervous system is made up of the brain and spinal cord. In contrast, the peripheral nervous system is comprised of all nerves diverging from the spinal cord, extending to every part of the body.
Familial dysautonomia affects how the nervous system grows and functions, particularly the autonomic and sensory nerves.
In people with this condition, these important nerve cells do not form properly and break down over time, causing serious problems with the nervous system and heart.
So far, genipin has only been tested in lab dishes and animal models, but it seems to be able to combat the main issues that come with the inherited condition.
The research team may be on the heels of a potential therapeutic. Currently, there is not any type of cure for patients with familial dysautonomia.
At first, familial dysautonomia impacts breathing, the ability to produce tears, and the regulation of blood pressure and body temperature.
As the disease progresses, patients can start to experience abnormal heart rhythms, vision loss, spinal curvature, an inability to feel pain, poor breathing, and a greater vulnerability to lung infections.
According to geneticists at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, the condition is rare but is most prevalent among people of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage.
In the U.S., familial dysautonomia affects about one in 10,000 Ashkenazi Jews. One in 3,700 people are diagnosed with the condition at birth in Israel.
The team discovered genipin while screening 640 compounds for candidates that can protect sensory neurons from degeneration.
They came across genipin and found that it could both restore proper development of sensory neurons and prevent early cell degeneration.
The results suggest that genipin could be a promising compound for future use in repairing nerves and preventing nerve damage.
The study was published in Science Translational Medicine.
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