Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
part of the stress system that also contributes to the nervous, cardiovascular, immune, gastrointesti-
nal, and endocrine systems. The involvement of cortisol, nitric oxide, stress-activated protein kinase
JNK, and forkhead box O transcription factor (DAF-16) in stress-protective effects of adaptogens
have been established by several reported studies.
24
It has been suggested that increased tolerance
to stress induced by an adaptogen is associated with its stimulation of expression of Hsp70 and par-
ticularly with Hsp72 production and release into systemic circulation, which is known as a mediator
of stress response involved in reparation of proteins during physical load.
25
Exposure to physical or
psychological acute stressors stimulates the release of endogenous Hsp72 into the blood, and this
elevated Hsp72 functions to facilitate innate immunity in the presence of bacterial challenge. It is
on these heat shock proteins or molecular chaperones that adaptogens exert their activities. The
molecular chaperones are a group of proteins that promote correct three-dimensional folding of
other proteins, prevent their aggregation, and assist in refolding of misfolded proteins, which are the
main contributors to many devastating human diseases.
The selection of the African herbs listed as adaptogenic was based on their activity on the rat
forced swimming test assay, dynamic and statistical load tolerance, and the broad-spectrum biologi-
cal activities of the herbs against multiple disease models.
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