Bakuchiol is a meroterpene (a chemical compound having a partial terpenoid structure) in the class terpenophenol. It was first isolated in 1966 by Mehta et al. from

Psoralea corylifolia ''Psoralea corylifolia'' (Babchi) is a plant used in Indian and Chinese traditional medicine. The seeds of this plant contain a variety of coumarins, including psoralen. Etymology ''Psoralea'' is from the Greek ''psoraleos'' meaning 'scabby', an ...

seed and was called Bakuchiol based on the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

name of the plant, Bakuchi. Bakuchiol is a meroterpene phenol abundant in and mainly obtained from the seeds of the Psoralea corylifolia plant, which is widely used in Indian as well as in

Traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. It has been described as "fraught with pseudoscience", with the majority of its treatments having no logical mechanism of action ...

to treat a variety of diseases. It has also been isolated from other plants, such as P. grandulosa, P. drupaceae, Ulmus davidiana, Otholobium pubescens,

Piper longum Long pepper (''Piper longum''), sometimes called Indian long pepper or ''thippali'', is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. Long pepper has a taste simil ...

and Aerva sangulnolenta Blum. Even though the first complete synthesis of Bakuchiol has been described in 1973, its first commercial use in topical applications did not occur until 2007 when it was introduced to the market under the trade name Sytenol A by Sytheon Ltd. It has been reported to have anticancer activity in preclinical models, possibly due to its structural similarity with

resveratrol Resveratrol (3,5,4′-trihydroxy-''trans''-stilbene) is a stilbenoid, a type of natural phenol, and a phytoalexin produced by several plants in response to injury or when the plant is under attack by pathogens, such as bacteria or fungi. Sources ...

. One study in rats suggested that bakuchiol and ethanol extracts of the Chinese medicinal plant ''Psoralea corylifolia'' could protect against

bone loss Osteoporosis is a systemic skeletal disorder characterized by low bone mass, micro-architectural deterioration of bone tissue leading to bone fragility, and consequent increase in fracture risk. It is the most common reason for a broken bone ...

. Bakuchiol possesses antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties. Bakuchiol isolated from ''P. corylifolia'' has shown activity against numerous Gram-positive and Gram-negative oral pathogens. It was able to inhibit the growth of ''

Streptococcus mutans ''Streptococcus mutans'' is a facultatively anaerobic, gram-positive coccus (round bacterium) commonly found in the human oral cavity and is a significant contributor to tooth decay. It is part of the " streptococci" (plural, non-italic lowercase ...

'' under a range of

sucrose Sucrose, a disaccharide, is a sugar composed of glucose and fructose subunits. It is produced naturally in plants and is the main constituent of white sugar. It has the molecular formula . For human consumption, sucrose is extracted and refined ...

concentrations, pH values and in the presence of organic acids in a temperature-dependent manner and also inhibited the growth of cells adhered to a glass surface. Despite having no structural resemblance to

retinol Retinol, also called vitamin A1, is a fat-soluble vitamin in the vitamin A family found in food and used as a dietary supplement. As a supplement it is used to treat and prevent vitamin A deficiency, especially that which results in xerophtha ...

, Bakuchiol was found to have retinol functionality through retinol-like regulation of gene expression. In 2018, a randomized,

double-blind In a blind or blinded experiment, information which may influence the participants of the experiment is withheld until after the experiment is complete. Good blinding can reduce or eliminate experimental biases that arise from a participants' expec ...

, 12-week clinical study with 44 volunteers demonstrated that Bakuchiol is comparable with retinol in its ability to improve photo-aging (wrinkles, hyperpigmentation) but has a better skin tolerance. Bakuchiol has been found to possess

antiandrogen Antiandrogens, also known as androgen antagonists or testosterone blockers, are a class of drugs that prevent androgens like testosterone and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) from mediating their biological effects in the body. They act by blocking the ...

ic activity in prostate

cancer cells Cancer cells are cells that divide continually, forming solid tumors or flooding the blood with abnormal cells. Cell division is a normal process used by the body for growth and repair. A parent cell divides to form two daughter cells, and these d ...

, which inhibited

cell proliferation Cell proliferation is the process by which ''a cell grows and divides to produce two daughter cells''. Cell proliferation leads to an exponential increase in cell number and is therefore a rapid mechanism of tissue growth. Cell proliferation re ...

. original title: 补骨脂酚拮抗AR转录活性抑制雄激素诱导的前列腺癌细胞LNCaP的增殖

References

External links

bakuchiol
{{Androgen receptor modulators Nonsteroidal antiandrogens Terpeno-phenolic compounds

See also

References

External links