Abstract
Lobelia inflata, this old species of the New World, has retained its importance as a resource of chemical compounds suitable to treat various maladies. The herb lobelia originally used by Native Americans in the New England region was subsequently popularized by Samuel Thomson (1769–1843). Its English name, “Indian tobacco”, refers to the saga according to which the dried leaves of Lobelia inflata were originally smoked by native Americans (Penobscot tribes), in the New England region, as an alternative/substitute to tobacco. The genus Lobelia comprises ca. 360–400 species, with a sub-cosmopolitan distribution. Lobelia inflata L. is native to several states of North America. It is found in open woods or occasionally in gardens, as weed, from the West Coast to Minnesota, south to Georgia and Mississippi. Lobelia inflata has a milky sap containing piperidine/pyridine alkaloids that suffuse all parts of the plant. The alkaloid fraction is rich in piperidine alkaloids and has a great potential for the treatment of disorders of the Central Nervous System. In addition, they have demonstrated antitumor and anti-inflammatory activities. Biological and chemical studies of Lobelia inflata alkaloids and, in particular, (–)-lobeline, have increased over the last few years. Lobeline might serve as a useful lead for the development of new therapeutic agents that act on nAChR (nicotinic acetyl-choline receptors) in a novel fashion.
Lobelia inflata from open field production. Most of the commercially available crude drugs is sourced from either wild populations, or take their origin from imports (India and China being the main exporting countries). Recently, (Máthé et al. Introduction of Lobelia inflata L. to hungary: performance of in vitro and generatively propagated plants. In: 2006 Abstracts 27th international horticultural congress & exhibition. August 13–19, 2006. International Society for Horticultural Science – Korean Society for Horticultural Science, Seoul, pp 88–88, 2006) studied the introduction into open field conditions of both generatively and in vitro propagated Lobelia inflata L. with special regards to mineral nutrition and alkaloid production in the course of plant development. Based on the survey of ecological requirements a simplified production protocol for field cultivation is given.
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Máthé, Á. (2020). Indian Tobacco (Lobelia inflata L.). In: Máthé, Á. (eds) Medicinal and Aromatic Plants of North America. Medicinal and Aromatic Plants of the World, vol 6. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-44930-8_7
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