Introduction: Post-menopausal osteoporosis is the most common type of osteoporosis, which occurs due to a deficiency of oestrogen following menopause. Considering the adverse effects of oestrogen replacement therapy, natural products may serve to replace the current conventional treatment. Ficus carica (FC) which is commonly known as fig may have a potential in treating post-menopausal osteoporosis due to their abundance of important minerals and bioactive compounds such as phenolic, flavonoid and anthocyanins. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of FC on bone metabolism of ovariectomized rats. Materials and Methods: Fifty-six female Spraque-Dawley rats were randomly divided into seven groups; SHAM operated (SHAM), ovariectomized control (OVX), ovariectomized + 64.5 ?g/kg oestrogen (ERT), ovariectomized + 50 mg/kg aqueous extract of FC (AQ50), ovariectomized + 100 mg/kg aqueous extract of FC (AQ100), ovariectomized + 50 mg/kg raw FC (RW50), and ovariectomized + 100 mg/kg raw FC (RW100). After eight weeks of treatments, rats were euthanized and femurs were dissected out to measure bone osteocalcin, Ctelopeptide of type 1 collagen and bone estrogen level. Results: RW50 and RW100 showed an increasing trend in osteocalcin levels and also oestrogen level, but no significant difference between all groups. RW50 and RW100 also showed significantly reduced C-telopeptide of type 1 collagen levels compared to OVX group. Conclusion: These findings suggested that raw FC at the doses of 50 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg have potential to improve bone in treating post-menopausal osteoporosis. However, this need to be confirmed with higher doses. � 2019 Default.

Osteoporosis is considered a silent disease, the early symptoms of which often go unrecognised. Osteoporosis causes bone loss, reduces mineralised density, and inevitably leads to bone fracture. Hormonal deficiencies due to aging or drug induction are also frequently attributed to osteoporosis. Nevertheless, the phytochemical content of natural plants has been proven to significantly reduce osteoporotic conditions. A systematic review was conducted by this study to identify research specifically on the effects of Malaysian herbs such as Piper sarmentosum, Eurycoma longifolia and Labisia pumila on osteoporotic bone changes. This review consisted of a comprehensive search of five databases for the effects of specific herbs on osteoporotic bone change. These databases were Web of Science (WOS), Medline, Scopus, ScienceDirect and PubMed. The articles were selected throughout the years, were limited to the English language and fully documented. Duplication, irrelevant titles, different herbs and in vitro studies were excluded, including those that are not original research papers. A total of 399 potential studies were identified, but only 21 samples were accepted based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Six of the twenty one studies were on Piper sarmentosum, six on Eurycoma longifolia, and the remaining nine studies were on Labisia pumila. Overall, in three of the studies a glucocorticoid induced model was used, while in 12 of the studies an ovariectomised model was used, and for the other six studies an orchidectomised model was used as the osteoporotic model. All of the studies reported varied results based on the type of herbs used, but in comparison to Eurycoma longifolia, Piper sarmentosum and Labisia pumila recorded better anti-osteoporotic effects, while the majority of studies on Eurycoma longifolia were unable to preserve bone strength.

Oxidative stress (OXS) has been associated with many diseases such as neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, diabetes and osteoporosis as it can alter cellular components in the body. Oxidative stress can be neutralised by anti-oxidative compounds found in many natural products such as berries, turmeric and figs. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the anti-oxidative and anti-in ammatory properties of figs. Fig, or its scientific name Ficus carica (F. carica), is one of the fruits mentioned in the Quran and is known among the Malays as 'buah tin'. Electronic databases used were Scopus, Ovid, Proquest and Science Direct. The inclusion criteria were studies that utilised the fresh, dried, juice, extract of F. carica, written in English, published within 2007 to 2017, studies carried out in tissue culture and animal studies. Anti-oxidative effect, lipid peroxidation inhibition and anti-in ammatory were the key outcomes in this review. A total of 19 studies met all the criteria. The results showed that treatment with F. carica increased anti-oxidative enzymes such as catalase, superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and decreased lipid peroxidation activity. F. carica also reported to reduce pro-in ammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1 (IL-1), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-?) in acute and chronic in ammation. In conclusion, F. carica exhibited anti-oxidative and anti-in ammatory properties. � 2018, Akademi Sains Malaysia.