How UAE mulberry trees might help fight infections - As-salāmu ʿalaykum
As-salāmu ʿalaykum - People have used plants to treat sickness for ages, but many of their healing uses are still unknown. A recent UAE study brings us closer to tapping the pharmaceutical value of local flora by showing possible medical uses for two mulberry species found in the country.
The research looked at Morus nigra (black mulberry), which is native to the Emirates, and Morus alba (white mulberry), which grows wild there though it’s not native. Scientists from Fujairah Research Centre and Umm Al Quwain University tested extracts from leaves, branches and roots to see if they could stop bacteria or fungi from growing in lab cultures.
They reported in a scientific journal that the antimicrobial effects were notably stronger than those seen in some earlier plant studies. The team called these Morus species “exceptional” in their antimicrobial potential and highlighted M. alba especially as a promising source for natural antimicrobial alternatives, and possibly new antibiotics and antifungal medicines.
Antimicrobial resistance - when microbes become immune to treatments - is a major global health threat, and new natural sources could help. Experts note that plants evolved chemical defenses over millions of years to protect themselves from pathogens, so they can be a rich source of useful compounds.
New tools like DNA sequencing make it easier to find and understand these compounds and the genes that make them. Even if a compound occurs in tiny amounts in a plant, identifying its gene could allow production in a host organism, like bacteria, to make it at scale for medical use.
Researchers also pointed out that plant extracts can sometimes act broadly against different microbes, which may reduce the chance of resistance developing. Of course, careful, limited use of existing antibiotics remains important to slow resistance - they should be reserved for when truly needed rather than used as a quick fix.
Beyond antibiotics, plants have given us many important medicines. For example, sweet wormwood (Artemisia annua) led to artemisinin used against malaria, and the opium poppy is a source of widely used pain medicines. The UAE mulberry study’s authors say more work is needed to identify the active substances in these trees and to explore potential uses.
They also noted the mulberries’ rich nutrient and mineral profiles, suggesting possible roles in food supplements or healthcare products. May Allah guide researchers to beneficial discoveries that help preserve life and health.
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