A herbal extract widely used in a number of health products plays an important role in reducing urinary tract infections and its effect increases when used in combination with antibiotics, according to a new research published in the journal Nature Medicine.
A team of researchers from the Duke University Medical Center said that some of the bacteria that cause urinary tract infections hide in cells lining the bladder. This is the main reason for the relapse of the infection even after treating it with antibiotics.
The team, led by Soman Abraham, a microbiologist at Duke, said that a herbal extract, known as forskolin, rounds up all the bacteria in the bladder, leading to a complete effect of the antibiotics. Forskolin has been widely used in Asia for centuries to treat a number of diseases including the treatment of painful urination.
In modern times, forskolin has been found to increase lean body and bone mass and is widely used in bodybuilding products. Forskolin is also considered to be an effective weight-loss aid. However forskolin, along with a number of herbal extracts, have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
The lining of the bladder expands when filled with urine. This leads to the formation of bag like structures within the lining and bacteria take up the opportunity to hide in those structures, where antibiotics cannot reach. However forskolin is able to drive out the bacteria from the bags and into the urine where there are killed by antibiotics.
"This type of treatment strategy may prove to be beneficial for patients with recurrent urinary tract infections. Ideally, use of this herb would expel the bacteria, where it would then be hit with antibiotics. With the reservoir of hiding bacteria cleared out, the infection should not recur", Abraham said. The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health.
