Zanthoxylum piperitum (Rutaceae), also known as Szechuan (Sichuan) pepper, is an aromatic spiny shrub [1] commonly known as the Japanese pepper that has been used as a spice and a natural medicine in Japan [18]. The pulverized mature fruits of Japanese pepper are used as the standard spice for sprinkling on the broiled eel dish [1]. The essential oils of green and ripe fruits and dried pericarp of the Japanese pepper, are also commonly used in Japanese dishes as spices [24]. Image: Sichuan pepper by rduta under Creative Commons License (CC BY 2.0).

Other uses of Japanese pepper include the utilization of Sanshools, the major active constituent of Zanthoxylum piperitum, as food additives in East Asia. Sanshools cause irritant, tingling and sometimes paresthetic sensations on the tongue [14].

ZANTHOXYLUM PIPERITUM

Family: Rutaceae
Genus: Zanthoxylum
Common name: Japanese pepper, Sichuan pepper, Japanese pepper tree, Szechwan pepper, Japanese pricklyash.

Physalis minima (Country gooseberry), is a plant from the Solanaceae family that has been used since centuries ago in Ayurvedic Indian traditional medicine, where it is known as Chirpoti, to treat some well known ailments and health problems. The fruit of this plant has a characteristic orange color and is covered by this paper-like leaves.

In spite most of the investigations on this wonderful fruit are focused on its anti-cancer properties, Physalis minima has other important properties, among which we can mention its diuretic, laxative, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial [2] and antibacterial properties [3]. Image: Physalis peruviana.

PHYSALIS MINIMA

Family: Solanaceae
Genus: Physalis
Common name: Native gooseberry, Country gooseberry, Wild cape gooseberry and Pygmy ground cherry [1], Physalis parviflora, Physalis pubescens, Chinese latern, حرنكش.

Thyme (Thymus vulgaris), a perennial herbaceous plant from the Lamiaceae family that grows up to approximately 40 cm tall [1] and is used nowadays as a flavoring agent of the Mediterranean diet.

Thyme was used by the Greeks in their baths and by the Egyptians who more than 2000 years ago used it to embalm their faraons and ancestors, probably due to the amount of antimicrobial active constituents found on Thyme essential oils, its most documented property and a quality that shares with other essential oils as for example lavender essential oil [2], both of them active against multi-drug resistant clinical strains of Escherichia coli bacteria [3,4].

Recently, researchers from Leeds Metropolitan University, driven by these known antibacterial properties of Thyme, tested the effects of this herb, marigold and myrrh tinctures on Propionibacterium acnes, the bacterium that causes acne by infecting skin pores and forming the well-known spots so characteristic from this bacterial infection. The results were published in a news release in the Society for General Microbiology website and are quite encouraging while not surprising. Image left: Wild thyme (NH) by David Short under Creative Commons license (CC BY 2.0).

THYMUS VULGARIS

Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Thymus
Common name: Thyme.

In 1848 Phineas P. Gage (picture below), a railroad construction foreman, survived an accident in which he lost most of his brain's left frontal lobe [2]. Most surprisingly Mr. Gage only reported personality and behavioral changes, but much of his cognitive function remained intact, but who doesn't have a bad day after loosing half of his brain?

This was the first case in which a human being managed to survive the lost of such a big amount of brain without loosing his cognitive function, and a very descriptive way to illustrate how we don't really use 100% of our brain, in fact it is generally believed we only use 10%.

ROSMARINUS OFFICINALIS

Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Rosmarinus
Common name: Rosemary