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Background: Imperata cylindrica is a medicinal spice used in traditional medicine to cure several ailments including cancer, wounds, hypertension, and inflammation. The current study aimed to compile phytochemicals and pharmacological data on Imperata cylindrica. Methods: A bibliographic study was carried out by analyzing conventional textbooks, authentic published studies, and consulting wide-reaching accepted scientific databases. In this review, an attempt is being made to establish an up-to-date chemical profile of I. cylindrica and the classification of its compounds in the main classes of plant secondary metabolites. Moreover, our study highlights the traditional usage of I. cylindrica and the reported investigations regarding the pharmacological properties of this plant. Results: The 43 phytochemicals isolated by various investigators mainly from the roots of I. cylindrica could be classified as bioactive phenolic compounds (coumarins, flavonoids, phenols, lignan glycosides, nor-lignans, phenolic acids, and aurone), few of them also belong to the group of terpenoids (sesquiterpenoids and triterpenoids), steroids and phytosterols. Based on the examined published data, the roots, and leaves of I.cylindrica are outstanding cytotoxic agents against several sensitive and resistant primary cancers through apoptosis induce, G1 cell cycle arrest (roots), and G2/M cell cycle arrest (leaves). Moreover, the root extract prevents metastasis invasion through inhibition of the PI3K/AKT/Snail pathway and the epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) process via modulation of certain key genes. I. cylindrica tackles the growth of sensitive and multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogenic microorganisms from various species and potentiates the antimicrobial activities of certain families of antibiotics towards MDR bacterial strains. The plant also has significant antihypertensive, anti-hyperglycemic, anti- parasitic, antioxidant activity, and several other pharmacological properties. Various studies characterized the Imperata cylindrica root extract as non-toxic to humans by oral route. Conclusion: From the outcome of this review, I. cylindrica is a potent candidate for drug formulation against primary and metastatic cancers, some drug-resistant microbial infections, and hypertension

Imperata cylindrica is traditionally used to cure several diseases including cancer, wounds, and hypertension. The present study was designed to investigate the anticancer activity of the methanolic root extract of I. cylindrica (IC-MeOH). The water-soluble tetrazolium-1 and colony formation assays were used to check the proliferation ability of the cells. Cell apoptosis and cell cycle were measured by flow cytometry-based fluorescence-activated cell sorting. The ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS) analysis was used for the metabolites profiling of IC-MeOH. Based on high-mass accuracy, spectral data, and previous reports, tentative compound identifications were assigned. Our findings revealed that IC-MeOH inhibited the proliferation of HeLa and CaSki cells. The plant extract was also found to induce a concentration- and time-dependent apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in the G0/G1 phase (IC50 value) in CaSki cell line. Analysis of IC-MeOH permitted the identification of 10 compounds already reported for their anticancer activity, epicatechin, curcumin, (-)-yatein, caffeic acid, myricetin, jatrorrhizine, harmaline, cinnamaldehyde, dobutamine, and syringin. In conclusion, IC-MeOH is a rich source of cytotoxic metabolites that inhibits human cervical cancer proliferation via apoptosis and cell cycle arrest.

International audience; Ethnopharmacological relevance. Imperata cylindrica (L.) Raeusch (Gramineae) is a medicinal spice traditionally used in the treatment of hypertension and cancer. Aim of the study: To assess the anti-metastatic potential of the methanol extract of I. cylindrica roots and determined its mechanisms of action. Material and methods. the growth inhibition activity of I. cylindrica root extract in vitro and in vivo in human cervical cancer. The scratch assay and Boyden Chamber assay were used to determine the anti-migrative and anti-invasion actions of the plant extract. The wholegenome gene expression profiling using RNA-Seq was performed to determine the differentially expressed genes in CaSki cells after exposure to I. cylindrica to identify its targeted genes related to metastasis. Using protein analysis (western blotting) and gene expression analysis (RTqPCR), the targeted pathways of the key genes that were initially identified with RNA-Seq, were evaluated. Results. I. cylindrica extract showed dose-dependent cytotoxicity in vitro and in vivo in mice bearing tumors. Furthermore, I. cylindrica root extract significantly inhibited cell migration and cell invasion. After the genome-wide transcriptome analysis, we found that important genes involved in cancer progression and metastasis of cervical cancer, that is, CD24 and TIMP-4 were significantly downregulated and upregulated, respectively. Moreover, I. cylindrica root extract significantly inhibited the PI3/AKT/Snail signalling pathway and blocked the EMT of CaSki cells. Conclusion. These findings provide an anti-metastatic mechanism of action of I. cylindrica root extract toward the human cervical cancer suggesting that this plant maybe developed into selective chemotherapy.

"Rather than looking at the association between poverty and various household and individual characteristics on a one-to-one basis (bivariate analysis), which often oversimplifies complex relationships and can lead to erroneous conclusions, this report uses multiple regression to analyze poverty and living standards econometrically. As methodological choices can have a strong influence on the results,much of the report is given over to a detailed discussion of the methodology used to conduct the analysis and sensitivity analysis to assess the robustness of the findings to alternative methodological choices. These include the construction of region-specific poverty linesand the empirical model of poverty determinants used. Estimates of poverty levels and the results of the model are presented, followed by simulations that indicate the impact on poverty of specific policy interventions." from Text of Abstract

This report presents an analysis of the structural determinants of living standards and poverty in Mozambique, which is based on nationally-representative data from the first national household living standards survey since the end of the civil war: the Mozambique Inquérito Nacional aos Agregados Familiares Sobre As Condições de Vida (MIAF), or National Household Survey on Living Conditions. Poverty in Mozambique is predominantly a rural phenomenon and is pervasive, with over two-thirds of the population falling below the poverty line. The degree of regional variation of poverty within the country is striking. Poverty levels are highest in Sofala, Tete, and Inhambane Provinces, where over 80 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, and lowest in Maputo City (although, with a headcount of 48 percent, poverty is still high in the capital city). The poverty estimates indicate that even though Mozambique is recovering from the emergency situation of the civil war, and becoming more self-reliant for its basic needs, there remains a great deal of structural poverty in the country. Areas that stand out in particular are low levels of human capital, including low educational levels and the poor health of most of the population; low productivity in the agricultural sector, where most Mozambicans are employed; a weak physical infrastructure and poor access to basic services, including potable water, health facilities, transportation, communications, and markets; and high rates of fertility and corresponding high dependency ratios. The policy simulations that illustrate the impact that changes in the levels of determinants of poverty have on poverty levels allow us to identify six possible elements of a prospective poverty alleviation strategy for Mozambique. These include (1) increased investment in education, (2) sustained economic growth, (3) a sectoral pattern of growth favoring faster growth in the industrial and services sectors, (4) measures to raise agricultural productivity, (5) improved rural infrastructure, and (6) reducing fertility and dependency load within households. In conclusion, any meaningful poverty reduction strategy in Mozambique must give the highest priority to rural areas and must address these macro-level and household-level determinants of poverty in its policy formulations.