Hypaphorine is the alkaloid isolated from the seeds of Brazilian medicinal plant Erythrina spp. This compound was investigated for sleep-promoting effects in mice, and the results showed that it significantly increased non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep time during the first hour after its administration. Hypaphorine prevented the differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes into adipocytes by down-regulating hormone-stimulated protein expression of peroxisome proliferator activated receptor γ (PPARγ) and CCAAT/enhancer binding protein (C/EBPα), and their downstream targets, sterol regulatory element binding protein 1 c (SREBP1c) and fatty acid synthase (FAS). Hypaphorine may exert anti-inflammatory actions through the regulation of TLR4 and PPAR-γ dependent on PI3K/Akt/mTOR signal pathways. It is considered as a therapeutic agent that can potentially relieve or ameliorate endothelial inflammation-associated diseases. Hypaphorine was also a key component of Vaccaria segetalis. Vaccaria hypaphorine might be considered as a potential therapeutic agent for treating osteoclast-based bone loss.

Sinomenine is a pure alkaloid extracted from the Chinese medical plant Sinomenium acutum. Caulis Sinomenii is the dried plant stems of Sinomenium acutum and Sinomenium acutum var. cinereum and has been used in Chinese medicine for treating rheumatic diseases for over a thousand years. Sinomenine possesses the anti-arthritic effect, that may be related to the suppression of both Th1 (T-helper 1) and Th2 immune responses, also this potential drug can be used to treat allergic rhinitis, and the mechanism may rely on the improvements of the Th1/Th2 imbalance. In addition, Sinomenine displays antinociceptive activity, possibly through activation of the μ-opioid receptor. Also was discovered, sinomenine significantly improves cardiac function in diabetic rats, which may be attributed to the deactivation of NF-κB and the blockade of inflammatory cytokine-mediated immune reactions.

The alkaloids febrifugine was originally isolated from the roots of the Chinese shrub Dichroa febrifuga. Febrifugine showed an antimalarial activity 50-100 times higher than that of quinine. Febrifugine acts by causing an increase in NO production during the immunological response - increased production of NO by febrifugine plays an important role in host defense against malaria infection in mice. Also, febrifugine are known to inhibit prolyl-tRNA synthetase of malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum.

Erucic acid is a monounsaturated omega-9 fatty acid found mainly in the Brassica family of plants such as canola, rapeseed, wallflower seed, mustard seed as well as Brussels spouts and broccoli. Erucic acid has many of the same uses as mineral oils but with the advantage that it is more readily biodegradable. Its high tolerance to temperature makes it suitable for transmission oil. Its ability to polymerize and dry means it can be - and is - used as a binder for oil paints. Increased levels of eicosenoic acid (20:ln9) and erucic acid (22:1n9) have been found in the red blood cell membranes of autistic subjects with developmental regression. While studies done on laboratory animals in the early 1970s show that erucic acid appears to have toxic effects on the heart at high enough doses, an association between the consumption of rapeseed oil and increased myocardial lipidosis, or heart disease, has not been established for humans. While there are reports of toxicity from long-term use of Lorenzo's oil (which contains erucic acid and other ingredients), there are no reports of harm to people from dietary consumption of erucic acid. In 2003, Food Standards Australia set a provisional tolerable daily intake (PTDI) for an average adult of about 500 mg/day of erucic acid, extrapolated based on "the level that is associated with increased myocardial lipidosis in nursing pigs."

Sinomenine is a pure alkaloid extracted from the Chinese medical plant Sinomenium acutum. Caulis Sinomenii is the dried plant stems of Sinomenium acutum and Sinomenium acutum var. cinereum and has been used in Chinese medicine for treating rheumatic diseases for over a thousand years. Sinomenine possesses the anti-arthritic effect, that may be related to the suppression of both Th1 (T-helper 1) and Th2 immune responses, also this potential drug can be used to treat allergic rhinitis, and the mechanism may rely on the improvements of the Th1/Th2 imbalance. In addition, Sinomenine displays antinociceptive activity, possibly through activation of the μ-opioid receptor. Also was discovered, sinomenine significantly improves cardiac function in diabetic rats, which may be attributed to the deactivation of NF-κB and the blockade of inflammatory cytokine-mediated immune reactions.