Bioactive phytochemicals of jasmine oil and their role in managing hypertension: A combined clinical and in-silico study

Background: Jasmine oil massage has a thousand years of traditional history of curing and treating various ailments like hypertension, diabetes and muscle cramps without any sound pharmacological evidence. Traffic wardens have to stand throughout their duty hours, which can lead to muscle fatigue and compression and those suffering from stage 2 hypertension have to face worsened cardiovascular issues. Objectives: To assess the therapeutic effectiveness of jasmine oil massage, administered manually and in combination with an electrical massager, on blood pressure and related cardiovascular parameters in traffic wardens with stage 2 hypertension and to investigate the potential molecular interactions of key jasmine oil phytoconstituents with human voltage-gated sodium channels. Methods: The randomized controlled trial study (IRCT20230103057033N2) was conducted from November 2022 to March 2023. A total of 300 patients were randomly divided into three groups. Group A was treated with jasmine oil and an electrical massager. Group B was treated with jasmine oil manually. Group C was treated with only an electrical massager. The treatment regimen was 3 weeks, distributed as 6 sessions/week, each session lasted for 40 minutes. Blood pressure, blood cholesterol, respiration rate, heart rate and oxygen saturation of all the patients with hypertension were measured before and after treatment. The major phytoconstituents, phytosterol, ?-pinene, benzyl acetate and linalool were docked with human voltage-gated sodium channels (Na_v1.9, Na_v1.8 and Na_v1.7). Results: Jasmine oil showed more significant results (p = 0.0001) in patients treated with jasmine oil and an electrical massager, significant results (p0.005). Na_v1.9 exhibited slightly better binding across most ligands compared to Na_v1.7 and Na_v1.8, suggesting that this isoform may offer a more favorable binding pocket for phytochemicals were tested. Conclusion: The results support better drug absorption and effects when jasmine oil was applied with an electrical massager and project a newer, non-invasive alternative, less expensive and safer treatment protocol for traffic wardens suffering from stage 2 hypertension.