In a normal tissue, collagen is degraded by phagocytosis whereas in OSMF,
arecoline suppresses T cell activity which in turn decreases the cell mediated immunity resulting in decreased phagocytosis.
Arecoline, an alkaloid present in betel nut reportedly showed hypoglycemic activities (Chempakam, 1993).
Gomez et al., "The muscarinic cholinergic agonist
arecoline stimulates the rat hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis through a centrally-mediated corticotropin-releasing hormone-dependent mechanism, " Endocrinology, vol.
It contains three major alkaloids:
arecoline, pilocarpine, and muscarine.
Some studies have proved that
arecoline in areca nut is the main causative agent and tannin which is a protein, can have synergistic role.
Prenatal exposure to
arecoline (areca nut alkaloid) and birth outcomes.
Betel nuts contain the alkaloid
arecoline a mild stimulant that produces a feeling of well being.
It was also found that convolvine potentiates the effects of
arecoline, a muscarinic memory enhancer that ameliorates cognitive deficits in Alzheimer's disease (Asthana 1996, Mirzaev 1998).