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Drug discovery Research group · Acıbadem Mehmet Ali Aydınlar University

ACUNAT — Natural Health Products Research Group

Bioactive compounds from nature: identification, pharmacology and the quality control of natural health products.

  • 4members
  • 7projects
Jars of dried plant material and extraction glassware

What we work on

Nature has been one of humanity's most important sources of medicine, and the combination of its biodiversity with today's technology has made natural-product research a growing field. Türkiye, with its rich flora and its history as home to many civilisations, holds an important repertoire of traditional remedies, which makes the production and dissemination of validated scientific knowledge about them more important than ever.

ACUNAT was founded in the Faculty of Pharmacy in 2025 to conduct scientific research on natural health products and to develop new solutions for modern medicine. Its research areas are the identification of bioactive components from plant and other natural sources and the evaluation of their potential as drug candidates; the scientific basis of herbal and natural products used in traditional treatment; and quality-control analysis of products sold on the market under various labels and claims. The group works with a wide range of pharmacological activity models and with qualitative and quantitative chromatographic analysis.

ACUNAT opens its doors to all researchers, academics and undergraduate and graduate students interested in natural health products.

Lab website

Team 4

Principal investigator Assoc. Prof. Timur Hakan Barak Associate Professor of Pharmacognosy; ACUNAT natural health products research group Studies bioactive compounds from plants and natural sources, their pharmacology and the quality control of natural health products.

Projects & funders

Selected outputs

  1. 2026

    Oylumlu D., ŞEN A., SERVİ H., BARAK T. H., ŞEKERLER T., DOĞAN A. Rubus creticus Root Extract and Its Active Fraction Reduce Calcium Oxalate Crystallization: An Antiurolithic-Guided Fractionation and In Silico ADMET Studies. Revista Brasileira de Farmacognosia, vol.36, no.1, 2026.

  2. 2026

    Kasarci-Kavsara G., BARAK T. H., ERTUĞRUL B., ŞENTÜRK T. B., ÇAKMAKOĞLU B., BİRELLER E. S. Ylang Ylang Essential Oil in Malignant and Non-Malignant Cells: Comparative Mitophagy-Related Transcriptional Responses. Pharmaceuticals, vol.19, no.7, 2026.

  3. 2026

    Özdemir-Bayçınar K., BARAK T. H., Kurt-Celep İ., Özbek M. O., Wang D., Savaşan O., et al. Cycloartane-Type Saponins, Phytochemical-Rich Extracts, and Sub-Extracts from Astragalus noeanus Boiss. Exhibit In Vitro and In Silico Effects on Glucose Metabolism. Pharmaceuticals, vol.19, no.3, 2026.

  4. 2026

    ŞENTÜRK T. B., BARAK T. H., Çağlar E. Ş., SALDAMLI E., Özdemir Nath E., Özdemir Z. Ö. A Novel Bioactive Emulgel with Phlomis kurdica: Antioxidant Potential, Enzyme Inhibition and Permeation Kinetics. Gels, vol.12, no.3, 2026.

  5. 2026

    Ay E. N., SERVİ H., BARAK T. H., Beyatli A. ANTIOXIDANT, ANTICANCER ACTIVITY AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF FOENICULUM VULGARE MILL. METHANOLIC EXTRACT. Khimiya Rastitel'nogo Syr'ya, vol.2026, no.1, pp.241-248, 2026.

  6. 2026

    ŞENTÜRK T. B., KAVİ N., BARAK T. H., CELEP M. E. A Survey of Commercial Pine Turpentine Essential Oil Products from the Turkish Market and Their Compliance with European Pharmacopoeia 10.0. Molecules, vol.31, no.4, 2026.

  7. 2025

    SERVİ H., BARAK T. H., ŞEN A., KARA ERTEKİN S., Turker H., Unal B. T., et al. Chemical composition of endemic<i> Hypericum</i><i> bilgehan-bilgilii</i> Basköse & Savran essential oil and its α-glucosidase antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, cytotoxic and antioxidant potentials. TRAKYA UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF NATURAL SCIENCES, vol.26, no.2, pp.127-134, 2025.

  8. 2025

    BARAK T. H., KARACA B., SERVİ H., KARA ERTEKİN S., ŞENTÜRK T. B., Dinc M., et al. Antimicrobial: Antibiofilm, Anti-Quorum Sensing and Cytotoxic Activities of <i>Dorystoechas hastata</i> Boiss & Heldr. ex Bentham Essential Oil. ANTIBIOTICS-BASEL, vol.14, no.10, 2025.

  9. 2025

    ŞENTÜRK T. B., BARAK T. H., Çağlar E. Ş., SALDAMLI E., Özdemir Nath E., Özdemir Z. Ö. A Bioactive Emulgel Formulation of Equisetum telmateia Ehrh. Methanol Extract: Integrating Antioxidant Activity, Skin Enzyme Inhibition, and Permeation Kinetics. Gels, vol.11, no.8, 2025.

  10. 2025

    Özsoy E., BARAK T. H., YÖRÜK E., SERVİ H., Yli-Mattila T. Chemical Composition, Antifungal Activity, and Plant-Protective Potential of Rosa damascena Mill. Essential Oil Against Fusarium graminearum. Pathogens, vol.14, no.4, 2025.

From the group

Join us

Researchers, academics and students interested in natural health products are welcome to join.

Open to rotation students

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