Beta-sitosterol exhibits anti-inflammatory activity in human aortic endothelial cells

Ethanolic extract of sharah, Plectranthus aegyptiacus, enhances healing of skin wound in rats

Sharah, Plectranthus aegyptiacus (Forssk.) C. Chr. is a common native plant in the Taif region of Saudi Arabia. An ethanolic extract of freeze dried sharah leaves was added as 10% (w/w) to an ointment base of beeswax and sesame oil. The resultant ointment was examined as a potential enhancer of wound healing. Excision wounds in the nape region of the skin were induced in sixty albino Wistar rats. Animals were allocated in 4 groups (n=15) and kept individually in clean cages. The first group served as negative untreated controls without medication; the second group was treated with ointment base (vehicle); the third group represented the positive control and was treated with a reference ointment and the fourth one served as the experimental group and received the test plant extract (as ointment). Animal groups received the respective medications for 14 successive days. Wounds were measured and photographed every 3 days till the end of the experiment (day 21) in order to determine the wound closure rate (WCR). Specimens from wounds and surrounding skin were collected from sacrificed animals for histological and molecular studies. Both morphometric (based on WCR) and histological findings showed that the healing in animals treated with the sharah plant extract was better than those in control group or vehicle-treated group and was similar to that in the group that received the reference ointment. Moreover, the molecular findings concerning the expression levels of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and its receptor (c-Met) displayed a reasonable healing enhancing effect of the plant extract with the expression levels of both being higher in the extract-treated group than in the control group.

One-step biofabrication of copper nanoparticles from Aegle marmelos correa aqueous leaf extract and evaluation of its anti-inflammatory and mosquito larvicidal efficacy

Biofabrication of CuNps from AmC aqueous leaf extract of various sizes with good anti-inflammatory and mosquito larvicidal efficacy.

Lignans 7-hydroxymatairesinol and 7-hydroxymatairesinol 2 exhibit anti-inflammatory activity in human aortic endothelial cells

SCOPE

In the present study, we evaluated the anti-inflammatory properties of several plant lignans most commonly distributed in foods. 7-Hydroxymatairesinol (HMR) and its major isomer 7-hydroxymatairesinol 2 (HMR2), lariciresinol, secoisolariciresinol, and pinoresinol, isolated from Norway spruce knots were examined.

METHODS AND RESULTS

We investigated the anti-inflammatory effects of lignans on tumor necrosis factor-α-treated human aortic endothelial cells by measuring the expression of intracellular adhesion molecule-1 and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 by cell ELISA and the adhesion of U937 monocytes to activated endothelial cells using a cell adhesion assay. Among the lignans studied, HMR and HMR2 significantly reduced intracellular adhesion molecule-1 and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 levels as well as the adhesion of U937 to endothelial cells. To further characterize the molecular mechanisms involved in this regulation, the effect of HMR and HMR2 on nuclear factor-κB, SAPK/c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase and extracellular signal regulated kinase phosphorylation was assessed.

CONCLUSION

Our results demonstrated that the lignans HMR and HMR2, dominant in cereals such as in wheat, triticale, oat, barley, millet, corn bran, and in amaranth whole grain, exhibit strong anti-inflammatory properties in endothelial cells, at least in part, through attenuation of nuclear factor-κB and extracellular signal regulated kinase phosphorylation.

Bioassay guided isolation and identification of anti-inflammatory active compounds from the root of Ficus formosana

Activity-directed fractionation and purification processes were employed to identify the anti-inflammatory active compounds using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated mouse macrophage (RAW264.7) in vitro. Air-dried roots of Ficus formosana were extracted with methanol and separated into n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, n-butanol, and water layers. Among them, the chloroform layer showed strong activity and was subjected to separation and purification by using various chromatographic techniques. Five compounds showing potent activity were identified by comparing spectral data to be β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, psoralen, kaempferol, carpachromene, and syringic aldehyde. When macrophages were treated with psoralen and kaempferol together with LPS, a concentration-dependent inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) productions were detected. Western blotting revealed that kaempferol, psoralen, and carpachromene blocked protein expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in LPS-stimulated macrophages. The results confirmed that the traditional use of F. formosana could be a potential anti-inflammatory agent.

Inhibitive effect of purple sweet potato leaf extract and its components on cell adhesion and inflammatory response in human aortic endothelial cells

This study investigated the effects of purple sweet potato leaf extract (PSPLE) and its components, cyanidin and quercetin, on human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs) during the inflammatory process. HAECs were pretreated with 100 μg/mL PSPLE or 10 μM quercetin, cyanidin or aspirin for 18 h followed by TNF-α (2 ng/mL) for 6 h, and U937 cell adhesion was determined. Adhesion molecule expression and CD40 were evaluated; NFκB p65 protein localization and DNA binding were assessed. PSPLE, aspirin, cyanidin and quercetin significantly inhibited TNF-α-induced monocyte-endothelial cell adhesion (p < 0.05). Cyanidin, quercetin and PSPLE also significantly attenuated VCAM-1, IL-8 and CD40 expression, and quercetin significantly attenuated ICAM-1 and E-selectin expression (p < 0.05). Significant reductions in NFκB expression and DNA binding by aspirin, cyanidin and quercetin were also observed in addition to decreased expression of ERK1, ERK2 and p38 MAPK (p < 0.05). Thus, PSPLE and its components, cyanidin and quercetin, have anti-inflammatory effects through modulation of NFκB and MAPK signaling. Further in vivo studies are necessary to explore the possible therapeutic effects of PSPLE on atherosclerosis.

Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of Urtica pilulifera extracts in type 2 diabetic rats

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

"Urtica pilulifera has been traditionally used in Egyptian system as an herbal remedy to be a diuretic, antiasthmatic, anti-inflammatory, hypoglycemic, hemostatic, antidandruff and astringent"

AIM OF THE STUDY

To evaluate the potential effects of ethyl acetate (EA), chloroform (CHLOR) and hexane (HEXA) extracts of Urtica piluliferaas oral anti-diabetic agents as well as to evaluate their possible anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects in type 2 diabetic rat model.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Type 2 diabetes was induced by a high fat diet and low dose streptozotocin (STZ). Diabetic adult male albino rats were allocated into groups and treated according to the following schedule; Pioglitazone HCL (PIO), EA, CHLOR and HEXA extracts of Urtica pilulifera at two doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg were used. In addition, a normal control group and a diabetic control one were used for comparison. Blood glucose, insulin resistance, antioxidant enzymes, 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) as well as C-reactive protein and tumor necrosis factor-α levels were evaluated.

RESULTS

EA and CHLOR extracts of Urtica pilulifera exhibited a significant hypoglycemia associated with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects in diabetic rats; however, HEXA extract showed no beneficial effect. These activities are responsible, at least partly, for improvements that have been seen in hyperglycemia and insulin resistance of diabetic rats.

CONCLUSION

Our results encourage the traditional use of Urtica pilulifera extract as an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent as an additional therapy of diabetes.

Isolation and identification of compounds from Penthorum chinense Pursh with antioxidant and antihepatocarcinoma properties

Penthorum chinense Pursh, widely distributed in eastern Asia, has long been used in China for both food and medicine due to its various bioactivities. The aim of this study was to isolate its active compounds with antioxidant and antihepatocarcinoma properties. P. chinense was extracted with 95% ethanol, 70% ethanol, and water, respectively, and then the 70% ethanol extract was re-extracted, resulting in petroleum ether, ethyl acetate, n-butanol, and water fractions, subsequently. Results showed that the antioxidant and antihepatocarcinoma activities of ethanol extracts were stronger than those of aqueous extract, and the ethyl acetate fraction of 70% ethanol extract showed the highest activities. Four compounds, β-sitosterol, quercetin, pinocembrin-7-O-[3-O-galloyl-4″,6″-hexahydroxydiphenoyl]-β-glucose (PGHG), and thonningianins A (Th A), were isolated from the ethyl acetate fraction and identified by UV, MS, and NMR spectroscopic analysis. Th A was isolated from P. chinense for the first time. PGHG and Th A exhibited higher antioxidant and antihepatocarcinoma activities than did other isolated parts of P. chinense . The antihepatocarcinoma activity of Th A was much higher than that of positive control (5-fluorouracil). PGHG and Th A were suggested to be the active chemical compositions responsible for potent antioxidant and antihepatocarcinoma properties of P. chinense , which are worthy of further study.

Comparative evaluation of traditional prescriptions from Cichorium intybus L. for wound healing: stepwise isolation of an active component by in vivo bioassay and its mode of activity

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Ethnobotanical field surveys revealed that various parts of Cichorium intybus L. has been used for wound healing in Turkish folk medicine.

AIM OF THE STUDY

The present study aimed at verifying the efficiency of various traditional prescriptions prepared from the aerial parts and roots of C. intybus experimentally and to define the components responsible from the activity by bioassay-guided procedures.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Initially, wound healing activity of the aerial parts, leaves, and roots as well as ashes of either leaves or roots were investigated. Subsequently, roots of the plant were submitted to further detailed investigations. The wound healing activity of the methanolic extract, its subextracts, and fractions were evaluated by using in vivo linear incision and circular excision wound models in rats. The hydroxyproline content of the tissues treated with test ointments were also assessed for the activity evaluation. Moreover, in order to find out a possible involvement of antioxidant activity in wound healing, the test samples were also investigated by DPPH radical scavenging activity and total phenolic concentration were also determined. Additionally anti-inflammatory activity was assessed by using the method of Whittle, which is based on the inhibition of acetic acid-induced increase in capillary permeability. Through the bioassay guided fractionation one compound was isolated and its structure was elucidated by spectroscopic methods. For the determination of the activity mechanisms, the fractions were screened for hyaluronidase, collagenase and elastase enzyme inhibitory activities.

RESULTS

Methanolic extract of C. intybus roots was found to possess potent wound healing activity. Then this extract was subjected to successive solvent extraction with n-hexane, dichloromethane (DCM), ethyl acetate and n-butanol. Each solvent extracts were also applied on the same wound models. DCM subextract was found to be the most active one and through chromatographic techniques DCM subextract was fractionated into several fractions and compound 1 was isolated as the compound being responsible from the wound healing activity.

CONCLUSION

The experimental study revealed that C. intybus methanolic extract displays wound healing effect and β-sitosterol was determined as the active compound responsible from the activity.

Pharmacological evaluation of extracts of Hedychium spicatum (Ham-ex-Smith) rhizome

Hedychium spicatum (Ham-ex-Smith), known as Shati in Ayurvedic classics, is documented for the treatment of cough, hiccough, fever and asthma. The present study includes the evaluation of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of the dried rhizome of H. spicatum for anti-histaminic and ulcer-protective activities in guinea pig (GP), anti-inflammatory and analgesic activities in rat and acute toxicity in mouse. The extracts were administered orally, daily as suspension, in 1% carboxymethyl cellulose either for 7 days in GP studies or 60 min before or just before experiment in rats and mice. An initial dose-dependent anti-histaminic action of both the extracts (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg) was performed against histamine-induced bronchospasm in GPs. The 200 mg/ kg dose of aqueous and ethanolic extracts was selected both in GP and rat for further studies. GPs treated with aqueous and ethanolic extracts showed gastric ulcer protection against histamine-induced gastric ulcer compared with the control group. Both the extracts also showed an anti-inflammatory effect against carrageenan-induced paw edema in rats from 1 h onwards, and this was maximum at 3 h. Analgesic effect was determined by using hot plate and tail flick tests in rats, and both the extracts at 200 mg/kg showed a significant increase in the latent period from 30 min onwards till 120 min of their study period. Both the extracts did not show any toxic effect like increased motor activity, salivation, clonic convulsion, coma and death in mice even at the 2000 mg/kg dose (nearly 10 times of the optimal effective dose), indicating the safety of the extracts. The result confirms the indigenous use of this plant in respiratory disorders.

Protected effect of Esenbeckia leiocarpa upon the inflammatory response induced by carrageenan in a murine air pouch model

This study was conducted to investigate the anti-inflammatory efficacy of Esenbeckia leiocarpa against the inflammation caused by the carrageenan using a murine air pouch model.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The effects of the crude hydroalcoholic extract (CHE), fractions (n-hexane (Hex) and ethyl acetate (AcOEt)), subfractions (polar (Pol) and nonpolar (Nonpol)), or isolated compounds (dihydrocorynantheol (DHC) and beta-sitosterol (β-Sit)) isolated from CHE upon leukocytes, exudate, myeloperoxidase (MPO) adenosine-deaminase (ADA), nitrate/nitrite (NO(x)), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and inhibitory kappa-B-alpha (IκB-α) degradation were evaluated. The CHE, Alk, Pol, Nonpol, DHC and β-Sit, inhibited leukocytes, exudate, MPO and ADA, NO(x), IL-1β, and TNF-α (P<0.05). The Hex and AcOEt fractions inhibited all of the proinflammatory parameters, except the exudate. The compound DHC prevented the IκB-α degradation.

CONCLUSION

E. leiocarpa possesses important anti-inflammatory properties. These inhibitory effects occurred along with the downregulation of nitric oxide, IL-1β and TNF-α levels. The isolated compounds DHC and β-Sit may be partially responsible for these anti-inflammatory effects.