Strong protective effects of Salvia officinalis L. leaves decoction extract against acetic acid-induced ulcerative colitis and metabolic disorders in rat

Amino acid HPLC-FLD analysis of spirulina and its protective mechanism against the combination of obesity and colitis in wistar rats

Objective

The cafeteria diet (CD), designed as an experimental diet mimicking the obesogenic diet, may contribute to the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). This study delves into the influence of spirulina (SP) on obesity associated with colitis in Wistar rats.

Methods

The amino acids composition of SP was analyzed using HPLC-FLD. Animals were equally separated into eight groups, each containing seven animals and treated daily for eight weeks as follows: Control diet (SD), cafeteria diet (CD) group, CD + SP (500 mg/kg) and SD + SP. Ulcerative colitis was provoked by rectal injection of acetic acid (AA) (3 % v/v, 5 ml/kg b.w.) on the last day of treatment in the following groups: SD + AA, SD + AA + SP, CD + AA, and CD + AA + SP.

Results

Findings revealed that UC and/or CD increased the abdominal fat, weights gain, and colons. Moreover, severe colonic alteration, perturbations in the serum metabolic parameters associated with an oxidative stress state in the colonic mucosa, defined by overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and increased levels of plasma scavenging activity (PSA). Additionally, obesity exacerbated the severity of AA-induced UC promoting inflammation marked by the overexpression of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Significantly, treatment with SP provided notable protection against inflammation severity, reduced histopathological alterations, attenuated lipid peroxidation (MDA), and enhanced antioxidant enzyme activities (CAT, SOD, and GPX) along with non-enzymatic antioxidants (GSH and SH-G).

Conclusions

Thus, the antioxidant effects and anti-inflammatory proprieties of SP could be attributed to its richness in amino acids, which could potentially mitigate inflammation severity in obese subjects suffering from ulcerative colitis. These results imply that SP hold promise as a therapeutic agent for managing of UC, particularly in individuals with concomitant obesity. Understanding SP's mechanisms of action may lead novel treatment strategies for inflammatory bowel diseases and hyperlipidemia in medical research.

Phytochemical Properties of Crataegus azarolus Berries Decoction Extract and Evaluation of its Protective Activity Against Acetic Acid-Induced Ulcerative Colitis in Rats

The present study aims to evaluate the protective effect of Crataegus azarolus berries decoction extract (CAB-DE) against acetic acid-induced ulcerative colitis as well as the mechanisms implicated in such protection. Adult male Wistar rats were separated into seven groups: Control (H2O), acetic acid (AA), AA + various doses of CAB-DE (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg, b.w.,p.o.), and AA + sulfasalazine (100 mg/kg, b.w.,p.o.) or gallic acid (50 mg/kg, b.w.,p.o.) during 10 days. All rats were kept fasting overnight and ulcerative colitis was induced by rectal infusion of AA (300 mg kg-1, b.w.) (3%, v/v, 5 mL kg-1 b.w), for 30 s. The colon was rapidly excised and macroscopically examined to measure ulcerated surfaces and the ulcer index. In vitro, we found that CAB-DE exhibited a high antioxidant activity against DPPH radical (IC50 = 164.17 ± 4.78 μg/mL). In vivo, pretreatment with CAB-DE significantly protected the colonic mucosa against AA-induced damage by stimulating mucus secretion, reducing ulcer index as well as histopathological changes. Also, CAB-DE limited the oxidative status induced by AA in the colonic mucosa, as assessed by MDA and H2O2 increased levels and the depletion of both enzymatic activities and non-enzymatic levels. In addition, AA intoxication increased iron and calcium levels in colonic mucosa and plasma, while CAB-DE pretreatment regulated all intracellular mediators deregulation and significantly reduced inflammatory markers such as CRP (1.175 ± .04 ─ .734 ± .06 μg/dl) and ALP (161.53 ± 5.02 ─ 98.60 ± 4.21 UI/L) levels. We suggest that CAB-DE protected against AA-induced ulcerative colitis due in part to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

Metal chelating and anti-radical activity of Salvia officinalis in the ameliorative effects against uranium toxicity

Uranium is a highly radioactive heavy metal that is toxic to living things. In this study, physiological, cytogenetic, biochemical and anatomical toxicity caused by uranium and the protective role of sage (Salvia officinalis L.) leaf extract against this toxicity were investigated with the help of Allium test. Germination percentage, root length, weight gain, mitotic index (MI), micronucleus (MN) formation, chromosomal aberrations (CAs), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) enzyme activities, malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and changes in root meristem cells were used as indicators of toxicity. In the experimental stage, a total of six groups, one of which was the control, were formed. Group I was treated with tap water, while group II and III were treated only with sage (190 mg/L and 380 mg/L). Groups IV, V and VI were germinated with uranyl acetate dihydrate (0.1 mg/mL), uranyl acetate dihydrate + 190 mg/L sage and uranyl acetate dihydrate + 380 mg/L sage, respectively. Allium cepa L. bulbs of each group were germinated for 72 h, and at the end of the period, routine preparation techniques were applied and physiological, cytogenetic, biochemical and anatomical analyzes were performed. As a result, uranium application caused a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in all physiological parameters and MI values. MN, CAs numbers, SOD and CAT enzyme activities and MDA levels increased significantly (p < 0.05) with uranium application. Uranium promoted CAs in the root tip cells in the form of fragment, vagrant chromosome, sticky chromosome, bridge and unequal distribution of chromatin. In addition, it caused anatomical damages such as epidermis cell damage, cortex cell damage and flattened cell nucleus in root tip meristem cells. Sage application together with uranium caused significant (p < 0.05) increases in physiological parameters and MI values and significant decreases in MN, CAs, SOD and CAT activities and MDA levels. In addition, the application of sage resulted in improvement in the severity of anatomical damages induced by uranium. It was determined that the protective role of sage observed for all parameters investigated was even more pronounced at dose of 380 mg/L. The protective role of sage against uranium toxicity is related to its antioxidant activity, and sage has 82.8% metal chelating and 72.9% DPPH removal activity. As a result, uranyl acetate exhibited versatile toxicity in A. cepa, caused cytotoxicity by decreasing the MI rate, and genotoxicity by increasing the frequencies of MN and CAs. And also, Sage acted as a toxicity-reducing agent by displaying a dose-dependent protective role against the toxic effects induced by uranyl acetate.

Eucalyptus globulus and Salvia officinalis Extracts Mediated Green Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles and Their Application as an Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Agent

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) biosynthesized using plant extracts as reducing and capping agents show multiple possibilities for solving various biological problems. The aim of this study was to expand the boundaries of AgNPs using a novel low toxicity and production cost phytochemical method for the biosynthesis of nanoparticles from Eucalyptus globulus and Salvia officinalis aqueous leaf extracts. Biosynthesized AgNPs were characterized by various methods (ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy with horizontal attenuated total reflectance (HART), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS)). The determined antioxidative and antimicrobial activity of plant extracts was compared with the activity of the AgNPs. The UV-vis spectral analysis demonstrated the absorption peaks at 408 and 438 nm, which confirmed the synthesis of stable AgNPs from E. globulus and S. officinalis, respectively. FTIR-HART results suggested strong capping of phytochemicals on AgNPs. TEM results show mainly spherical-shaped AgNPs, whose size distribution depends on the plant leaf extract type; the smaller AgNPs were obtained with E. globulus extract (with size range of 17.5 ± 5.89 nm compared to 34.3 ± 7.76 nm from S. officinalis AgNPs). The in vitro antioxidant activity evaluated by radical scavenging assays and the reduction activity method clearly demonstrated that both the plant extracts and AgNPs showed prominent antioxidant properties. In addition, AgNPs show much stronger antimicrobial activity against broad spectrum of Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria strains than the plant extracts used for their synthesis.

Antioxidant Properties of Salvia officinalis Decoction Extract and Mechanism of Its Protective Effects on Ethanol-Induced Liver and Kidney Injuries

This study assessed the hepato- and nephroprotective effects of Salvia officinalis flowers decoction extract (SODE) against ethanol (EtOH)-induced oxidative stress in rats as well as the possible mechanism implicated in such protection. Animals were divided into four groups: control, EtOH, and EtOH+SODE. Wistar rats were pretreated with SODE (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg, body weight [b.w.], p.o.) for 15 days and intoxicated during 2 h by acute oral administration of EtOH (4 g/kg, b.w.) 60 min after the last dose of SODE. We found that SODE pretreatment, in vivo, protected against EtOH-induced liver and kidney injuries evident by plasma transaminases activity and preservation of the hepatic tissue structure. Compared with the control group, the animals treated with the SODE showed a significant decrease (68.81 ± 6.89-50.65 ± 3.97 UI/L) of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST; 144.38 ± 6.58-113.64 ± 8.03 UI/L) in a dose-dependent manner. By contrast, the plant extract significantly and dose dependently increased (0.175 ± 0.077-0.302 ± 0.011 mmol/L) the uric acid. The SODE counteracted EtOH-induced liver and kidney lipoperoxidation, preserved sulfhydryl groups (-SH) and glutathione reduced (GSH) contents. Our extract prevented the depletion of antioxidant enzyme activities such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx). We also showed that acute alcohol administration increased tissue and plasma hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), calcium and free iron levels. Of interest, SODE pretreatment reversed all EtOH-induced disturbances in intracellular mediators. More importantly, SODE treatment significantly protected against alcohol-induced inflammation by reducing C-reactive protein (CRP) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activities in plasma. It was concluded that the SODE exerted a potential protective effect against EtOH-induced inflammation and oxidative stress in the rat organs. This study recommends that the consumption of sage flowers is useful for patients who suffer from hepato- and nephrotoxicity.

Protective Effect of Salvianolic Acid B in Acetic Acid-Induced Experimental Colitis in a Mouse Model

In its prominent experimental studies salvianolic acid B (Sal B) is novel because of its well-defined, common physiological effects, which include anti-inflammatory, anti-depressant, cardioprotective, DNA protective, neuroprotective and hepatoprotective activity in experimental animals. Initially, Sal B was studied for its anti-inflammatory properties, used as a remedy for a wide range of disease conditions, but its specific efficacy on inflammatory bowel disease is still unclear. The aim of this current study was to understand the therapeutic potential of Sal B in an acetic acid (AA)—triggered experimental mouse colitis model. Colitis was triggered by intrarectal injection of 5% AA, and then laboratory animals were given Sal B (10, 20 and 40 μg/kg) for seven days. The ulcerated colonic mucosa was assessed by clinical experiment, macroscopical, biological and histopathological analysis. The results showed depleted SOD, CAT, GSH levels and consequential elevated MPO and MDA levels and aberrant crypt foci and mast cells were seen in the AA-induced colonic mucosa of experimental animals. The data obtained from this study demonstrate that a dose of 40 µg/kg showed an efficacious anti-ulcer effect against AA-induced experimental colitis. Based on its antioxidant efficacy, Sal B may therefore be useful as a therapeutic approach for ulcerative colitis.