Antioxidant Principles inPeltophorum FerrugineumFlower Extracts

Biosynthesis of gold nanoparticles and related cytotoxicity evaluation using A549 cells

Biosynthesis of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) has become an attractive area of research as it is environmentally benign. The toxicity of AuNPs synthesized by chemical routes has been widely studied. However, little is known about the toxicity associated with the biological synthesis of AuNPs. The present study was carried out to synthesize AuNPs using star anise (Illicium verum; a commercially available spice in abundance)and evaluate its toxicity using human epithelial lung cells (A549) in comparison with AuNPs synthesized by the traditional chemical methods (using sodium citrate and sodium borohydride). Apart from cell viability, markers of oxidative stress (reduced glutathione) and cell death (caspases) were also evaluated to understand the mechanisms of toxicity. Cell viability was observed to be 65.7 percent and 72.3 percent in cells exposed to chemically synthesized AuNPs at the highest dose (200nM) as compared to 80.2 percent for biologically synthesized AuNPs. Protective coating/capping of AuNPs by various polyphenolic compounds present in star anise extract appears to be a major contributor to lower toxicity observed in biologically synthesized AuNPs.

In vitro determination of the anti-aging potential of four southern African medicinal plants

Background

Aging is an inevitable process for all living organisms. During this process reactive oxygen species generation is increased which leads to the activation of hyaluronidase, collagenase and elastase, which can further contribute to skin aging. Four southern African medicinal plants; Clerodendrum glabrum, Schotia brachypetala, Psychotria capensis and Peltophorum africanum, were investigated to assess their anti-aging properties.

Methods

Anti-elastase, anti-collagenase and anti-hyaluronidase activities of twenty-eight samples, consisting of methanol and ethyl acetate extracts of the four plants, were determined using spectrophotometric methods. Radical scavenging activity was determined by the ability of the plant extracts to scavenge the ABTS^•+ radical.

Results

The majority of the samples in the anti-elastase assay and nine in the anti-collagenase assay showed more than 80% inhibition. The ethyl acetate extract of S. brachypetala bark and leaves of P. capensis inhibited elastase activity by more than 90%. The methanol extract of S. brachypetala bark contained the highest anti-hyaluronidase activity (75.13 ± 7.49%) whilst the ethyl acetate extract of P. africanum bark exhibited the highest antioxidant activity (IC₅₀: 1.99 ± 0.23 μg/ml).

Conclusion

The free radical scavenging activity and enzyme inhibitory activity of the plant extracts investigated suggests that they can help restore skin elasticity and thereby slow the wrinkling process. P. africanum was the plant with the most promising activity and will be subjected to further testing and isolation of the active compound/s.