Therapeutic Use of Scoparia dulcis Reduces the Progression of Experimental Osteoarthritis

Impact of Cuminaldehyde and Indomethacin Co-Administration on Inflammatory Responses in MIA-Induced Osteoarthritis in Rats

Osteoarthritis (OA) remains a chronic incurable condition, presenting substantial challenges in treatment. This study explores a novel strategy by investigating the concurrent use of cuminaldehyde, a natural compound, with indomethacin in animal models of MIA-induced OA. Our results demonstrate that the co-administration of cuminaldehyde and indomethacin does indeed produce a superior effect when compared to these compounds individually, significantly enhancing therapeutic outcomes. This effect is evidenced by a marked reduction in pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and IFN-γ, alongside a significant increase in the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10, compared to treatments with each compound alone. Radiographic analyses further confirm the preservation of joint integrity and a reduction in osteoarthritic damage, highlighting the association's efficacy in cartilage-reducing damage. These findings suggests that the association of cuminaldehyde and indomethacin not only slows OA progression but also offers enhanced cartilage-reducing damage and fosters the production of protective cytokines. This study underscores the potential benefits of integrating natural products with pharmaceuticals in OA management and stresses the importance of further research to fully understand the mechanisms underlying the observed potentiated effects.

Cuminaldehyde Effects in a MIA-Induced Experimental Model Osteoarthritis in Rat Knees

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic degenerative disease that has a significant global impact. It is associated with aging and characterized by widespread joint destruction. Cuminaldehyde is a biologically active component of essential oils that has shown promise in the treatment of nociceptive and inflammatory diseases. This study investigated the effects of cuminaldehyde on an experimental model of osteoarthritis induced in rat knees. Cuminaldehyde was found to be as effective as indomethacin in reducing pain in all evaluated tests, including forced walking, functional disability of weight distribution on the legs, and spontaneous pain in animals with osteoarthritis. The knees of animals treated with cuminaldehyde had significantly higher radiographic and histopathological scores than those of animals that did not receive the treatment. Cuminaldehyde also modulated the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines. In vitro assays showed that cuminaldehyde preferentially inhibits COX-2 enzyme activity. In silico studies demonstrated that cuminaldehyde has satisfactory energy affinity parameters with opioid receptors and COX-2. These findings suggest that cuminaldehyde's anti-inflammatory activity is multifactorial, acting through multiple pathways. Its nociceptive activity occurs via central and peripheral mechanisms. Cuminaldehyde modulates the immune response of the inflammatory process and may be considered a leading compound for the development of new anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs.

Medicinal plants and their secondary metabolites in alleviating knee osteoarthritis: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

With the increasing ages of the general population, the incidence of knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is also rising, and KOA has become a major health problem worldwide. Recently, medicinal plants and their secondary metabolites have gained interest due to their activity in treating KOA. In this paper, a comprehensive systematic review of the literature was performed concerning the effects of medicinal plant extracts and natural compounds against KOA in recent years. The related molecular pathways of natural compounds against KOA were summarized, and the possible crosstalk among components in chondrocytes was discussed to propose possible solutions for the current situation of treating KOA.

PURPOSE

This review focused on the molecular mechanisms by which medicinal plants and their secondary metabolites act against KOA.

METHODS

Literature searches were performed in the PUBMED, Embase, Science Direct, and Web of Science databases for a 10-year period from 2011 to 2022 with the search terms "medicinal plants," "bioactive compounds," "natural products," "phytochemical," "knee osteoarthritis," "knee joint osteoarthritis," "knee osteoarthritis," "osteoarthritis of the knee," and "osteoarthritis of knee joint."

RESULTS

According to the results, substantial plant extracts and secondary metabolites show a positive effect in fighting KOA. Plant extracts and their secondary metabolites can affect the diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers of KOA. Natural products inhibit the expression of MMP1, MMP3, MMP19, syndecan IV, ADAMTS-4, ADAMTS-5, iNOS, COX-2, collagenases, IL-6, IL-1β, and TNF-α in vitro and in vivo and . Cytokines also upregulate the expression of collagen II and aggrecan. The main signaling pathways affected by the extracts and isolated compounds include AMPK, SIRT, NLRP3, MAPKs, PI3K/AKT, mTOR, NF-κB, WNT/β-catenin, JAK/STAT3, and NRF2, as well as the cell death modes apoptosis, autophagy, pyroptosis, and ferroptosis.

CONCLUSION

The role of secondary metabolites in different signaling pathways supplies a better understanding of their potential to develop further curative options for KOA.

Plant Metabolites as SARS-CoV-2 Inhibitors Candidates: In Silico and In Vitro Studies

Since it acquired pandemic status, SARS-CoV-2 has been causing all kinds of damage all over the world. More than 6.3 million people have died, and many cases of sequelae are in survivors. Currently, the only products available to most of the world’s population to fight the pandemic are vaccines, which still need improvement since the number of new cases, admissions into intensive care units, and deaths are again reaching worrying rates, which makes it essential to compounds that can be used during infection, reducing the impacts of the disease. Plant metabolites are recognized sources of diverse biological activities and are the safest way to research anti-SARS-CoV-2 compounds. The present study computationally evaluated 55 plant compounds in five SARS-CoV-2 targets such Main Protease (Mpro or 3CL or MainPro), RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), Papain-Like Protease (PLpro), NSP15 Endoribonuclease, Spike Protein (Protein S or Spro) and human Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2) followed by in vitro evaluation of their potential for the inhibition of the interaction of the SARS-CoV-2 Spro with human ACE-2. The in silico results indicated that, in general, amentoflavone, 7-O-galloylquercetin, kaempferitrin, and gallagic acid were the compounds with the strongest electronic interaction parameters with the selected targets. Through the data obtained, we can demonstrate that although the indication of individual interaction of plant metabolites with both Spro and ACE-2, the metabolites evaluated were not able to inhibit the interaction between these two structures in the in vitro test. Despite this, these molecules still must be considered in the research of therapeutic agents for treatment of patients affected by COVID-19 since the activity on other targets and influence on the dynamics of viral infection during the interaction Spro x ACE-2 should be investigated.

Natural Approach in Osteoarthritis Therapy

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common joint disease worldwide, and its rising prevalence is supported by factors such as obesity and sedentariness. At the molecular level, it is considered an inflammatory disease that leads to the destruction of articular cartilage. Effective therapy to end the degenerative process of arthritis remains elusive, and most therapeutic tools prevent the progress or alleviate the symptoms. By now, medicines for OA are available for oral, topical, or intra-articular (IA) therapy and include analgesics, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, corticosteroids, and hyaluronic acid. Compared with conventional oral administration, IA therapy has multiple advantages in terms of bioavailability, efficacy, and toxicity. This review aims to study the underlying beneficial effects of herbal medicine in OA therapy and to open new research perspectives. Herbal medicine administered orally or topically exhibits pharmacological properties that could be relevant for their beneficial effect in OA, mainly anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. There are few studies regarding IA injections of plant extracts/ compounds and none related to any combination with agents already used in the clinic. Designing natural pharmaceutical formulations with increased bioavailability that are safe, lack side effects, and are specifically tested, would be a plus for research on medicinal plants and a novelty for the clinic.

A review on the phytochemistry and pharmacology of the herb Scoparia dulcis L. for the potential treatment of metabolic syndrome

This review discusses the chemical constituents and pharmacological effects of Scoparia dulcis L. (S. dulcis) plants. So far, approximately 160 compounds have been identified from S. dulcis, among which 115 compounds may be related to the treatment of metabolic syndrome. Extracts of S. dulcis have effects of reducing fasting blood glucose level, increasing the plasma insulin level, and stimulating insulin secretion to treat diabetes. They also produce antihyperlipidemic effects by increasing serum high-density lipoprotein levels, the anti-atherogenic index of plasma, and HMG-CoA reductase activity. The chemical composition of glutinol and glutinone, isolated from S. dulcis, provide potential anti-inflammatory effects. These compounds can also reduce total cholesterol, triacylglycerol, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol and increase high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol to provide the anti-atherosclerotic effect. S. dulcis exerts anti-arthritic properties through its effect on cytokine levels, significantly reducing IFN-γ and IL-6 levels and elevating IL-10 levels. The extracts carry out hepatoprotective effect by preventing the descent of the antioxidative enzymes of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione reductase (GRd), and glutathione-S-transferase (GST). Therefore, S. dulcis provides new potential for medicine given its numerous therapeutic properties and can be promoted as a complementary or alternative therapy for patients with chronic conditions.