Tilianin: A Potential Natural Lead Molecule for New Drug Design and Development for the Treatment of Cardiovascular Disorders

Liver cancer wars: plant-derived polyphenols strike back

Liver cancer currently represents the leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. The majority of liver cancer arises in the context of chronic inflammation and cirrhosis. Surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy have been the guideline-recommended treatment options for decades. Despite enormous advances in the field of liver cancer therapy, an effective cure is yet to be found. Plant-derived polyphenols constitute a large family of phytochemicals, with pleiotropic effects and little toxicity. They can drive cellular events and modify multiple signaling pathways which involves initiation, progression and metastasis of liver cancer and play an important role in contributing to anti-liver cancer drug development. The potential of plant-derived polyphenols for treating liver cancer has gained attention from research clinicians and pharmaceutical scientists worldwide in the last decades. This review overviews hepatic carcinogenesis and briefly discusses anti-liver cancer mechanisms associated with plant-derived polyphenols, specifically involving cell proliferation, apoptosis, autophagy, angiogenesis, oxidative stress, inflammation, and metastasis. We focus on plant-derived polyphenols with experiment-based chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic properties against liver cancer and generalize their basic molecular mechanisms of action. We also discuss potential opportunities and challenges in translating plant-derived polyphenols from preclinical success into clinical applications.

The potential of herbal drugs to treat heart failure: The roles of Sirt1/AMPK

Heart failure (HF) is a highly morbid syndrome that seriously affects the physical and mental health of patients and generates an enormous socio-economic burden. In addition to cardiac myocyte oxidative stress and apoptosis, which are considered mechanisms for the development of HF, alterations in cardiac energy metabolism and pathological autophagy also contribute to cardiac abnormalities and ultimately HF. Silent information regulator 1 (Sirt1) and adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) are nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+)-dependent deacetylases and phosphorylated kinases, respectively. They play similar roles in regulating some pathological processes of the heart through regulating targets such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator 1α (PGC-1α), protein 38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). We summarized the synergistic effects of Sirt1 and AMPK in the heart, and listed the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) that exhibit cardioprotective properties by modulating the Sirt1/AMPK pathway, to provide a basis for the development of Sirt1/AMPK activators or inhibitors for the treatment of HF and other cardiovascular diseases (CVDs).

Anthropological significance of Tilia trees in Japan

Tilia (Malvaceae) is a genus of deciduous trees widespread in the northern hemisphere. Tilia species native to Japan include three endemic species, T. japonica, T. maximowicziana, and T. kiusiana, as well as the more widespread T. mandshurica. Other species were also introduced, the most important being T. miqueliana, brought to Japan with the arrival of Buddhism and planted on temple grounds as Bodaiju. Both historically and at present, Tilia trees are valuable to the people in Japan. Some Tilia trees are considered sacred in both Buddhism and Shinto. They are also prominent ornamental and park trees, albeit less popular in Japan than in Europe. Japanese Tilia spp. are used in the manufacturing of honey, cosmetics, lumber (especially plywood and veneers), and traditional bast cloth. Many Tilia trees are significant hubs in pollinator and mycorrhizal networks, but research on Japanese Tilia ecology is scarce. Despite their importance, Japanese Tilia trees have received less scientific attention in comparison with European Tilia species. The most striking example is T. kiusiana, with virtually no scientific literature regarding the species (save for a series of publications studying its secondary metabolites and potential medical uses). Furthermore, most published resources concerning Tilia in Japan are available only in Japanese, restricting their accessibility. This review seeks to translate, collect, and organize the information available on Japanese Tilia species. By doing so, areas are highlighted where new studies are necessary. A better understanding of these important trees would also be instrumental in their conservation.

Evaluation of the Cytotoxic, Antioxidative and Antimicrobial Effects of Dracocephalum moldavica L. Cultivars

The aim of the present study was to correlate the antioxidant, antimicrobial, and cytotoxic activities of hydroalcoholic extracts obtained from the aerial parts of three Dracocephalum moldavica L. cultivars with their polyphenolic compositions. The polyphenols were identified and quantified using spectrophotometrical methods and LC-MS analysis. Their antioxidant capacities were assessed using the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) methods. Their in vitro antimicrobial efficacies were assessed using the agar well diffusion and broth microdilution methods. Their cytotoxicity was investigated on normal diploid foreskin fibroblasts (BJ) and on colorectal adenocarcinoma (DLD-1) cell lines. The results pointed out significant amounts of polyphenolic compounds in the compositions of the tested cultivars, with rosmarinic acid as the main compound (amounts ranging between 5.337 ± 0.0411 and 6.320 ± 0.0535 mg/mL). All three cultivars displayed significant antioxidant (IC₅₀ ranging between 35.542 ± 0.043 and 40.901 ± 0.161 µg/mL for the DPPH assay, and for the FRAP assay 293.194 ± 0.213 and 330.165 ± 0.754 µmol Trolox equivalent/mg dry vegetal material) and antimicrobial potential (especially towards the Gram-positive bacteria), as well as a selective toxicity towards the tumoral line. A significant positive correlation was found between antioxidant activity and the total phenolic acids (r² = 0.987) and polyphenols (r² = 0.951). These findings bring further arguments for strongly considering D. moldavica cultivars as promising vegetal products, which warrants further investigation.

Moldavica acid A, a new salicylic acid derivative from Dracocephalum moldavica

In this paper, we present the discovery of a novel salicylic acid derivative, moldavica acid A (1), and a new natural dibenzo[b,f]oxepin, moldavica acid B (2), together with four known phenylpropionic acids (3-6) and protocatechuic acid (7) that were isolated from Dracocephalum moldavica L. Their structures were elucidated by comprehensive spectroscopic methods, including infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance. Compound 1 is the first example of salicylic acid linking a carboxylated α-pyrone via an ethyl bridge. Beyond expanding the knowledge of the chemical diversity of D. moldavica, both compounds 1 and 2 were shown to upregulate the expression of Kruppel-like factor 2, which could serve as a prospective therapeutic target for the treatment of atherosclerosis.