Coumarins from Angelica archangelica Linn. and their effects on anxiety-like behavior

TRADITIONAL RELEVANCE: Angelica archangelica Linn. (Apiaceae) is an herb distributed in tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Both in Chinese and Indian system of medicine, it is used for nervous disorders including anxiety, anorexia, migraine and other cerebral diseases.

AIM OF STUDY

To evaluate the anxiolytic potential of non polar coumarins isolated from A. archangelica Linn.

METHODS AND RESULTS

A. archangelica Linn. (1 kg) was subjected to extraction in a soxhlet apparatus with petroleum ether (40-60 °C), yield 6.9% w/w. The extract of petroleum ether produced a yellow colored precipitate (YP) which was evaluated for anxiolytic like effect using EPM test and was found significant (**P<0.01) in doses of 5 and 10 mg/kg, po. The precipitate was shown to be a mixture of seven constituents in HPTLC and six on the TLC plate which were further subjected to separation by preparative TLC. Non polar coumarins were isolated namely imperatorin (IM) and isoimperatorin (IIM). YP, IM, IIM were tested for anxiolytic like effects in a dose of 5mg/kg, po along with DZ (1mg/kg, po) using EPM, Light & dark arena and hole board models in rats. All the test drugs were found to have significant (*P<0.05, **P<0.01) activity. IM and IIM have the potential to reduce anxiety but yellow precipitate showed the most promising activity as compared to isolated coumarins. This effect may be due to the synergistic action of all compounds present in the YP or by multiple mechanism of action. The test drugs may have the potential for different receptors.

CONCLUSION

The mixture of coumarins isolated from A. archangelica and its constituents imperatorin and isoimperatorin have the potential to reduce anxiety but it is the mixture which have more significant activity as compared to its individual components.

Bioactivity-guided fractionation for the butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory activity of furanocoumarins from Angelica archangelica L. roots and fruits

Isolation and identification of the inhibitors of butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), obtained from the extracts of roots and fruits of Angelica archangelica L., are reported. Our results confirmed the weak inhibitory effect of Angelica roots on acetylcholinesterase activity. BChE inhibition was much more pronounced at a concentration of 100 μg/mL for hexane extracts and attained a higher rate than 50%. The TLC bioautography guided fractionation and spectroscopic analysis led to the isolation and identification of imperatorin from the fruit's hexane extract and of heraclenol-2'-O-angelate from the root's hexane extract. Both compounds showed significant BChE inhibition activity with IC(50) = 14.4 ± 3.2 μM and IC(50) = 7.5 ± 1.8 μM, respectively. Only C8-substituted and C5-unsubstituted furanocoumarins were active, which could supply information about the initial structures of specific BChE inhibitors.

Comparison of a novel distillation method versus a traditional distillation method in a model gin system using liquid/liquid extraction

This research studied a novel form of distillation (high vacuum distillation) as a method for preserving volatile aroma chemicals important to the organoleptic attributes of a four botanical model gin as well as the degradation products generated during the heating required in traditional methods of gin distillation. A 2 (5) factorial experiment was conducted in a partially confounded incomplete block design and analyzed using the PROC MIXED procedure from SAS. A model gin was made of dried juniper berries (Juniperus communis), coriander seed (Coriandrum sativum), angelica root (Angelica archangelica), and dry lemon peel (Citrus limonum). This was distilled on a traditional still utilizing atmospheric pressure and a heating mantel to initiate phase separation as well as a novel still (high vacuum) utilizing high vacuum pressures below 0.1 mmHg and temperatures below -15 degrees C to initiate phase separation. The degradation products (alpha-pinene, alpha-phellandrene, E-caryophyllene, and beta-myrcene) were present at greater levels (approximately 10 times) in the traditional still-made gin as compared to the novel gin.

14-Methylpentadecano-15-lactone (muscolide): a new macrocyclic lactone from the oil of Angelica archangelica L

The chemical composition of seed and root oils from Angelica archangelica L. was investigated. Analyses were performed by GC/MS and GC using two columns of different polarities (polyethylene glycol (DB-Wax) and 5% phenyl/95% polydimethylsiloxane (HP-5)), for the separation of several co-eluting components. A total of 58 compounds were identified, accounting for 96.3% (seed) and 93.5% (root) of the oils, respectively. A high content of beta-phellandrene (74.7%) was found in Angelica seed oil. Root oil contained a larger amount of macrocyclic lactones (1.3%) in comparison to the seed oil (0.4%). Different harvest dates produced only slight changes in the root-oil composition. In root oil harvested in summer, the beta-phellandrene content increased by ca. 36%, but no significant changes in the relative compositions of other components were observed. Fresh root oils were collected in five fractions (constant time intervals) during steam distillation (see Table). The highest-boiling fraction contained 9.3% of macrocyclic lactones such as tridecano-13-lactone (5.0%), 12-methyltridecano-13-lactone (0.4%), tetradecano-14-lactone (0.1%), pentadecano-15-lactone (3.5%), 14-methylpentadecano-15-lactone (1; trace), hexadecano-16-lactone (trace), and heptadecano-17-lactone (0.2%). This is the first report of the occurrence of 14-methylpentadecano-15-lactone (muscolide; 1) in a natural product.

Antitumour activity of Angelica archangelica leaf extract

BACKGROUND

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a leaf extract from A. archangelica on the growth of Crl mouse breast cancer cells in vitro and in vivo.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The antiproliferative activity of the extract was measured by 3H-thymidine uptake in the Crl cells in vitro. Twenty mice were injected with the Crl cells, and 11 of them were fed A. archangelica leaf extract, and the progress of the tumours was followed.

RESULTS

The leaf extract was mildly antiproliferative on the Crl cells with an EC50 of 87.6 microg/ml The antitumour activity of the extract was expressed in the mice by marked reduction in tumour growth. In the experimental animals, 9 out of 11 mice developed no or very small tumours, whereas control animals, not receiving the extract, developed significantly larger tumours (p<0.01), as estimated by Mann-Whitney U-test. The antitumour activity of the leaf extract could not be explained by the antiproliferative activity of furanocoumarins present in the extract.

CONCLUSION

The results demonstrate the antiproliferative activity in vitro and antitumour activity in vivo of a leaf extract from A. archangelica

Accumulation of essential oils in relation to root differentiation in Angelica archangelica L

The accumulation of essential oils in Angelica archangelica subsp. archangelica roots at different developmental stages was investigated through histochemical and chemical analyses. Roots less than 1 mm in diameter showed a primary diarch structure and two primary secretory ducts in the pericycle. These ducts were ephemeral and probably became dysfunctional early on. Oil accumulation was observed only in the secondary secretory ducts formed by cambium activity and located in the secondary phloem. Gas chromatographic analyses revealed that only taproots exceeding 5 mm in diameter contained a high concentration of alpha- and beta-phellandrene, which appreciably influence the oil's aroma.

Hepatoprotective effect of Angelica archangelica in chronically ethanol-treated mice

Angelica archangelica (AAA) has been effectively used in folk medicines as a remedy against stomachal and intestinal disturbances, arthritic disease, etc. However, there is still lack of scientific proof about its antioxidant capability. This study aimed at investigating the effects of total AAA against chronic ethanol-induced hepatotoxicity. ICR mice were divided into five groups, each consisting of 10 animals. A single dose of ethanol (70%, 0.1 ml, p.o.) was used to induce hepatotoxicity in these mice which resulted in a significant elevation of the activities of serum GOT and GPT. Treatment of mice with AAA (10, 25, and 50 mg/kg p.o.) after 2 weeks ameliorated the ethanol-induced hepatotoxicity effects. Hepatotoxicity was evidenced by a significant increase in hepatic lipid peroxidation manifested as the presence of malondialdehyde. It was found that AAA inhibits the malondialdehyde formation in mouse liver homogenates both in vitro and in vivo. AAA is cytoprotective agent effective against chronic ethanol-induced hepatotoxicity, possibly through inhibition of the production of oxygen free radicals that cause lipid peroxidation, and hence indirectly protects the liver from oxidative stress.