Anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive effects of Curcuma kwangsiensis and its bioactive terpenoids in vivo and in vitro

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

"Curcumae Radix", the dried rhizomes of Curcuma kwangsiensis documented in Chinese pharmacopoeia, has been traditionally used for the treatment of inflammatory and pain diseases, such as jaundice and red urine, cleaning the heart-fire and depression, arthralgia, and dysmenorrhea. However, according to literature surveys, anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive studies of C. kwangsiensis have been seldom reported so far.

AIM OF THE STUDY

The current study focuses on the anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive effects of C. kwangsiensis and discovering the bioactive compounds for its traditional usages both in vivo and in vitro, which could provide scientific justification about its traditional use.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive assays of various layers (ME, EA, AQS) from C. kwangsiensis were achieved by carrageenan-induced paw edema and acetic acid-induced writhing animal models, respectively. The most bioactive part, EA layer was further phytochemically investigated by multiple step chromatography techniques. The structures of these isolates were unambiguously elucidated by means of extensive spectroscopic and chemical methods, and comparison with corresponding data of the reported literature. Four major sesquiterpenoids (4, 6, 14, and 15) were achieved for their anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive assays by the two aforementioned animal models in vivo. All the isolated compounds were evaluated for their anti-inflammatory effects via detecting inflammatory mediator releases (COX-2, IL-1β, and TNF-α) in RAW 264.7 macrophage cells induced by LPS.

RESULTS

The ME and EA layers significantly alleviated the paw edema caused by carrageenan and decreased the number of writhes induced by acetic acid at the dose of 200 and/or 100 mg/kg in comparison to the control group (p < 0.01/0.05), and the EA layer exhibited better activity than that of ME layer. Subsequent phytochemical investigation on EA layer of C. kwangsiensis exhibited that three new terpenoid compounds (1-3), identified as (12Z,14R)-7β-hydroxylabda-8(17),12-diene-14,15,16-triol (1), (12Z,14S)- 7β-hydroxlabda-8(17),12-diene-14,15,16-triol (2), and (4S)-hydroxy-(8)-methoxy-(5S)-(H)-guaia1(10),7(11)-dien-12,8-olide (3), together with twenty-two known analogs were isolated. Furthermore, four major sesquiterpenoids (4, 6, 14, and 15) significantly relieved the paw edema and number of writhes at 100 and/or 50 mg/kg (p < 0.05/0.01). Likewise, the majority of sesqui- and diterpenoids isolated could remarkably inhibited the secretion of inflammatory mediators (COX-2, IL-1β, and TNF-α) in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages cells at the concentration of 20 μg/mL, comparable to DXM used as the positive control. All the results suggested that EA layer from C. kwangsiensis possessed the anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive activities, and these sesqui- and diterpenoids could be the effective constituents responsible for relieving inflammation.

CONCLUSION

The present studies undoubtedly determined the anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive material basis of C. kwangsiensis, including the EA layer and its precise components, which presented equivalent or better anti-inflammatory effects than that of positive control (ASP/DXM) in vivo and in vitro. These results not only would account for scientific knowledge for traditional use of C. kwangsiensis, but also provide credible theoretical foundation for the further development of anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive agents.

[Comparison of the early efficacy of unicompartmental and total knee arthroplasty in patients with medial compartmental osteoarthritis of the knee: a propensity score matching study]

Objective: To compare the short-term efficacy of unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) and total knee arthroplasty(TKA) in the treatment of medial compartmental knee osteoarthritis. Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on 197 patients with medial compartment osteoarthritis of the knee treated by the same group of doctors from January 2015 to December 2018.There were 86 males and 111 females, aged (67.7±10.5) years (range: 46 to 92 years), among which 101 cases received UKA and 96 cases received TKA.The UKA and TKA patients were matched by the propensity score matching method, and a total of 41 pairs of patients were successfully matched.The difference of short-term outcomes between the two groups were compared by t test, χ(2) test or Fisher exact probability methods. Results: Compared with TKA group, the postoperative reduction of hemogloblin in the UKA group was lower ((15.3±6.4) g/L vs. (20.1±7.5) g/L, t=-3.117, P<0.01), opioid dosage was lower ((160.5±29.3) mg vs. (186.1±46.8) mg, t=-2.969, P<0.01), and the length of hospital stay was shorter ((7.0±2.0)d vs. (10.0±2.5)d, t=-6.000, P<0.01). Forgotten joint score of UKA group was higher ( (65.1±7.6) vs. (58.3±13.9) , t=2.732, P<0.01), the incidence of knee clunk or crepitus was lower (P=0.03) . There was no significant difference in the time of surgical tourniquet, range of motion, American knee society clinical score and incidence of deep vein thrombosis in lower extremities between the two groups.No complications such as surgical site infection, prosthesis loosening and dislocation occurred in the two groups. Conclusion: The early effect of UKA is similar to that of TKA, and it is better than TKA in the aspects of knee clunk or crepitus, forgotten joint score, blood loss, opioid dosage and postoperative hospital stay.

The Cocultured Nigrospora oryzae and Collectotrichum gloeosporioides, Irpex lacteus, and the Plant Host Dendrobium officinale Bidirectionally Regulate the Production of Phytotoxins by Anti-phytopathogenic Metabolites

The distinctive nature of the endophyte Irpex lacteus, host plant, and the phytopathogen Collectotrichum gloeosporioides resulted in both negative and positive regulation of the production of phytotoxins from Nigrospora oryzae. The coculture of nonhomologous I. lacteus and N. oryzae resulted in a greater number of anti-phytopathogenic metabolites from the dominant endophyte than the coculture of homologous I. lacteus and N. oryzae. The coculture of the phytopathogen N. oryzae and either the nonhomologous (isolation of I. lacteus and N. oryzae from the different plants) or homologous (isolation of I. lacteus and N. oryzae from the same plant) endophyte I. lacteus from different sources indicated that the nonhomologous I. lacteus grew faster than the homologous I. lacteus, and the production of phytotoxic azaphilone from the phytopathogenic N. oryzae decreased due to the inhibition resulting from being cocultured with nonhomologous I. lacteus. On the other hand, the production of phytotoxic azaphilone was promoted by the coculture of two phytopathogens, N. oryzae and C. gloeosporioides. The extract of the host plant, Dendrobium officinale, also increased anti-phytopathogenic metabolite production. Six new phytotoxic azaphilones from N. oryzae, four new tremulane sesquiterpenes from I. lacteus, and a new polyketone were isolated. The endophyte-phytopathogen, phytopathogen-phytopathogen, and endophyte-phytopathogen-host interactions can induce the chemical diversity of novel anti-phytopathogenic metabolites.

Phomretones A-F, C12 polyketides from the co-cultivation of Phoma sp. YUD17001 and Armillaria sp

Six new C12 polyketides, phomretones A-F (1-6), were isolated from the co-culture of Armillaria sp. and the endophytic fungus Phoma sp. YUD17001 associated with Gastrodia elata. Neither fungus produced these compounds when cultured alone. The structures of 1-6 were established on the basis of comprehensive spectroscopic analyses, while their absolute configurations were determined by the comparsion of experimental and calculated ECD spectra. Compounds 2-4 are diastereoisomers of each other and featured high levels of stereoisomerization and oxidation.

[A Qualitative Proteome-Wide Lysine Succinylation Profiling of Tea Revealed its Involvement in Primary Metabolism]

Lysine succinylation of proteins has potential impacts on protein structure and function, which occurs on post-translation level. However, the information about the succinylation of proteins in tea plants is limited. In the present study, the significant signal of succinylation in tea plants was found by western blot. Subsequently, we performed a qualitative analysis to globally identify the lysine succinylation of proteins using high accuracy nano LC-MS/MS combined with affinity purification. As a result, a total of 142 lysine succinylation sites were identified on 86 proteins in tea leaves. The identified succinylated proteins were involved in various biological processes and a large proportion of the succinylation sites were presented on proteins in the primary metabolism, including glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism, TCA cycle and glycine, serine and threonine metabolism. Moreover, 10 new succinylation sites were detected on histones in tea leaves. The results suggest that succinylated proteins in tea plants might play critical regulatory roles in biological processes, especially in the primary metabolism. This study not only comprehensively analyzed the lysine succinylome in tea plants, but also provided valuable information for further investigating the functions of lysine succinylation in tea plants.

Inducing Intermediates in Biotransformation of Natural Polyacetylene and A Novel Spiro-γ-Lactone from Red Ginseng by Solid Co-Culture of Two Gut Chaetomium globosum and The Potential Bioactivity Modification by Oxidative Metabolism

The ω-hydroxyl-panaxytriol (1) and ω-hydroxyl-dihydropanaxytriol (2)-are rare examples of polyacetylene metabolism by microbial transformation, and these new metabolites (1, 2) from fermented red ginseng (FRG) by solid co-culture induction of two Chaetomium globosum should be the intermediates of biotransformation of panaxylactone (metabolite A). The metabolic pathway of panaxylactone was also exhibited. The ingredients of red ginseng (RG) also induced the production of rare 6/5/5 tricyclic ring spiro-γ-lactone skeleton (3). The ω-hydroxylation of new intermediates (1, 2) decreases cytotoxicity and antifungal activity against C. globosum compared with that of its bioprecursor panaxytriol. Additionally, compounds 1 and 2 indicated obvious inhibition against nitric oxide (NO) production, with ratios of 44.80 ± 1.37 and 23.10 ± 1.00% at 50 μM. 1 has an equivalent inhibition of NO production compared with the positive drug. So, the microbial biotransformation that occurred in FRG fermented by gut C. globosum can change the original bioactivity of polyacetylene, which gave a basis about the metabolic modification of red ginseng by intestinal fungus fermentation.

Biotransformation of α-terpineol by Alternaria alternata

α-Terpineol (1), the main volatile constituent in some traditional Chinese medicines, has been reported to be metabolized to 4R-oleuropeic acid by the larvae of common cutworms. The present study verified that α-terpineol could be converted to 4R-oleuropeic acid (2) and (1S,2R,4R)-p-menthane-1,2,8-triol (3) by Alternaria alternata fermentation. Using shortened fermentation times, 7-hydroxy-α-terpineol (2a) was identified as an oxidative intermediate, which was consistent with the hypothesis put forward by previous studies. Cytochrome P450 enzymes were also confirmed to catalyze this biotransformation. This is the first study on the biotransformation of α-terpineol by microbial fermentation.

Highly selective visual sensing of copper based on fluorescence enhanced glutathione-Au nanoclusters

A blue emission glutathione stabilized Au nanoclusters prepared by an Au/Histidine complex with ligand-exchanges method was used for sensing of copper ions. We found that the glutathione stabilized Au NCs which has fluorescence emission hundred times higher than the Au/Histidine complex and has a highly selective fluorescence quenching response to copper ion. Other common metal ions, such as mercury, lead, iron and zinc, which could obviously quench or enhance the fluorescence of Au/Histidine complex, do not interfere the sensing of copper using glutathione stabilized Au nanocluster. The possible quenching mechanism and the dynamic quenching process for copper detection were also discussed. The results indicated that copper in the range from 0.5 to 300.0μM could be linearly detected and the detection could be finished quickly in 5min. A visual detection method for copper ion that may be used to fast warn copper pollution in waters by naked eyes observation was also be developed using the glutathione stabilized Au NCs probe.

Roquefornine A, a sesterterpenoid with a 5/6/5/5/6-fused ring system from the fungus Penicillium roqueforti YJ-14

Roquefornine A, a sesterterpenoid with an unprecedented 5/6/5/5/6-membered pentacyclic system, was characterized from Penicillium roqueforti YJ-14.

Protoilludane-type sesquiterpenoids from Armillaria sp. by co-culture with the endophytic fungus Epicoccumsp. associated with Gastrodia elata

An investigation of a co-culture of the Armillaria sp. and endophytic fungus Epicoccum sp. YUD17002 associated with Gastrodia elata led to the isolation of eight new compounds, including five protoilludane-type sesquiterpenes (1-5) and three aryl esters (6-8), together with six known analogues (9-14). The assignments of their structures were conducted via extensive analyses of the spectroscopic data and comparison of experimental and calculatedelectronic circular dichroism(ECD)data. Notably, these new compounds were not present in the pure culture controls and were only detected in the co-cultures. Compound 4 is the first example of an ent-protoilludane sesquiterpenoid scaffold bearing a five-membered lactone. Compound 6 exhibited moderate in vitro cytotoxic activities against five human cancer cell lines (HL-60, A549, MCF-7, SMMC-7721, and SW480) with IC₅₀ values ranging from 15.80 to 23.03 μM. Moreover, 6 showed weak acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity (IC₅₀ value of 23.85 μM).

Induction of Antiphytopathogenic Metabolite and Squalene Production and Phytotoxin Elimination by Adjustment of the Mode of Fermentation in Cocultures of Phytopathogenic Nigrospora oryzae and Irpex lacteus

The investigation of the metabolites from different cocultures of Nigrospora oryzae and Irpex lacteus in solid medium revealed two new squalenes (1 and 2); one new azaphilone (3); two new tremulane sesquiterpenes (4 and 5); and three known compounds, conocenol B (6), conocenol C (7), and 4-(4-dihydroxymethylphenoxy)benzaldehyde (8). The antagonistic relationship was examined by studying metabolite production. The production of compounds 6 and 8 by I. lacteus after the induction of coculture indicated significant selectivity for antifungal activity against phytopathogenic N. oryzae, with MICs of 16 μg/mL; compounds 6 and 8 also exhibited antifungal activities in vivo against Cerasus cerasoides infected by N. oryzae at concentrations of 100 μg/mL. New compounds 2 and 4 showed antifungal activities against Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, with MICs of 8 μg/mL, and compound 4 showed antifungal activity against Didymella glomerata with an MIC of 1 μg/mL. These results indicate that the mutually antagonistic relationship in the coculture of the phytopathogen and the endophyte can result in antibiotics that inhibit the phytopathogen and downregulate the production of phytotoxins by phytopathogenic N. oryzae. New compound 5 from I. lacteus showed weak activity against acetylcholinesterase (AChE), with an inhibition ratio of 16% at a concentration of 50 μM.

Glucoside Derivatives Of Podophyllotoxin: Synthesis, Physicochemical Properties, And Cytotoxicity

Background

Widespread concern of the side effects and the broad-spectrum anticancer property of podophyllotoxin as an antitumor agent highlight the need for the development of new podophyllotoxin derivatives. Although some per-butyrylated glucosides of podophyllotoxin and 4β-triazolyl-podophyllotoxin glycosides show good anticancer activity, the per-acetylated/free of podophyllotoxin glucosides and their per-acetylated are not well studied.

Methods

A few glucoside derivatives of PPT were synthesized and evaluated for their in vitro cytotoxic activities against five human cancer cell lines, HL-60 (leukemia), SMMC-7721 (hepatoma), A-549 (lung cancer), MCF-7 (breast cancer), and SW480 (colon cancer), as well as the normal human pulmonary epithelial cell line (BEAS-2B). In addition, we investigated the structure–activity relationship and the physicochemical property–anticancer activity relationship of these compounds.

Results

Compound 6b shows the highest cytotoxic potency against all five cancer cell lines tested, with IC₅₀ values ranging from 3.27±0.21 to 11.37±0.52 μM. We have also found that 6b displays higher selectivity than the etoposide except in the case of HL-60 cell line. The active compounds possess similar physicochemical properties: MSA > 900, %PSA < 20, ClogP > 2, MW > 700 Da, and RB > 10.

Conclusion

We synthesized several glucoside derivatives of PPT and tested their cytotoxicity. Among them, compound 6b showed the highest cytotoxicity. Further studies including selectivity of active compounds have shown that the selectivity indexes of 6b are much greater than the etoposide except in the case of HL-60 cell line. The active compounds possessed similar physicochemical properties. This study indicates that active glucoside analogs of podophyllotoxin have potential as lead compounds for developing novel anticancer agents.

Synthesis and Cytotoxicities of Novel Podophyllotoxin Xyloside Derivatives

Novel podophyllotoxin xyloside derivatives 8 to 11 were synthesized and evaluated for their cytotoxicities against a panel of 5 human cancer cell lines (HL-60, SMMC-7721, A-549, MCF-7, SW480) using [3-(4,5-dimethyl-thiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] assays. These derivatives showed good to moderate activities, with compound 9 having an IC50 value of 4.42 μM against the A-549 cell line. Overall, compound 9 might be a promising candidate for further development.

A new menthane-type monoterpenoid from fermented Illigera aromatica with Clonostachys rogersoniana 828H2

A new menthane-type monoterpenoid, illigerate E (1), as well as two known ones, (1R^*,3R^*,4S^*,6R^*)-6,8-dihydroxymenthol (2) and cis-4-hydroxy-5-(1-hydroxy-1-methylethyl)-2-methyl-2-cyclohexene-1-one (3), were isolated from fermented Illigera aromatica with Clonostachys rogersoniana 828H2. Their structures were identified by HRESIMS and 1D/2D NMR spectra. Their inhibitory effects of NO production in RAW 264.7 macrophages were estimated.

Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Novel Biotinylated Podophyllotoxin Derivatives as Potential Antitumor Agents

Podophyllotoxin has long been used as an active substance for cytotoxic activity. Fourteen novel biotinylated podophyllotoxin derivatives were designed, synthesized, and evaluated for cytotoxic activity for this study. The synthesized compounds were evaluated for cytotoxic activity in the following human cancer cell lines, SW480, MCF-7, A-549, SMMC-7721, and HL-60 by MTT assay. Most of them exhibited potent cytotoxic effects and compound 15 showed the highest cytotoxic activity among the five cancer cell lines tested, having its IC50 values in the range of 0.13 to 0.84 μM. Apoptosis analysis revealed that compound 15 caused obvious induction of cell apoptosis. Compound 15 significantly down-regulated the expression level of the marker proteins (caspase-3 and PARP) in H1299 and H1975 cells, activated the transcription of IRE1α, increased the expression of GRP78 and XBP-1s, and finally induced apoptosis of H1299 cells. In vivo studies showed that 15 at a dose of 20 mg/kg suppressed tumor growth of S180 cell xenografts in icr mice significantly. Further molecular docking studies suggested that compound 15 could bind well with the ATPase domain of Topoisomerase-II. These data suggest that compound 15 is a promising agent for cancer therapy deserving further research.

Inducing secondary metabolite production from Daldinia eschscholzii JC-15 by red ginseng medium

Red ginseng (RG) is one of the most popular herbal medicines and used as a dietary supplement in recent years. The bioactive ingredient in RG can induce the production of novel microbial metabolite from fermented RG. Using the one strain-many compounds strategy, the reinvestigation of the metabolites from Daldinia eschscholzii JC-15 cultured in red ginseng medium led to the isolation of an unprecedented benzopyran-naphthalene hybrid, daldinsin (1) and a new lactone (2). In this research, a new lactone, 8-hydroxylhelicascolide A (2) instead of helicascolide A was produced by the D. eschscholzii JC-15 induced by the red ginseng medium. Compound 1 showed anti-acetylcholinesterase activity with the inhibition ratio of 38.8% at 50 μM. Compound 2 indicated antimicrobial activities against Fusarium Solani, F. oxysporum, and Escherichia coli with MICs at 128 μg/mL. RG is therefore a promising activator in production of novel microbial metabolite.

Inducing Secondary Metabolite Production by Co-culture of the Endophytic Fungus Phoma sp. and the Symbiotic Fungus Armillaria sp

Co-culturing the endophytic fungus Phoma sp. YUD17001 from Gastrodia elata with Armillaria sp. in liquid nutrient medium resulted in the production of five new secondary metabolites, including two phenolic compounds, phexandiols A and B (1 and 2), three aliphatic ester derivatives, phomesters A-C (3-5), and a known fatty acid (6). The structures and absolute configurations of these compounds were elucidated by the interpretation of data from detailed spectroscopic analysis, Mosher's method, and electronic circular dichroism spectra, together with consideration of the biogenetic origins. None of the five new compounds were detected in single-strain cultures under identical fermentation conditions. The results of this work indicated that the production of 1-5 involved a complicated interaction process. None of the new compounds possessed significant cytotoxicity or antimicrobial activities.

Expanstines A–D: four unusual isoprenoid epoxycyclohexenones generated byPenicillium expansumYJ-15 fermentation and photopromotion

Expanstines A–D fromP. expansumYJ-15 were derived under UV and visible light from 4′-oxomacrophoin A (5) and its acetate (6), which plausibly underwent a rare intramolecular photoene reaction and a [2 + 2] Paternò–Büchi photoaddition respectively.

Polyoxygenated meroterpenoids and a bioactive illudalane derivative from a co-culture of Armillaria sp. and Epicoccum sp

Four new meroterpenoids were discovered from a co-culture of Armillaria sp. and the endophytic fungus Epicoccum sp. YUD17002.

The presence of a single-nucleotide mismatch in linker increases the fluorescence of guanine-enhanced DNA-templated Ag nanoclusters and their application for highly sensitive detection of cyanide

Fluorescence of DNA-templated silver nanoclusters can be enhanced by more than 100-fold by placing the nanoclusters in proximity to guanine-rich DNA sequences after hybridization. We found that the fluorescence of the guanine-enhanced silver nanoclusters is not increased with the guanine-rich DNA sequence closer to the silver nanoclusters. By studying the different numbers of mismatches in the linker sequences, we found that the presence of a single-nucleotide mismatch in the linker increases fluorescence more than the complementary nucleotide. Further study indicated the mismatch position of the linker sequence also affects the fluorescence of the hybridized DNA-Ag NCs. The evidence reported here indicated that the mismatch of the linker sequence affects the fluorescence enhancement of guanine-enhanced silver nanoclusters. We also found that DNA-Ag NCs is an excellent fluorescence sensor for cyanide, as cyanide effectively quenches the fluorescence of NCs at a very low concentration with high selectivity. Cyanide in the range from 0.10 μM to 0.35 μM could be linearly detected, with a detection limit of 25.6 nM.

Three new diterpenoid alkaloids isolated from Aconitum brevicalcaratum

In the present study, three new aconitine-type diterpenoid alkaloids brochyponines A-C (1-3) were isolated from the roots of Aconitum brevicalcaratum. Their structures were established on the basis of extensive spectroscopic analyses (IR, HR-ESI-MS, and 1D and 2D NMR). The NMR data of salt form for compound 1 in CDCl₃ were also measured.