Microwave extraction and rapid isolation of arjunic acid from Terminalia arjuna (Roxb. ex DC.) stem bark and quantification of arjunic acid and arjunolic acid using HPLC-PDA technique

Unraveling the role of cytochrome P450 enzymes in oleanane triterpenoid biosynthesis in arjuna tree

Triterpenoids (C30-isoprenoids) represent a major group of natural products with various physiological functions in plants. Triterpenoids and their derivatives have medicinal uses owing to diverse bioactivities. Arjuna (Terminalia arjuna) tree bark accumulates highly oxygenated β-amyrin-derived oleanane triterpenoids (e.g., arjunic acid, arjungenin, and arjunolic acid) with cardioprotective roles. However, biosynthetic routes and enzymes remain poorly understood. We mined the arjuna transcriptome and conducted cytochrome P450 monooxygenase (P450) assays using Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Nicotiana benthamiana to identify six P450s and two P450 reductases for oxidative modifications of oleanane triterpenoids. P450 assays using oleananes revealed a greater substrate promiscuity of C-2α and C-23 hydroxylases/oxidases than C-28 oxidases. CYP716A233 and CYP716A432 catalyzed β-amyrin/erythrodiol C-28 oxidation to produce oleanolic acid. C-2α hydroxylases (CYP716C88 and CYP716C89) converted oleanolic acid and hederagenin to maslinic acid and arjunolic acid. CYP716C89 also hydroxylated erythrodiol and oleanolic aldehyde. However, CYP714E107a and CYP714E107b catalyzed oleanolic acid/maslinic acid/arjunic acid, C-23 hydroxylation to form hederagenin, arjunolic acid and arjungenin, and hederagenin C-23 oxidation to produce gypsogenic acid, but at a lower rate than oleanolic acid C-23 hydroxylation. Overall, P450 substrate selectivity suggested that C-28 oxidation is the first P450-catalyzed oxidative modification in the arjuna triterpenoid pathway. However, the pathway might branch thereafter through C-2α/C-23 hydroxylation of oleanolic acid. Taken together, these results provided new insights into substrate range of P450s and unraveled biosynthetic routes of triterpenoids in arjuna. Moreover, complete elucidation and reconstruction of arjunolic acid pathway in S. cerevisiae and N. benthamiana suggested the utility of arjuna P450s in heterologous production of cardioprotective compounds.

Agro-climatic zone-based identification of elite Terminalia arjuna accessions concerning to arjunolic acid production

Man has been dependent on vegetation in different forms since antiquity. Plants and trees have been used in the form of medications since the old times. Although the use of plant parts in the form of medicine has been less than that of the plants, therefore today it is necessary to explore some such medicinal trees. Among these, one of these trees is Arjun, whose bark is described also in Ayurveda due to its divine medicinal properties in heart diseases. The present study based on the isolation and analysis of the Phyto-constituents of the stem bark extract of Terminalia arjuna member to the family Combretaceae collected from different agro-climatic zones of India. The samples were subjected to quantitative phytochemical analysis i.e., arjunolic acid, screening by implementing the standard procedure. Observation has shown the presence of arjunolic acid in the stem bark extracts in different fractions obtained by the use of various organic solvents. Therefore, the bark extracts of the chosen plants may function as a good source of components of useful drugs for cardiovascular disorders and may also be used for the preparation of other pharmaceutical products.

Transcriptome analysis and functional characterization of oxidosqualene cyclases of the arjuna triterpene saponin pathway

Arjuna (Terminalia arjuna) tree has been popular in Indian traditional medicine to treat cardiovascular ailments. The tree accumulates bioactive triterpene glycosides (saponins) and aglycones (sapogenins), in a tissue-preferential manner. Oleanane triterpenes/saponins (derived from β-amyrin) with potential cardioprotective function predominantly accumulate in the bark. However, arjuna triterpene saponin pathway enzymes remain to be identified and biochemically characterized. Here, we employed a combined transcriptomics, metabolomics and biochemical approach to functionally define a suite of oxidosqualene cyclases (OSCs) that catalyzed key reactions towards triterpene scaffold diversification. De novo assembly of 131 millions Illumina NextSeq500 sequencing reads obtained from leaf and stem bark samples led to a total of 156,650 reference transcripts. Four distinct OSCs (TaOSC1-4) with 54-71 % sequence identities were identified and functionally characterized. TaOSC1, TaOSC3 and TaOSC4 were biochemically characterized as β-amyrin synthase, cycloartenol synthase and lupeol synthase, respectively. However, TaOSC2 was found to be a multifunctional OSC producing both α-amyrin and β-amyrin, but showed a preference for α-amyrin product. Both TaOSC1 and TaOSC2 produced β-amyrin, the direct precursor for oleanane triterpene/saponin biosynthesis; but, TaOSC1 transcript expressed preferentially in bark, suggesting a major role of TaOSC1 in the biosynthesis of oleanane triterpenes/saponins in bark.

Terminalia arjuna bark extract attenuates picrotoxin-induced behavioral changes by activation of serotonergic, dopaminergic, GABAergic and antioxidant systems

Stress and emotion are associated with several illnesses from headaches to heart diseases and immune deficiencies to central nervous system. Terminalia arjuna has been referred as traditional Indian medicine for several ailments. The present study aimed to elucidate the effect of T. arjuna bark extract (TA) against picrotoxin-induced anxiety. Forty two male Balb/c mice were randomly divided into six experimental groups (n = 7): control, diazepam (1.5 mg·kg^-1), picrotoxin (1 mg·kg^-1) and three TA treatemt groups (25, 50, and 100 mg/kg). Behavioral paradigms and PCR studies were performed to determine the effect of TA against picrotoxin-induced anxiety. The results showed that TA supplementation increased locomotion towards open arm (EPM) and illuminated area (light-dark box test), and increased rearing frequency (open field test) in a dose dependent manner, compared to picrotoxin (P < 0.05). Furthermore, TA increased number of licks and shocks in Vogel's conflict. PCR studies showed an up-regulation of several genes, such as BDNF, IP₃, D₂L, CREB, GABA_A, SOD, GPx, and GR in TA administered groups. In conclusion, alcoholic extract of TA bark showed protective activity against picrotoxin in mice by modulation of genes related to synaptic plasticity, neurotransmitters, and antioxidant enzymes.

c-Jun N-terminal Kinase-Dependent Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Pathway is Critically Involved in Arjunic Acid Induced Apoptosis in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Cells

Though arjunic acid, a triterpene isolated from Terminalia arjuna, was known to have antioxidant, antiinflammatory, and cytotoxic effects, its underlying antitumor mechanism still remains unclear so far. Thus, in the present study, the molecular antitumor mechanism of arjunic acid was examined in A549 and H460 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. Arjunic acid exerted cytotoxicity by 3-[4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and significantly increased sub-G1 population in A549 and H460 cells by cell cycle analysis. Consistently, arjunic acid cleaved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), activated Bax, and phosphorylation of c-Jun N-terminal kinases (JNK), and also attenuated the expression of pro-caspase-3 and Bcl-2 in A549 and H460 cells. Furthermore, arjunic acid upregulated the expression of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress proteins such as IRE1 α, ATF4, p-eIF2α, and C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP) in A549 and H460 cells. Conversely, CHOP depletion attenuated the increase of sub-G1 population by arjunic acid, and also JNK inhibitor SP600125 blocked the cytotoxicity and upregulation of IRE1 α and CHOP induced by arjunic acid in A549 and H460 cells. Overall, our findings suggest that arjunic acid induces apoptosis in NSCLC cells via JNK mediated ER stress pathway as a potent chemotherapeutic agent for NSCLC.

Characterisation of Polyphenols in Terminalia arjuna Bark Extract

The bark of Terminalia arjuna is known for its heart-health benefits in ayurvedic literature. This has been further supported by in vivo studies on animal and human volunteers. But there is no detailed study on identification of the active ingredients such as polyphenols. Polyphenols possesses antioxidant properties and are well-known health actives, it is important to characterise polyphenols in Terminalia arjuna. Aqueous extract of Terminalia arjuna bark was analysed for its composition and molecular weight distribution by dialysis. Compositional analysis revealed that it has 44% polyphenols and dialysis study showed that 70% of the polyphenols have molecular weight greater than 3.5 kDa. High performance liquid chromatography and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of Terminalia arjuna, confirmed that it contains flavon-3-ols such as (+)-catechin, (+)-gallocatechin and (-)-epigallocatechin. Phenolic acids such as gallic acid, ellagic acid and its derivatives were also found in Terminalia arjuna extract. Ellagic acid derivatives were isolated and their spectral studies indicated that isolated compounds were 3-O-methyl-ellagic acid 4-O-β-D-xylopyranoside, ellagic acid and 3-O-methyl ellagic acid 3-O-rhamnoside. Hydrolysis and thiolysis studies of high molecular weight polyphenols indicated that they are proanthocyanidins. Given these results, it may be possible to attribute the heart-health effects of Terminalia arjuna to these polyphenols which may be responsible for the endothelial benefit functions like tea.

Microwave-assisted extraction and rapid isolation of ursolic acid from the leaves of Eucalyptus × hybrida Maiden and its quantification using HPLC-diode array technique

Ursolic acid (UA) is the most important bioactive phytoconstituent of Eucalyptus × hybrida Maiden leaves and exhibits anticancer, antimutagenic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidative, and antiprotozoal activities. In this study, microwave-assisted extraction technique was employed for rapid isolation of UA from the leaves of Eucalyptus × hybrida and simultaneously HPLC-diode array method was developed for the quantification of UA. Effects of several experimental parameters on the extraction efficiencies of UA, such as type and volume of extraction solvents, microwave power and extraction time, were evaluated. The optimal extraction conditions were found to be 20 mL of a mixture of chloroform/methanol, 60:40; liquid-to-material ratio, 4:1; preleaching time, 10 min; microwave power, 600 W; temperature, 50°C; and microwave irradiation time, 5 min. Under the optimum conditions, the yield of UA was found to be 1.95 ± 0.08% in the dry leaves of Eucalyptus × hybrida. The results showed that microwave-assisted extraction is a more rapid extraction method with higher yield and lower solvent consumptions than the conventional method. It is a faster, convenient, and appropriate method and it may be used for rapid isolation and quantification of UA and other important phytoconstituents present in the leaves of Eucalyptus × hybrida.