Elemental composition of microstrobili and sprouts of <i>Pinus sylvestris, Pinus sibirica</i> and <i>Pinus pumila</i>

In recent years, the popularity of dietary supplements based on pine pollen has significantly increased due to over a thousand years of its use in Chinese traditional medicine and diverse biological activity. Microstrobili are harvested prior to flowering in order to obtain pine pollen, and, following its separation, waste comprising empty microstrobili in the amount of 90–95% of the mass of raw material is formed. In this work, the elemental composition of Pinus sylvestris, P. sibirica and P. pumila microstrobili obtained following the separation of pollen (empty microstrobili (EM) was determined and compared with pharmacopoeial raw material, i.e., P. sylvestris sprouts. The elemental composition was analysed using atomic absorption spectroscopy with preliminary acid mineralisation in a microwave system. A comparative analysis of the elemental composition showed that EM contains a significant amount of K (8710–10187 mg/kg), Mg (627–1079 mg/kg), Mn (129–179 mg/kg), as well as Zn (37–67 mg/kg) and Cu (7.4–10.3 mg/kg). The series of accumulation of chemical elements was identical for microstrobili and sprouts of the studied pine species (K>Mg>Ca>Mn>Fe~Zn>Na>Cu>Ni~Cr>Co>Pb>Cd>Hg). EM can be used to enrich the diet with macroand microelements such as K, Mg, Mn, Fe, Zn and Cu. The content of toxic Cd, Pb and Hg was below the maximum permissible standards for medicinal plant raw materials and dietary supplements thereof. Obtained for the first time, data on the elemental composition of EM of P. sylvestris, P. sibirica, P. pumila and sprouts of P. sibirica and P. pumila can be used for further sanitary measurements of a new type of raw material.

Influence of polysaccharide fractions isolated from Caltha palustris L. on the cellular immune response in collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) in mice. A comparison with methotrexate

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

The extracts from Caltha palustris have been used in traditional Canadian and Asian medicine to treat arthritis and rheumatism.

AIMS

The aim of the study was to investigate the anti-arthritis and immunomodulatory activity of the polysaccharide fractions B and C of Caltha palustris L. herbal extracts in collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) mice, an animal model of rheumathoid arthritis. The results were compared with those of methotrexate (MTX) treatment.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

CIA was induced in male and female DBA/1J mice by intradermal injection of chicken type II collagen in Freund's complete adjuvant (cFA). Booster injection of collagen (in incomplete Freund's adjuvant) was given on day 21 of the experiment. Mice were treated daily for 21 consecutive days with investigated fractions B or C at a dose of 10mg/kg (the first dose was given 24h after the booster) or phosphate buffered saline (PBS) (negative and positive control group). MTX was administered in parallel, intraperitoneally at three weekly cycles-every 48 h for 3 weeks at a dose of 6.6 mg/kg, the first dose was given on day 22 of the experiment. The severity of arthritis was evaluated by arthritic scores. Flow cytometry was used to investigate subsets of T lymphocytes in the thymus, and T and B lymphocytes in the spleen, and in mesenteric lymph nodes. T regulatory lymphocytes in the spleen were also quantified by means of flow cytometry. The levels of IL-2, IL-6, IL-10, IFN-γ and TNF-α in serum were also measured.

RESULTS

The results revealed that fraction B significantly reduced the severity of joint swelling and erythema to a similar degree as MTX. It was also found that B fraction and MTX inhibited leucocytosis in peripheral blood caused by CIA, however the inhibitory effect of MTX persisted longer than that of fraction B. The analysis of lymphocyte T subsets demonstrated that both investigated fractions and MTX caused a partial or complete normalization in the percentage and the absolute number of CD4(-)CD8(-) thymocytes (immature, double-negative cells), and increased the percentage of CD8(+) T cells in peripheral lymphoid organs of mice with CIA. Moreover, an increase in the percentage of CD4(+) thymic cells was observed after treatment with fraction B or MTX. Fraction C showed the weakest effect in normalization of the percentage and the absolute number of CD4(-)CD8(-) thymus lymphocytes in mice with CIA. The potency of fraction B was comparable to MTX. A significant decrease in the percentage and the absolute count of splenic T-regulatory cells (CD4(+)CD25(+)FOXP3(+)) was observed after treatment with both Caltha palustris fractions. The inhibiting influence of investigated fractions on TNF-α serum concentration was significant and lasted longer in the case of fraction C. Production of other cytokines was modulated slightly (increase in IFN-γ) or markedly (decrease in IL-2).

CONCLUSION

The results of the experiment suggested that the administration of polysaccharide B fraction from Caltha palustris extract significantly suppressed the progression of CIA. These results are similar to those obtained in the case of MTX treatment. This indicates that fraction B may be a potent candidate for botanical anti-arthritic agent.

Antiaging effect of pine pollen in human diploid fibroblasts and in a mouse model induced by D-galactose

The present paper was designed to investigate the effect of pine pollen against aging in human diploid fibroblast 2BS cells and in an accelerated aging model, which was established by subcutaneous injections with D-galactose daily for 8 weeks in C57BL/6J mice. Pine pollen (1 mg/mL and 2 mg/mL) is proved to delay the replicative senescence of 2BS cells as evidenced by enhanced cell proliferation, decreased SA-β-Gal activity, and reversed expression of senescence-associated molecular markers, such as p53, p21(Waf1), p16(INK4a), PTEN, and p27(Kip1) in late PD cells. Besides, pine pollen reversed D-galactose-induced aging effects in neural activity and inflammatory cytokine levels, as indicated by improved memory latency time and reduced error rate in step-down test and decreased concentrations of IL-6 and TNF-α in model mice. Similar to the role of AGEs (advanced glycation endproducts) formation inhibitor aminoguanidine (AG), pine pollen inhibited D-galactose-induced increment of AGEs levels thus reversed the aging phenotypes in model mice. Furthermore, the declined antioxidant activity was obviously reversed upon pine pollen treatment, which may account for its inhibitory effect on nonenzymatic glycation (NEG) in vivo. Our finding presents pine pollen as an attractive agent with potential to retard aging and attenuate age-related diseases in humans.