Ex vivo effects of an Oenothera paradoxa extract on the reactive oxygen species generation and neutral endopeptidase activity in neutrophils from patients after acute myocardial infarction

The potential and outgoing trends in traditional, phytochemical, economical, and ethnopharmacological importance of family Onagraceae: A comprehensive review

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

The Onagraceae is a widely distributed family of flowering plants comprises about 17 genera and more than 650 species of herbs, shrubs, and trees. Onagraceae also common as willowherb family or evening primrose family is divided into two subfamilies; Ludwigioideae (mainly genus; Ludwigia) and Onagroideae. Family Onagraceae is characterized by its numerous traditional uses as treatment of hormonal imbalances, urinary system ailments, prostate health maintenance, and antimicrobial effects.

AIM OF THE STUDY

This review aims to introduce a holistic overview on the phytochemical composition, economical importance and ethnopharmacological value of different species of family Onagraceae.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Literature review was performed using different data bases such as PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar and Reaxys searching for articles focused on phytochemical composition, bioactivity and ethnopharmacological history of Onagraceae species.

RESULTS

Different species of Onagraceae were reported to have a great variety of phytochemicals including flavonoids, tannins, phenolic acids, triterpenoids, saponins, and volatile/fixed oils. Onagraceae exhibited several health benefits and pharmacological activities including anti-inflammatory, antiarthritic and analgesic, antioxidant, cytotoxic, antidiabetic, and antimicrobial.

CONCLUSIONS

Family Onagraceae is an extremely important family with diverse phytochemical composition which enriches their pharmacological importance and hence it's commercial and economical value.

Phytochemicals in Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Treatment-Review on the Current Trends of Therapies

Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare but highly aggressive tumor of pleura arising in response to asbestos fibers exposure. MPM is frequently diagnosed in the advanced stage of the disease and causes poor prognostic outcomes. From the clinical perspective, MPM is resistant to conventional treatment, thus challenging the therapeutic options. There is still demand for improvement and sensitization of MPM cells to therapy in light of intensive clinical studies on chemotherapeutic drugs, including immuno-modulatory and targeted therapies. One way is looking for natural sources, whole plants, and extracts whose ingredients, especially polyphenols, have potential anticancer properties. This comprehensive review summarizes the current studies on natural compounds and plant extracts in developing new treatment strategies for MPM.

Polyphenol Extract from Evening Primrose (Oenothera paradoxa) Inhibits Invasion Properties of Human Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Cells

Extracts from the defatted evening primrose (Oenothera paradoxa Hudziok) seeds are the source of a range of stable polyphenolic compounds, including ellagic acid, gallic acid, and catechin. Our studies evaluate, for the first time, the influence of evening primrose isopropanol extract (EPE) on malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) cells. MPM is rarely diagnosed, its high aggressiveness and frequently noted chemoresistance limit its treatment schemes and it is characterized by low prognostic features. Here, we demonstrate that EPE inhibited MPM growth in a dose-dependent manner in cells with increased invasion properties. Moreover, EPE treatment resulted in cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase and increased apoptosis in invasive MPM cell lines. Additionally, EPE strongly limited invasion and MMP-7 secretion in MPM cancer cells. Our original data provide evidence about the potential anti-invasive effects of EPE in MPM therapy treatment.

Chemical and Biological Significance of Oenothein B and Related Ellagitannin Oligomers with Macrocyclic Structure

In 1990, Okuda et al. reported the first isolation and characterization of oenothein B, a unique ellagitannin dimer with a macrocyclic structure, from the Oenothera erythrosepala leaves. Since then, a variety of macrocyclic analogs, including trimeric-heptameric oligomers have been isolated from various medicinal plants belonging to Onagraceae, Lythraceae, and Myrtaceae. Among notable in vitro and in vivo biological activities reported for oenothein B are antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, enzyme inhibitory, antitumor, antimicrobial, and immunomodulatory activities. Oenothein B and related oligomers, and/or plant extracts containing them have thus attracted increasing interest as promising targets for the development of chemopreventive agents of life-related diseases associated with oxygen stress in human health. In order to better understand the significance of this type of ellagitannin in medicinal plants, this review summarizes (1) the structural characteristics of oenothein B and related dimers; (2) the oxidative metabolites of oenothein B up to heptameric oligomers; (3) the distribution of oenotheins and other macrocyclic analogs in the plant kingdom; and (4) the pharmacological activities hitherto documented for oenothein B, including those recently found by our laboratory.

Dual stimulus-dependent effect of Oenothera paradoxa extract on the respiratory burst in human leukocytes: suppressing for Escherichia coli and phorbol myristate acetate and stimulating for formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine

Although a growing body of evidence suggests that plant polyphenols can modulate human immune responses, their simultaneous action on monocyte and neutrophil oxidative burst is currently poorly understood. Based on the hypothesis that various polyphenols contained in plant extracts might affect the oxidative burst of phagocytes, we evaluated the effects of ethanolic O. paradoxa extract polyphenols on monocyte and neutrophil oxidative burst in vitro activated by different stimuli, including opsonized bacteria E. coli, phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), and formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (fMLP). Samples were analyzed by the dihydrorhodamine flow cytometry assay. Our results showed that the extract repressed significantly and dose-dependently reactive oxygen species production in both cell types stimulated with E. coli and PMA (P < 0.05) and its inhibitory efficiency was stimulus- and cell-type-dependent. Interestingly, there was significant stimulatory effect of the extract on bursting phagocytes induced by fMLP (P < 0.05). Additionally, several flavonoids and phenolic compounds as well as penta-galloyl-β-(D)-glucose (PGG), the representative of hydrolyzable tannins, were identified in the 60% extract by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled to electrospray ionization in negative ion mode. In summary, the ethanolic O. paradoxa extract, rich in flavonoids and phenolic compounds, exhibits dual stimulus-dependent effect on the respiratory burst in human leukocytes; hence, it might affect immune responses in humans.

Achyrocline satureioides (Lam.) D.C. Hydroalcoholic Extract Inhibits Neutrophil Functions Related to Innate Host Defense

Achyrocline satureioides (Lam.) D.C. is a herb native to South America, and its inflorescences are popularly employed to treat inflammatory diseases. Here, the effects of the in vivo actions of the hydroalcoholic extract obtained from inflorescences of A. satureioides on neutrophil trafficking into inflamed tissue were investigated. Male Wistar rats were orally treated with A. satureioides extract, and inflammation was induced one hour later by lipopolysaccharide injection into the subcutaneous tissue. The number of leukocytes and the amount of chemotactic mediators were quantified in the inflammatory exudate, and adhesion molecule and toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4) expressions and phorbol-myristate-acetate- (PMA-) stimulated oxidative burst were quantified in circulating neutrophils. Leukocyte-endothelial interactions were quantified in the mesentery tissue. Enzymes and tissue morphology of the liver and kidney were evaluated. Treatment with A. satureioides extract reduced neutrophil influx and secretion of leukotriene B4 and CINC-1 in the exudates, the number of rolling and adhered leukocytes in the mesentery postcapillary venules, neutrophil L-selectin, β 2-integrin and TLR-4 expression, and oxidative burst, but did not cause an alteration in the morphology and activities of liver and kidney. Together, the data show that A. satureioides extract inhibits neutrophil functions related to the innate response and does not cause systemic toxicity.

Chemical composition, antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activity of extracts prepared from aerial parts of Oenothera biennis L. and Oenothera paradoxa Hudziok obtained after seeds cultivation

In the present study we investigated the chemical composition of extracts prepared from aerial parts of Oenothera paradoxa Hudziok and Oenothera biennis L. and their antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activities. Ultra high pressure liquid chromatography (UHPLC)-DAD-MS/MS studies showed that both extracts contain a wide variety of polyphenols (39 identified constituents) among which macrocyclic ellagitannin turned out to be the main constituent. During the in vitro studies, using noncellular models, both extracts scavenged reactive oxygen species (ROS) in a concentration-dependent manner, and the lowest SC(50) values were obtained for O(2)(-) and H(2)O(2). Both extracts inhibited ROS production by stimulated human neutrophils. The stronger activity in the case of formyl-met-leu-phenylalanine stimulation suggests that both extracts may act through the receptor-dependent pathway. O. paradoxa extract and O. biennis extract exhibited anti-inflammatory activity by the inhibition of hyaluronidase and lipoxygenase in a concentration-dependent manner. The stronger activity of O.biennis extract toward lipoxygenase may be explained by its higher oenothein B content.