Biochemical and Haematological Evaluation of Repeated Dose Exposure of Male Wistar Rats to an Ethanolic Extract ofArtemisia annua

Inhibition of TNF-α Oncogene Expression by Artemisia Annua L. Extract Against Pioglitazone Side Effects in Male Albino Mice

Pioglitazone (Actos) is one of the most recent oral antidiabetic drugs for treating the second type of diabetes mellitus as a common chronic and lifelong disease, but with harmful side effects. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of Artemisia annua L. extract against the Actos drug side effects in the male albino mice. In present study, the use of Actos drug alone induced hepatotoxicity, renal inflammation, hematological disorders and bladder cancer, which are manifested by biochemical abnormalities and histopathological changes, moreover, the severity of toxicity depends on its dose. In contrast, the concurrent treatment with both Actos drug (45 mg/kg) and Artemisia extract (4 g/kg) was effective against the harmful side effects of the Actos drug. Where, the biochemical, hematological and histopathological investigations showed that the hepatotoxicity, renal inflammation, hematological disorders and histopathological changes were improved using combination of Actos and Artemisia extract. In addition, the results of TNF-ɑ oncogene expression levels in bladder tissues were significantly decreased by about 99.99% using the mix of both Actos drug and Artemisia extract. In conclusion, these findings reveal that the Artemisia annua extract on TNF-ɑ oncogene expression level is very significant and effective natural product against harmful side effects of pioglitazone which associated with an increased risk of incident bladder cancer among people, but for application more studies must be achieved in that field.

Artemisia annua Extract Improves the Cognitive Deficits and Reverses the Pathological Changes of Alzheimer’s Disease via Regulating YAP Signaling

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disease characterized by the occurrence of cognitive deficits. With no effective treatments available, the search for new effective therapies has become a major focus of interest. In the present study, we describe the potential therapeutic effect of Artemisia annua (A. annua) extract on AD. Nine-month-old female 3xTg AD mice were treated with A. annua extract for three months via oral administration. Animals assigned to WT and model groups were administrated with an equal volume of water for the same period. Treated AD mice significantly improved the cognitive deficits and exhibited reduced Aβ accumulation, hyper-phosphorylation of tau, inflammatory factor release and apoptosis when compared with untreated AD mice. Moreover, A. annua extract promoted the survival and proliferation of neural progenitor cells (NPS) and increased the expression of synaptic proteins. Further assessment of the implicated mechanisms revealed that A. annua extract regulates the YAP signaling pathway in 3xTg AD mice. Further studies comprised the incubation of PC12 cells with Aβ1–42 at a concentration of 8 μM with or without different concentrations of A. annua extract for 24 h. Obtained ROS levels, mitochondrial membrane potential, caspase-3 activity, neuronal cell apoptosis and assessment of the signaling pathways involved was performed using western blot and immunofluorescence staining. The obtained results showed that A. annua extract significantly reversed the Aβ1–42-induced increase in ROS levels, caspase-3 activity and neuronal cell apoptosis in vitro. Moreover, either inhibition of the YAP signaling pathway, using a specific inhibitor or CRISPR cas9 knockout of YAP gene, reduced the neuroprotective effect of the A. annua extract. These findings suggest that A. annua extract may be a new multi-target anti-AD drug with potential use in the prevention and treatment of AD.

Modulation of transcription factors by small molecules in β-cell development and differentiation

Transcription factors regulate gene expression and play crucial roles in development and differentiation of pancreatic β-cell. The expression and/or activities of these transcription factors are reduced when β-cells are chronically exposed to hyperglycemia, which results in loss of β-cell function. Optimal expression of such transcription factors is required to maintain normal pancreatic development and β-cell function. Over many other methods of regenerating β-cells, using small molecules to activate transcription factors has gained insights, resulting in β-cells regeneration and survival. In this review, we discuss the broad spectrum of transcription factors regulating pancreatic β-cell development, differentiation and regulation of these factors in normal and pathological states. Also, we have presented set of potential pharmacological effects of natural and synthetic compounds on activities of transcription factor involved in pancreatic β-cell regeneration and survival. Exploring these compounds and their action on transcription factors responsible for pancreatic β-cell function and survival could be useful in providing new insights for development of small molecule modulators.

Ameliorative effects of Artemisia and Echinacea extracts against hepato and cardiotoxicity induced by DMBA on albino rats: experimental and molecular docking analyses

Background

Herbal therapy for healing disease has many advantages than drugs. This study investigates the protective efficacy of Artemisia annua (Art) and Echinacea pupurea (Ech) extracts against 7, 12-dimethylbenz (α) anthracene (DMBA) toxicity.

Results

DMBA-treated rats showed a significant increase in the level of serum ALT, AST, LDH and CKMB, also reduction in body weight gain (BWG) ℅, HB, WBCs, RBCs and platelet counts, in addition to histopathological and ultrastructural alterations. Rats treated with Art or Ech after DMBA showed little improvements in the biochemical, hematological, histopathological, ultrastructural and molecular docking results than before DMBA.

Conclusions

This study suggested the ameliorative effect of Ech and Art due to their antioxidant properties, but Ech and Art were more effective if they are given before than after DMBA administration and the marked effect against DMBA toxicity with Ech before DMBA exposure. Also, the molecular docking, molecular properties descriptors, and pharmacoinformatic studies of constituents of extract from Artemisia annua L. and Echinacea purpurea L. exhibited that all studied compounds have better ADMET and physicochemical properties, especially compounds extract from Echinacea purpurea L.

Graphical Abstract

Anti-malarial drug: the emerging role of artemisinin and its derivatives in liver disease treatment

Artemisinin and its derivatives belong to a family of drugs approved for the treatment of malaria with known clinical safety and efficacy. In addition to its anti-malarial effect, artemisinin displays anti-viral, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer effects in vivo and in vitro. Recently, much attention has been paid to the therapeutic role of artemisinin in liver diseases. Several studies suggest that artemisinin and its derivatives can protect the liver through different mechanisms, such as those pertaining to inflammation, proliferation, invasion, metastasis, and induction of apoptosis and autophagy. In this review, we provide a comprehensive discussion of the underlying molecular mechanisms and signaling pathways of artemisinin and its derivatives in treating liver diseases. Further pharmacological research will aid in determining whether artemisinin and its derivatives may serve as promising medicines for the treatment of liver diseases in the future.

The Potential Roles of Artemisinin and Its Derivatives in the Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a chronic disease that has become a global public health problem. Studies on T2DM prevention and treatment mostly focus on discovering therapeutic drugs. Artemisinin and its derivatives were originally used as antimalarial treatments. In recent years, the roles of artemisinins in T2DM have attracted much attention. Artemisinin treatments not only attenuate insulin resistance and restore islet ß-cell function in T2DM but also have potential therapeutic effects on diabetic complications, including diabetic kidney disease, cognitive impairment, diabetic retinopathy, and diabetic cardiovascular disease. Many in vitro and in vivo experiments have confirmed the therapeutic utility of artemisinin and its derivatives on T2DM, but no article has systematically demonstrated the specific role artemisinin plays in the treatment of T2DM. This review summarizes the potential therapeutic effects and mechanism of artemisinin and its derivatives in T2DM and associated complications, providing a reference for subsequent related research.

Analysis of Artemisia annua extracts and related products by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry coupled to sample treatment miniaturisation

Artemisinin, the main antimalarial compound of Artemisia annua L., is currently attracting increasing interest for its antiproliferative properties, but its content is highly variable, depending on several genetic, environmental and processing conditions. Aim of the present study is to analyse the artemisinin content in different plant extracts, to test their in vitro activity on cell proliferation and then to correlate these data to the active principle concentration. For this purpose, an innovative miniaturised sample pretreatment strategy based on microextraction by packed sorbent (MEPS) was developed and coupled to an original advanced method based on liquid chromatography with diode array detection and tandem mass spectrometry (LC-DAD-MS/MS). The method was fully validated, granting consistent data. Good linearity was found over a suitable concentration range, i.e. 5-1000ng/mL. Extraction yields (>85%), precision (RSD < 3.5%) and accuracy (recovery 88-93%) were all within acceptable levels of confidence. After validation, the method was successfully applied to the determination of artemisinin in A. annua extracts. Analyte content was widely variable (up to twenty-fold) according to the starting material and the extraction procedure, ranging between 5.9μg/g and 109μg/mL. The cytotoxic activity of all analysed extracts was also tested on human leukemic cells by viable cell count and cell cycle analysis. Artemisinin concentrations and biological activity were carefully evaluated and the observed antiproliferative effects varied according to artemisinin content in each extract type. This highlights the need to quantitatively analyse the main active constituent of plant extracts and the obtained data have shown to be promising for the choice of the related herbal product dosage.

Treatment of Iron-Loaded Veterinary Sarcoma by Artemisia annua

Artemisinin, a constituent of Artemisia annua L., is a well-known antimalarial drug. Artemisinin-type drugs also inhibit cancer growth in vitro and in vivo. Herbal extracts of A. annua inhibit the growth of cancer cell lines. Here, we report on the use of capsules containing powder of Herba Artemisiae annuae to treat pet sarcoma. The surgical tumor removal as standard treatment was supplemented by adjuvant therapy with A. annua. One cat and one dog with fibrosarcoma survived 40 and 37 months, respectively, without tumor relapse. Two other dogs suffering from fibrosarcoma and hemangioendothelial sarcoma also showed complete remission and are still alive after 39 and 26 months, respectively. A. annua was well tolerated without noticeable side effects. These four cases indicate that A. annua may be a promising herbal drug for cancer therapy.