Anti-Ischemic Activity of n-Tyrozol under Conditions of Repeated Transient Myocardial Ischemia in Rats

Design and synthesis of bile acid derivatives and their activity against colon cancer

Bile acids (BAs) containing both hydrophilic hydroxyl and carboxyl groups and hydrophobic methyl and steroid nuclei can promote the absorption of fat and other substances in the intestine, and they are synthesized by cholesterol in the liver and then returned to the liver through enteric liver circulation. Because there are many BA receptors on the cell membrane of colon tissues, BAs can improve the specific delivery and transport of medicines to colon tissues. Moreover, BAs have a certain anticancer and inflammation activity by themselves. Based on this theory, a series of BA derivatives against colon cancer including cholic acid (CA), chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA), ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) and lithocholic acid (LCA) were designed and synthesized, and their antitumor activity was evaluated. For in vitro anti-tumor tests, all the compounds displayed cell proliferative inhibition to nine human malignant tumor cell lines to some degree, and in particular they showed stronger inhibition to the colon cancer cells than the other cell lines. Among them, four compounds (4, 5, 6, and 7) showed stronger activity than the other compounds as well as the positive control 5-FU against HCT116 cells, and their IC50 was between 21.32 μmol L-1 and 28.90 μmol L-1; cell clone formation and migration tests showed that they not only effectively inhibited the formation of HCT116 cell colonies, but also inhibited the HCT116 cell migration and invasion; moreover, they induced apoptosis, arrested the mitotic process at the G2/M phase of the cell cycle, reduced the mitochondrial membrane potential, increased the intracellular ROS levels, and reduced the expression of Bcl-2 and p-STAT3 in HCT 116 cells. In addition, they also displayed intermediate anti-inflammatory activity by inhibiting inflammatory mediators NO and downregulating TNF-α expression, which also is one of the causes of colon cancer. This suggests that they deserve to be further investigated as candidates for colon cancer treatment drugs.

Effect of p-Tyrosol on the Process of Left-Ventricular Remodeling in the Long Period after Myocardial Infarction

The effect of p-tyrosol on the main hemodynamic parameters and contractile function of the heart was studied and a morphometric assessment of left-ventricular remodeling was performed in Wistar rats 2 months after acute 1-h myocardial ischemia followed by reperfusion. p-Tyrosol in a dose of 20 mg/kg was injected intraperitoneally 5 times: 20 min before the start of reperfusion, 4 h after the start of reperfusion, and then once a day over the next 3 days. Administration of p-tyrosol to animals in the acute period of myocardial infarction slowed down the formation of systolic and diastolic myocardial dysfunction, improved the pumping function of the heart, maintained the hemodynamic parameters at a significantly higher level, and reduced left-ventricular remodeling in the late period of myocardial infarction. In 2 months after acute myocardial ischemia modeling, the dimensions of the left-ventricular cavity, the area of the postinfarction focus, and the area of connective tissue in rats treated with p-tyrosol were significantly lower than in the control group. In the group treated with p-tyrosol, no anterior left-ventricular wall aneurysms were found.

Tyrosol as a Neuroprotector: Strong Effects of a "Weak" Antioxidant

The use of neuroprotective agents for stroke is pathogenetically justified, but the translation of the results of preclinical studies of neuroprotectors into clinical practice has been a noticeable failure. One of the leading reasons for these failures is the one-target mechanism of their activity. p-Tyrosol (Tyr), a biophenol, is present in a variety of natural sources, mainly in foods, such as olive oil and wine. Tyr has a wide spectrum of biological activity: antioxidant, stress-protective, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, cardioprotective, neuroprotective and many others. This review analyzes data on the neuroprotective, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic and other kinds of Tyr activity as well as data on the pharmacokinetics of the substance. The data presented in the review substantiate the acceptability of tyr as the basis for the development of a new neuroprotective drug with multitarget activity for the treatment of ischemic stroke. Tyr is a promising molecule for the development of an effective neuroprotective agent for use in ischemic stroke.