Adventitious root cultures of Oplopanax elatus inhibit LPS-induced inflammation via suppressing MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathways

Medicinal potential of adventitious root cultures of Hypericum perforatum: study on antioxidant stress and anti-melanogenic properties

BACKGROUND

Adventitious root (AR) culture is an effective method for the production of Hypericum perforatum raw materials. However, the ARs are seldom utilized in practical applications. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of H. perforatum ARs on antioxidative stress and anti-melanogenesis, aiming for future applications in the development of related products.

RESULTS

In the antioxidative stress experiment, tert-butyl hydroperoxide-stimulated HepG2 cells were pre-treated with 12.5-50 μg mL-1 of AR ethanolic extract (HpE), which significantly increased (P < 0.05) cell viability and reduced reactive oxygen species levels. In alcohol-stimulated mice, pre-treatment with HpE (2.5-10 mg kg-1) enhanced the activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione, ethanol dehydrogenase, and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase, while reducing the levels of alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and triglycerides. In the anti-melanogenesis experiment, α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone-stimulated B16-F10 mouse melanoma cells were pre-treated with 25-100 μg mL-1 of HpE, resulting in increased tyrosinase activity and melanin content, along with a decrease in the expression levels of microphthalmia-associated transcription factor, tyrosinase-related proteins, and tyrosinase.

CONCLUSION

HpE efficiently protects HepG2 cells from oxidative stress and safeguards the liver in mice by mitigating oxidative damage. Additionally, HpE inhibits melanin synthesis in B16-F10 cells by suppressing tyrosinase activity. These findings suggest that H. perforatum ARs hold potential for use in the development of healthy foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical products aimed at antioxidative stress and anti-melanogenesis. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.

Progress in Oplopanax elatus research: Resources, propagation, traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, quality control, and toxicity

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Oplopanax elatus Nakai is a valuable medicinal plant of the Araliaceae family. In China, South Korea, and Russia, O. elatus has a long history of ethnomedical use, particularly for treating neurasthenia, schizophrenia, cardiovascular disease, and other conditions. However, its commercial use is hindered by the scarcity of raw materials, largely due to the depletion of wild resources and the underdeveloped technology for artificial cultivation. Although reviews on O. elatus exist, they lack coverage of recent research advances and fail to address all relevant aspects. Therefore, a comprehensive understanding of current research on this species is crucial for its future applications.

AIM OF THIS REVIEW

This paper aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current state of research on O. elatus and to integrate recent findings that will guide future research and promote the sustainable utilization of this valuable medicinal plant.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Available information was collected from scientific databases, including Google Scholar, Web of Science, PubMed, ScienceDirect, Baidu Scholar, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Ethnobotanical Monographs. A comprehensive literature on traditional use, phytochemistry, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, quality control, and toxicity published before June 2024. The findings were summarized in this paper.

RESULTS

This paper provided a comprehensive review of the research progress on O. elatus, covering its resource status, propagation, phytochemistry, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, quality control, and toxicity. Previous studies were summarized and current results were presented. In addition, existing challenges, such as the lack of research on quality control and molecular biology, were highlighted, along with potential approaches to address these issues. Finally, the future development prospects and potential applications of O. elatus were discussed.

CONCLUSION

O. elatus has significant potential for use in the production of medicinal, functional foods, and cosmetic products. In particular, adventitious root culture could address the current resource challenges associated with O. elatus and facilitate product development and production. However, further research in quality control and molecular biology is required to fully realize its potential.

Hepatoprotective Effect of Oplopanax elatus Nakai Adventitious Roots Extract by Regulating CYP450 and PPAR Signaling Pathway

O. elatus Nakai is a traditional medicine that has been confirmed to exert effective antioxidant and anti-inflammatory functions, and is used for the treatment of different disorders. However, its potential beneficial effects on drug induced hepatotoxicity and relevant molecular mechanisms remain unclear. This study investigated the protective effect and further elucidated the mechanisms of action of O. elatus on liver protection. O. elatus chlorogenic acids-enriched fraction (OEB), which included chlorogenic acid and isochlorogenic acid A, were identified by HPLC-MS/MS. OEB was administrated orally daily for seven consecutive days, followed by a single intraperitoneal injection of an overdose of APAP after the final OEB administration. The effects of OEB on immune cells in mice liver were analyzed using flow cytometry. APAP metabolite content in serum was detected using HPLC-MS/MS in order to investigate whether OEB affects CYP450 activities. The intestinal content samples were processed for 16 s microbiota sequencing. Results demonstrated that OEB decreased alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase contents, affected the metabolism of APAP, and decreased the concentrates of APAP, APAP-CYS and APAP-NAC by inhibiting CYP2E1 and CYP3A11 activity. Furthermore, OEB pretreatment regulated lipid metabolism by affecting the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) signaling pathway in mice and also increased the abundance of Akkermansia and Parabacteroides. This study indicated that OEB is a potential drug candidate for treating hepatotoxicity because of its ability to affect drug metabolism and regulate lipid metabolism.

Falcarindiol and dichloromethane fraction are bioactive components in Oplopanax elatus: Colorectal cancer chemoprevention via induction of apoptosis and G2/M cell cycle arrest mediated by cyclin A upregulation

Oplopanax elatus (Nakai) Nakai has a long history of use as an ethnomedicine by the people living in eastern Asia. However, its bioactive constituents and cancer chemopreventive mechanisms are largely unknown. The aim of this study was to prepare O. elatus extracts, fractions, and single compounds and to investigate the herb's antiproliferative effects on colon cancer cells and the involved mechanisms of action. Two polyyne compounds were isolated from O. elatus, falcarindiol and oplopandiol. Based on our HPLC analysis, falcarindiol and oplopandiol are major constituents in the dichloromethane (CH₂Cl₂) fraction. For the HCT-116 cell line, the dichloromethane fraction showed significant effects. Furthermore, the IC50 for falcarindiol and oplopandiol was 1.7 μM and 15.5 μM, respectively. In the mechanistic study, after treatment with 5 μg/ml for 48 h, dichloromethane fraction induced cancer cell apoptosis by 36.5% (p < 0.01% vs. control of 3.9%). Under the same treatment condition, dichloromethane fraction caused cell cycle arrest at the G2/M phase by 32.6% (p < 0.01% vs. control of 23.4%), supported by upregulation of key cell cycle regulator cyclin A to 21.6% (p < 0.01% vs. control of 8.6%). Similar trends were observed by using cell line HT-29. Data from this study filled the gap between phytochemical components and the cancer chemoprevention of O. elatus. The dichloromethane fraction is a bioactive fraction, and falcarindiol is identified as an active constituent. The mechanisms involved in cancer chemoprevention by O. elatus were apoptosis induction and G2/M cell cycle arrest mediated by a key cell cycle regulator cyclin A.

Co-cultured adventitious roots of Echinacea pallida and Echinacea purpurea inhibit lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammation via MAPK pathway in mouse peritoneal macrophages

Objective

In order to elucidate the biological activity of the co-cultured adventitious roots (ARs) of Echinacea pallida and Echinacea purpurea and provide theoretical basis for its application, and the anti-inflammatory activities and potential mechanisms of co-cultured ARs were studied.

Methods

The experimental materials were obtained by bioreactor co-culture technology and used in the activity research. In this study, mouse macrophages induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) were used as in vitro model. Different concentrations of AR extract (50–400 g/mL) were used to treat cells. The expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines was determined using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. The inducible nitric oxide synthase and cyclooxygenase-2 expression, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) phosphorylation, and the inhibitor of nuclear factor-kappa B-α levels were determined by the Western blot analysis.

Results

In the co-cultured ARs, total flavonoids and total caffeic acid were determined, and the contents of both bioactive compounds were significantly higher than those ARs from the single-species culture. Compared with the control group, the large amount of pro-inflammatory mediators was released after LPS stimulation. However, in the extract groups with different concentrations (25, 50, and 100 g/mL), the production of these pro-inflammatory mediators was inhibited in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, the levels of phosphorylation of MAPK proteins, including p-p38, p-c-Jun N-terminal kinase, and p-extracellular regulated protein kinases were significantly (P < 0.05) decreased in the extract groups, revealing that the AR extract probably involved in regulating the MAPK signaling pathway.

Conclusion

Collectively, our findings suggested that the co-cultured ARs of E. pallida and E. purpurea can inhibit production of pro-inflammatory mediators in mouse peritoneal macrophages and possess the anti-inflammatory effect by regulating MAPK signaling pathways.

Deubiquitinase Inhibitor b-AP15 Attenuated LPS-Induced Inflammation via Inhibiting ERK1/2, JNK, and NF-Kappa B

b-AP15 is a deubiquitinase (DUB) inhibitor of 19S proteasomes, which in turn targets ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase 5 (UCHL5) and ubiquitin-specific peptidase 14 (USP14). Nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) is closely linked to cellular response in macrophages when the organism is in the state of microbial infection, and it acts as a vital part in the mechanism of inflammatory reaction. However, the molecular mechanism by which DUB inhibitors, especially b-AP15, regulates inflammation remains poorly understood. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between b-AP15 and inflammation. The results showed that b-AP15 treatment significantly reduced the amounts of inflammatory indicators, such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin 6 (IL-6) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated THP-1 and macrophages. Meanwhile, similar results were obtained from in vivo experiments. In addition, b-AP15 also significantly improved the survival rate of sepsis mouse via high-density LPS mediation. Furthermore, b-AP15 also inhibited the ERK1/2 and JNK phosphorylation, increased IκBα levels, and inhibited NF-κB p65 by removing them from the cytoplasm into the nucleus. All these findings suggested that b-AP15 has anti-inflammatory action and acts as a potential neoteric target drug for treating microbial infection.