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Saffron, Its Active Components, and Their Association with DNA and Histone Modification: A Narrative Review of Current Knowledge. Nutrients 2022; 14:nu14163317. [PMID: 36014823 PMCID: PMC9414768 DOI: 10.3390/nu14163317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2022] [Revised: 08/02/2022] [Accepted: 08/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Intensive screening for better and safer medications to treat diseases such as cancer and inflammatory diseases continue, and some phytochemicals have been discovered to have anti-cancer and many therapeutical activities. Among the traditionally used spices, Crocus sativus (saffron) and its principal bioactive constituents have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and chemopreventive properties against multiple malignancies. Early reports have shown that the epigenetic profiles of healthy and tumor cells vary significantly in the context of different epigenetic factors. Multiple components, such as carotenoids as bioactive dietary phytochemicals, can directly or indirectly regulate epigenetic factors and alter gene expression profiles. Previous reports have shown the interaction between active saffron compounds with linker histone H1. Other reports have shown that high concentrations of saffron bind to the minor groove of calf thymus DNA, resulting in specific structural changes from B- to C-form of DNA. Moreover, the interaction of crocin G-quadruplex was reported. A recent in silico study has shown that residues of SIRT1 interact with saffron bio-active compounds and might enhance SIRT1 activation. Other reports have shown that the treatment of Saffron bio-active compounds increases γH2AX, decreases HDAC1 and phosphorylated histone H3 (p-H3). However, the question that still remains to be addressed how saffron triggers various epigenetic changes? Therefore, this review discusses the literature published till 2022 regarding saffron as dietary components and its impact on epigenetic mechanisms. Novel bioactive compounds such as saffron components that lead to epigenetic alterations might be a valuable strategy as an adjuvant therapeutic drug.
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Yousefi-Manesh H, Aghamollaei H, Dehpour AR, Sheibani M, Tavangar SM, Bagheri M, Shirooie S, Daryabari SH, Noori T. The role of saffron in improvement of ocular surface disease in a mouse model of Lacrimal Gland Excision-induced dry eye disease. Exp Eye Res 2022; 221:109127. [DOI: 10.1016/j.exer.2022.109127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2021] [Revised: 05/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
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Kadoglou NPE, Christodoulou E, Kostomitsopoulos N, Valsami G. The cardiovascular-protective properties of saffron and its potential pharmaceutical applications: A critical appraisal of the literature. Phytother Res 2021; 35:6735-6753. [PMID: 34448254 DOI: 10.1002/ptr.7260] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2021] [Revised: 08/09/2021] [Accepted: 08/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Saffron, the dried stigma of Crocus sativus L., is used in traditional medicine for its healing properties and the treatment of various pathological conditions. The present literature review aimed to summarize and evaluate the preclinical and clinical data regarding the protective effects and mechanisms of saffron and its main components (crocin, crocetin, safranal) on cardiovascular risk factors and diseases. Many in vitro and animal studies have been conducted implicating antioxidant, hypolipidemic, anti-diabetic, and antiinflammatory impact of saffron and its constituents. Notably, there is evidence of direct atherosclerosis regression and stabilization in valid atherosclerosis-prone animal models. However, current clinical trials have shown mostly weak effects of saffron and its constituents on cardiovascular risk factors: (a) Modest lowering of fasting blood glucose, without significant reduction of HbA1c in type 2 diabetic patients, (b) moderate/controversial hypolipidemic effects, (c) negligible hypotensive effect, and (d) inconsistent modification of metabolic syndrome parameters. There are important drawbacks in clinical trial design, including the absence of pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic tests, the wide variance of doses and cohorts' characteristics, the small number of patients, the short duration. Therefore, large, properly designed, high-quality clinical trials, focusing on specific conditions are required to evaluate the biological/pharmacological activities and firmly establish the clinical efficacy of saffron and its possible therapeutic uses in cardiovascular diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Eirini Christodoulou
- Laboratory of Biopharmaceutics-Pharmacokinetics, Department of Pharmacy, School of Health Sciences, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
| | - Nikolaos Kostomitsopoulos
- Center of Clinical Experimental Surgery and Translational Research, Biomedical Research Foundation, Academy of Athens, Athens, Greece
| | - Georgia Valsami
- Laboratory of Biopharmaceutics-Pharmacokinetics, Department of Pharmacy, School of Health Sciences, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
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Gao G, Wu J, Li B, Jiang Q, Wang P, Li J. Transcriptomic analysis of saffron at different flowering stages using RNA sequencing uncovers cytochrome P450 genes involved in crocin biosynthesis. Mol Biol Rep 2021; 48:3451-3461. [PMID: 33934248 DOI: 10.1007/s11033-021-06374-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2021] [Accepted: 04/24/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Saffron is a well-known Chinese traditional herb, and crocin biosynthesis is related to the yield and quality of saffron. This study aimed to screen differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in saffron at different flowering stages and identify cytochrome P450 (CYP) genes involved in crocin biosynthesis. Saffron samples at different flowering stages were used for RNA sequencing, and DEGs between the samples at three days before the flowering stage (- 3da) and two days after the flowering stage (+ 2da) were screened. Thereafter, significantly differentially expressed CYP genes were identified, and CYP gene expression at different flowering stages and in various tissues of saffron was determined using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). After sequencing and analysis, 1508 DEGs between the samples at - 3da and + 2da were identified, including 487 upregulated and 1021 downregulated genes, which were enriched in 16 biological processes, 5 cellular components, 3 molecular functions, and 11 KEGG pathways, including protein processing in endoplasmic reticulum, pentose and glucuronate interconversions, starch and sucrose metabolism, estrogen signaling pathway, and mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling pathway. In addition, 12 significantly differentially expressed CYP genes were identified. The RT-qPCR results showed that CYP76C4, CYP72A15, CYP72A219, CYP97B2, CYP714C2, CYP71A1, CYP94C1, and CYP86A8 were all expressed in the pistils, and CYP72A219, CYP72A15, CYP97B2, CYP71A1, and CYP86A8 were highly expressed in the pistils. Our study established a transcriptome library of saffron and found that CYP72A219, CYP72A15, CYP97B2, CYP71A1, and CYP86A8 may be candidates involved crocin biosynthesis in saffron.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guangchun Gao
- College of Medicine, Jiaxing University, Jiaxing, 314001, Zhengjiang, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiming Wu
- College of Medicine, Jiaxing University, Jiaxing, 314001, Zhengjiang, People's Republic of China
| | - Bai Li
- Jiaxing Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Jiaxing, 314016, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China
| | - Qi Jiang
- College of Medicine, Jiaxing University, Jiaxing, 314001, Zhengjiang, People's Republic of China
| | - Ping Wang
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.
| | - Jun Li
- Jiaxing Vocational and Technical College, Jiaxing, 314036, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.
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Nassar R, Eid S, Chahine R, Chabi B, Bonnieu A, Sabban ME, Najjar F, Hamade A. Antioxidant effects of lebanese Crocus sativus L. and its main components, crocin and safranal, on human skeletal muscle cells. Eur J Integr Med 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.eujim.2020.101250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Resina draconis inhibits the endoplasmic-reticulum-induced apoptosis of myocardial cells via regulating miR-423-3p/ERK signaling pathway in a tree shrew myocardial ischemia–reperfusion model. J Biosci 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s12038-019-9872-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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Hatziagapiou K, Lambrou GI. The Protective Role of Crocus Sativus L. (Saffron) Against Ischemia- Reperfusion Injury, Hyperlipidemia and Atherosclerosis: Nature Opposing Cardiovascular Diseases. Curr Cardiol Rev 2018; 14:272-289. [PMID: 29952263 PMCID: PMC6300793 DOI: 10.2174/1573403x14666180628095918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2018] [Revised: 06/21/2018] [Accepted: 06/21/2018] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Reactive oxygen species and reactive nitrogen species, which are collective-ly called reactive oxygen-nitrogen species, are inevitable by-products of cellular metabolic redox reac-tions, such as oxidative phosphorylation in the mitochondrial respiratory chain, phagocytosis, reac-tions of biotransformation of exogenous and endogenous substrate in endoplasmic reticulum, eico-sanoid synthesis, and redox reactions in the presence of metal with variable valence. Among medici-nal plants, there is growing interest in Crocus Sativus L. It is a perennial, stemless herb, belonging to Iridaceae family, cultivated in various countries such as Greece, Italy, Spain, Israel, Morocco, Tur-key, Iran, India, China, Egypt and Mexico. Objective: The present study aims to address the anti-toxicant role of Crocus Sativus L. in the case of cardiovascular disease and its role towards the cardioprotective role of Crocus Sativus L. Materials and Methods: An electronic literature search was conducted by the two authors from 1993 to August 2017. Original articles and systematic reviews (with or without meta-analysis), as well as case reports were selected. Titles and abstracts of papers were screened by a third reviewer to deter-mine whether they met the eligibility criteria, and full texts of the selected articles were retrieved. Results: Our review has indicated that scientific literature confirms the role of Crocus Sativus L. as a cardiovascular-protective agent. The literature review showed that Saffron is a potent cardiovascular-protective agent with a plethora of applications ranging from ischemia-reperfusion injury, diabetes and hypertension to hyperlipidemia. Conclusion: Literature findings represented in current review herald promising results for using Crocus Sativus L. and/or its active constituents as a cardiovascular-protective agent and in particular, Crocus Sativus L. manifests beneficial results against ischemia-reperfusion injury, hypertension, hy-perlipidemia and diabetes
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyriaki Hatziagapiou
- First Department of Pediatrics, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Choremeio Research Laboratory, Hematology/ Oncology Unit, Thivon & Levadeias, 11527, Athens, Greece
| | - George I Lambrou
- First Department of Pediatrics, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Choremeio Research Laboratory, Hematology/ Oncology Unit, Thivon & Levadeias, 11527, Athens, Greece
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Efentakis P, Rizakou A, Christodoulou E, Chatzianastasiou A, López MG, León R, Balafas E, Kadoglou NPE, Tseti I, Skaltsa H, Kostomitsopoulos N, Iliodromitis EK, Valsami G, Andreadou I. Saffron (Crocus sativus) intake provides nutritional preconditioning against myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury in Wild Type and ApoE (-/-) mice: Involvement of Nrf2 activation. Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis 2017; 27:919-929. [PMID: 28964663 DOI: 10.1016/j.numecd.2017.08.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2017] [Revised: 07/20/2017] [Accepted: 08/14/2017] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Saffron is an antioxidant herbal derivative; however, its efficacy as a nutritional cardioprotective agent has not been fully elucidated. We investigated the cardioprotective properties of a standardized saffron aqueous extract (SFE) against ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury in Wild-Type (WT) and ApoE(-/-) mice and the underlying molecular mechanisms. METHODS AND RESULTS WT and ApoE(-/-) mice were subjected to 30 min I and 2 h R, with the following per os interventions for 4 weeks: 1) WT Control Group, receiving Water for Injection (WFI); 2) WT Crocus Group, receiving SFE at a dose of 60 mg/kg/day; 3) WT Crocus + Wort group, receiving SFE as described above and wortmannin at a dose of 60 μg/kg bolus 15 min before R; 4) ApoE(-/-) Control Group, receiving WFI; 5) ApoE(-/-) Crocus Group, receiving SFE at a dose of 60 mg/kg/day and 6) ApoE(-/-) Crocus + Wort: receiving SFE as described above and wortmannin at a dose of 60 μg/kg bolus, 15 min before R. Ischemic area/area at risk (I/R%) ratio was measured. Blood samples and ischemic myocardial tissue were collected at the 10th min of reperfusion for assessment of troponin I, malondialdehyde (MDA), nitrotyrosine (NT), p-eNOS, eNOS, p-Akt, Akt, p-p42/p-p44, p-GSK3β, GSK3β, IL-6, Nrf2, HO-1 and MnSOD expression. The effect of SFE on Nrf2 expression was also evaluated in vitro. SFE reduced infarct size in WT (16.15 ± 3.7% vs 41.57 ± 2.48%, ***p < 0.001) and in ApoE(-/-) mice (16.14 ± 1.47% vs 45.57 ± 1.73%, ***p < 0.001). The administration of wortmannin resulted in partial inhibition of the infarct size limitation efficacy of SFE (in both WT and Apo-E(-/-) mice). Mice receiving SFE showed increased levels of eNOS, p-Akt, p-ERK1/2, p-44/p-42 and p-GSK3β-Ser9 and reduced expression of IL-6 and iNOS; furthermore, SFE reduced the levels of MDA and NT. SFE induced Nrf2 expression and its downstream targets, HO-1 and MnSOD in the myocardium of the treated animals, and induced Nrf2 expression in vitro in a dose-dependent manner. CONCLUSIONS SFE limits myocardial infarction in Wild-Type and ApoE(-/-) mice in a multifaceted manner including activation of Akt/eNOS/ERK1/2/GSK3-β and through Nrf2 pathway, bestowing antioxidant protection against I/R.
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Affiliation(s)
- P Efentakis
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Laboratory of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Athens, Greece
| | - A Rizakou
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Laboratory of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Athens, Greece
| | - E Christodoulou
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Laboratory of Biopharmaceutics, Faculty of Pharmacy, Athens, Greece
| | - A Chatzianastasiou
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Laboratory of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Athens, Greece
| | - M G López
- Departamento de Farmacología y Terapéutica, Instituto Téofilo Hernando, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - R León
- Departamento de Farmacología y Terapéutica, Instituto Téofilo Hernando, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Hospital Universitario la Princesa, Madrid, Spain
| | - E Balafas
- Academy of Athens Biomedical Research Foundation, Centre of Clinical Experimental Surgery and Translational Research, Biomedical Research Foundation, Athens, Greece
| | - N P E Kadoglou
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Laboratory of Biopharmaceutics, Faculty of Pharmacy, Athens, Greece
| | - I Tseti
- Uni-Pharma S.A., Athens, Greece
| | - H Skaltsa
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Department of Pharmacognocy and Chemistry of Natural Products, Faculty of Pharmacy, Athens, Greece
| | - N Kostomitsopoulos
- Academy of Athens Biomedical Research Foundation, Centre of Clinical Experimental Surgery and Translational Research, Biomedical Research Foundation, Athens, Greece
| | - E K Iliodromitis
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Medical School, Second University Department of Cardiology, Athens, Greece
| | - G Valsami
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Laboratory of Biopharmaceutics, Faculty of Pharmacy, Athens, Greece
| | - I Andreadou
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Laboratory of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Athens, Greece.
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