Inhibitory effect of glycoprotein isolated from Opuntia ficus-indica var. saboten MAKINO on activities of allergy-mediators in compound 48/80-stimulated mast cells

Hepatoprotective Flavonoids in Opuntia ficus-indica Fruits by Reducing Oxidative Stress in Primary Rat Hepatocytes

BACKGROUND

Liver disorder was associated with alcohol consumption caused by hepatic cellular damages. Opuntia ficus-indica fruit extracts (OFIEs), which contain betalain pigments and polyphenols including flavonoids, have been introduced as reducing hangover symptoms and liver protective activity.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate hepatoprotective activity of OFIEs and isolated compounds by high-speed countercurrent chromatography (HSCCC).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The extract of O. ficus-indica fruits was fractionated into methylene chloride and n-butanol. The n-butanol fraction was isolated by HSCCC separation (methylene chloride-methanol-n-butanol-water, 5:4:3:5, v/v/v/v). The hepatoprotective activity of OFIEs and isolated compounds was evaluated on rat primary hepatocytes against ethanol-induced toxicity. Antioxidative parameters such as glutathione reductase and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-P_x) enzymes and the GSH content were measured.

RESULTS

Two flavonoids, quercetin 3-O-methyl ester (1) and (+)-taxifolin, and two flavonoid glycosides, isorhamnetin 3-O-β-d-glucoside (3) and narcissin (4), were isolated from the n-butanol fraction by HSCCC separation. Among them, compound 2 significantly protected rat primary hepatocytes against ethanol exposure by preserving antioxidative properties of GR and GSH-P_x.

CONCLUSIONS

OFIEs and (+)-taxifolin were suggested to reduce hepatic damage by alcoholic oxidative stress.

SUMMARY

Hepatoprotective Flavonoids were isolated from Opuntia ficus-indica by high -speed countercurrent chromatography (HSCCC).

Immunostimulatory Activity of Opuntia ficus-indica var. Saboten Cladodes Fermented by Lactobacillus plantarum and Bacillus subtilis in RAW 264.7 Macrophages

To increase the functionality of Opuntia ficus-indica var. saboten cladodes, it was fermented by Lactobacillus plantarum and Bacillus subtilis. Eighty percent methanol extracts were investigated for their effects on nitric oxide (NO) production, cytokine secretion, nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activity, and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) phosphorylation in RAW 264.7 cells. Methanol extracts of L. plantarum culture medium (LPCME) and B. subtilis culture medium (BSCME) did not affect lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced NO production but, at 500 μg/mL, increased interferon (IFN)-γ-induced NO production by 55.2 and 66.5 μM, respectively, in RAW 264.7 cells. In RAW 264.7 cells not treated with LPS and IFN-γ, LPCME did not affect NO production, but BSCME increased NO production significantly in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, BSCME induced the expression of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) in RAW 264.7 cells in a dose-dependent manner. BSCME at 500 μg/mL increased TNF-α and IL-1β mRNA levels by 83.8% and 82.2%, respectively. BSCME increased NF-κB-dependent luciferase activity in a dose-dependent manner; 500 μg/mL BSCME increased activity 9.1-fold compared with the control. BSCME induced the phosphorylation of p38, c-JUN NH₂-terminal protein kinase (JNK), and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) in a dose-dependent manner, but did not affect total ERK levels. In conclusion, BSCME exerted immunostimulatory effects, which were mediated by MAPK phosphorylation and NF-κB activation, resulting in increased TNF-α and IL-1β gene expression in RAW 264.7 macrophages. Therefore, BSCM shows promise for use as an immunostimulatory therapeutic.

Angiopoietin1 inhibits mast cell activation and protects against anaphylaxis

Since morbidity and mortality rates of anaphylaxis diseases have been increasing year by year, how to prevent and manage these diseases effectively has become an important issue. Mast cells play a central regulatory role in allergic diseases. Angiopoietin1 (Ang-1) exhibits anti-inflammatory properties by inhibiting vascular permeability, leukocyte migration and cytokine production. However, Ang-1's function in mast cell activation and anaphylaxis diseases is unknown. The results of our study suggest that Ang-1 decreased lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced pro-inflammatory cytokines production of mast cells by suppressing IκB phosphorylation and NF-κB nuclear translocation. Ang-1 also strongly inhibited compound 48/80 induced and FcεRI-mediated mast cells degranulation by decreasing intracellular calcium levels in vitro. In vivo lentivirus-mediated delivery of Ang-1 in mice exhibited alleviated leakage in IgE-dependent passive cutaneous anaphylaxis (PCA). Furthermore, exogenous Ang-1 intervention treatment prevented mice from compound 48/80-induced mesentery mast cell degranulation, attenuated increases in pro-inflammatory cytokines, relieved lung injury, and improved survival in anaphylaxis shock. The results of our study reveal, for the first time, the important role of Ang-1 in the activation of mast cells, and identify a therapeutic effect of Ang-1 on anaphylaxis diseases.

A rapid and low-cost approach to evaluate the allergenicity of herbal injection using HPLC analysis

Herbal medicines have ever been thought harmless, but it is obviously not true. Many adverse reports emerged with the development of their popular application in the world. Allergic reactions, especially serious immediate hypersensitivity, frequently occurred when herbal injections were used in clinic and made this ever prevailing agent nearly disappear in China. The aim of this study is to establish a rapid and economical method for the prediction of the allergenicity of herbal injections. Ovalbumin (OVA) and four other herbal injections, in which two of them were well known for their allergenicity, were selected to sensitize and stimulate the animals. Serotonin in the animal serum was detected with HPLC to reflect the anaphylactic response and compared with the other cytokines which could mediate the anaphylaxis, including histamine, IgE and β-hexosaminidase. The results suggest that serotonin can be detected quickly and has good correlation with the other allergy-related cytokines. It is a promising way for predicting the allergenicity of the herbal injections and those complicated natural products.

An update on anti-allergic patents granted in China: 2009 - 2011

INTRODUCTION

The prevalence of allergic diseases has increased dramatically in recent decades. Therefore, there is a pressing need for the development of effective anti-allergic services worldwide.

AREAS COVERED

In previous studies, the authors had analyzed a total of 789 anti-allergic patents granted in China from 1988 to 2008. Herein, they report a further 151 anti-allergic patents issued in China during 2009 - 2011. The current analysis covers the scientific progress in supporting anti-allergic patent applications and granted patent literature, in China, for the last 3 years.

EXPERT OPINION

The 151 anti-allergic patents granted from 2009 to 2011 mainly focus on seven types of products. They are: traditional Chinese medicines (TCM), plant extracts, biological products, synthetic compounds, pharmaceutical preparations, medical apparatus and new treatment modalities. Although the overall number of anti-allergic patent applications made between 2009 and 2011 in China is less than that of the USA and Europe, patents on TCM have increased. This suggests that there are demands for modernization of TCMs. Recently, studies of interesting new immunomodulators have also been conducted, and some of these are likely to represent clinically useful advances. In the last 3 years, several patents on these novel potential drugs have also been granted in China. The large number of anti-allergic patents issued in China, in recent times, suggests that the Chinese market is relatively competitive one that will help pharmaceutical companies make proper decisions for their research and development strategies.