Antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of Indian caper (Capparis brevispina DC (Capparaceae)) leaf extracts

Pyrrole: A Decisive Scaffold for the Development of Therapeutic Agents and Structure-Activity Relationship

An overview of pyrroles as distinct scaffolds with therapeutic potential and the significance of pyrrole derivatives for drug development are provided in this article. It lists instances of naturally occurring pyrrole-containing compounds and describes the sources of pyrroles in nature, including plants and microbes. It also explains the many conventional and modern synthetic methods used to produce pyrroles. The key topics are the biological characteristics, pharmacological behavior, and functional alterations displayed by pyrrole derivatives. It also details how pyrroles are used to treat infectious diseases. It describes infectious disorders resistant to standard treatments and discusses the function of compounds containing pyrroles in combating infectious diseases. Furthermore, the review covers the uses of pyrrole derivatives in treating non-infectious diseases and resistance mechanisms in non-infectious illnesses like cancer, diabetes, and Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. The important discoveries and probable avenues for pyrrole research are finally summarized, along with their significance for medicinal chemists and drug development. A reference from the last two decades is included in this review.

Capparis zeylanica L. root extract promotes apoptosis and cell cycle arrest, inhibits epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and triggers E-cadherin expression in breast cancer cell lines

Capparis zeylanica L. is a climbing shrub distributed in Indian subcontinent and Mediterranean region. Almost all parts of the plant are used in folk medicine and traditional practices to treat several human ailments. The present study was aimed to investigate the role of C. zeylanica L. root extract in preventing cancerous cells growth and proliferation, as well as promoting apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 breast cancer cells. Methanolic extract of C. zeylanica L. (MECz) was prepared and characterized by LC-ESI-MS/MS analysis. In vitro cytotoxicity and anti-proliferative activity of MECz was evaluated by MTT assay, while cell viability, apoptosis and cell cycle progression by Muse Cell analyzer. Furthermore, the mRNA and protein expressions of EMT markers were assessed using qRT-PCR and western blotting techniques, respectively. The MECz was found to be rich in phenolic compounds including chlorogenic acid, 6-gingerol, and certain triterpenes like ursolic acid etc. The apparent anti-metastasis activity of MECz was evident from IC50 value of 19.12 and 24.22 μg/mL, respectively, on MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cells in MTT assay. An absolute decrease in cell viability (78.1-53.4% and 89.9-49.0%), augmented apoptosis (90.98-48.25% and 88.25-47.70%) and S phase, G2/M phase cell cycle arrest was found by MECz treatment on MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cells. The gene expression studies revealed that MECz could significantly (p < 0.001) regulate the expression of EMT markers such as snail, slug, zeb-1, twist-1, fibronectin, vimentin and E-cadherin at molecular level. These findings demonstrate that C. zeylanica L. root extract inhibits breast cancer cells growth and proliferation through regulating the expression of key EMT marker genes and proteins. Thus, MECz may be suggested as a potential anti-metastasis agent in the treatment of breast cancer.

Antioxidant, Anti-Tumour, and Anticoagulant Activities of Polysaccharide from Calocybe indica (APK2)

The initial structural features and in vitro biological study of crude polysaccharides from Calocybe indica (CICP) extracted by hot water followed by ethanol precipitation was investigated. High-performance gel permeation chromatography, HPLC-DAD, UV, IR and NMR spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and Congo red methods were used to determine structural features. The results revealed that CICP is a hetero-polysaccharide with a molecular weight of 9.371 × 10⁴ Da and 2.457 × 10³ Da which is composed of xylose, mannose, fucose, rhamnose, arabinose, galactose, and glucose. The antioxidant activity of CICP was evaluated using radical scavenging activity (three methods), reducing ability (three methods), metal chelating activity, and lipid peroxidation inhibition activity (two methods). It was found that the antioxidant capacity is concentration-dependent and EC₅₀ values were found to be 1.99–3.82 mg/mL (radical scavenging activities), 0.78–2.78 mg/mL (reducing ability), 4.11 mg/mL (metal chelating activity), and 0.56–4.18 mg/mL (lipid peroxidation inhibition activity). In vitro anticoagulant assay revealed that CICP could prolong activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), thrombin time (TT), but not prothrombin time (PT). CICP exhibited antiproliferative activity on HeLa, PC3, HT29, HepG2, and Jurkat cell lines with IC₅₀ (μg/mL) values of 148.40, 143.60,151.00, 168.30, and 156.30, respectively. The above findings suggested that CICP could be considered a natural antioxidant and cancer preventative.

Sulfated modification, characterization and bioactivities of an acidic polysaccharide fraction from an edible mushroom Pleurotus eous (Berk.) Sacc

The acidic fraction (P3a) of Pleurotus eous was successfully sulfated by sulphur trioxide-pyridine complex method. The effect of sulfate modification (SP3a) on the structure, physicochemical properties and in vitro biological activity of P3 was studied. The structural characteristics were established by UV absorption, FT-IR, HPGPC and GC-MS. Biological studies were carried out, such as in vitro antioxidant, anticoagulant, anti-tumour and antibacterial activities. The sulfation process changed its physicochemical and biological characteristics. Compared with P3a, the molecular weight of SP3a is reduced. P3a and SP3a are composed of galactose, xylose, arabinose with different molar percentages. Sulfated derivatives have strong antioxidant and anticoagulant properties. Compared with P3a, SP3a showed obvious cytotoxicity to Jurkat and HeLa cells. SP3a showed a higher inhibition zone for Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. This article demonstrates that sulfation is an effective way to enhance biological activity, especially SP3a is a promising candidate for bioactive macromolecules and has great potential for industrial and biomedical applications.

Antioxidant and antidiabetic properties of isolated fractions from methanolic extract derived from the whole plant of Cleome viscosa L

Background

Cleome viscosa is considered as an important medicinal plant extensively used in India, China, Bangladesh, and a few countries in Africa. In the present study, in vitro anti-radical and antidiabetic potential of isolated fractions of methanolic extract of C. viscosa whole plant (MeCV) has been investigated. The identification of polyphenols and their related functional groups in the bioactive fraction was categorized by using HPLC and FT-IR.

Results

The total phenolic and flavonoid contents of F-D were higher than those of F-A, F-B, and F-C. The F-D exhibited superior antioxidant capacity when compared with the remaining three fractions. However, the F-D showed the highest glucose diffusion activity over the 30 min–27 h incubation period and also inhibited both α-glucosidase and α-amylase enzyme activity. HPLC analysis revealed the presence of the two known compounds (protocatechuic acid hexoside, rutin) and six unknown compounds in the F-D. FTIR spectrum confirmed the presence of phenol group.

Conclusion

The isolated F-D obtained from MeCV displayed superior antioxidant and antidiabetic activity which indicate the presence of polyphenols in the fraction. The data findings of the present study support the traditional uses of the whole plant of C. viscosa as a promising natural source of biological medicines for oxidative stress and diabetes.