Anti-ulcerogenic properties of Quassia amara L. (Simaroubaceae) standardized extracts in rodent models

Health Benefits of Quassin from Quassia amara: A Comprehensive Review of their Ethnopharmacological Importance, Pharmacology, Phytochemistry and Analytical Aspects

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Medicinal plants have been indispensable to human life as they are used in food, cosmetics, medicines, nutraceuticals, perfumery, beverages and many more sectors. The medicinal plant contains various important classes of phytochemicals and broadly they are categorized into either primary or secondary metabolite. A large number of modern medicines are mainly derived from plant and other natural sources. Medicinal properties of plants are mainly due to the presence of their secondary metabolite and good examples are salicylic acid, morphine, quinine, vincristin and vinblastine. In spite of the great discovery of allopathic medicine, plant pure phytoconstituents play an important role in the modern medicine. Various plant based medicine are available in the market and people are using it on the basis of the belief that it is safer compared to the allopathic medicine. Furthermore, based on these believes, people use most of the traditional medicines in their routine life for the treatment of numerous disorders and this is called self-medication. Quassia amara plant belongs to Simaroubaceae family which is one of the best examples of the self-medicated plant. Traditionally Quassia amara has antimalarial, stomachic, antianaemic, antibiotics, cytotoxic and antiamoebic activity. Its reproductive, insecticidal, larvicidal and vermifuge properties have been also reported in the literature. Quassinoids are the important phytoconstituents of this plant and are the main bitter principles of Quassia amara too. Quassin is a white crystalline substance and is widely used in Chinese herbal medicine for their bitter taste. The purpose of this review is to gain an understanding of the Quassin and Quassia amara and to present information and knowledge regarding this phytoconstituent. Medicinal uses, pharmacological importance and various bioanalytical methods of Quassin and Quassia amara have been presented in this review. The benefit of this review is to get better understanding and ideas of Quassin and Quassia amara research findings in various disciplines. Furthermore, there is a need to perform more scientific investigation to explore the other beneficial properties of Quassia amara and Quassin.

Biotechnological aspects of plants metabolites in the treatment of ulcer: A new prospective

Ulcer is one of the most common diseases affecting throughout the world population. The allopathic treatment of ulcer adversely affects the health by causing harmful side effects. Currently, many herbal plants and secondary metabolites have been used for the ulcer treatment. In the present review, many herbal plants and their parts (root, rhizome, bark, leaves and fruits) have been listed in the table are currently being used for ulcer treatment. These metabolites are responsible for ulcer-neutralization or anti-inflammatory properties. In silico study, plant metabolites showed interaction between protodioscin (secondary metabolites of Asparagus racemosus) and interferon-γ (virulent factor of gastric ulcer) during molecular docking. All the residues of interferon-γ exhibited hydrophobic interactions with plant metabolites. These interactions helps in understanding the plant secondary metabolites vis a vis will open a new door in the research field of new drug discovery and designing for the ulcer treatment.

The in vitro and in vivo anti-cancer activities of a standardized quassinoids composition from Eurycoma longifolia on LNCaP human prostate cancer cells

Quassinoids are a group of diterpenoids found in plants from the Simaroubaceae family. They are also the major bioactive compounds found in Eurycoma longifolia which is commonly used as traditional medicine in South East Asia to treat various ailments including sexual dysfunction and infertility. These uses are attributed to its ability to improve testosterone level in men. Chronic consumption of E. longifolia extracts has been reported to increase testosterone level in men and animal model but its effect on prostate growth remains unknown. Therefore, the present study investigates the effects of a standardized total quassinoids composition (SQ40) containing 40% of the total quassinoids found in E. longifolia on LNCaP human prostate cancer cell line. SQ40 inhibited LNCaP cell growth at IC₅₀ value of 5.97 μg/mL while the IC₅₀ on RWPE-1 human prostate normal cells was 59.26 μg/mL. SQ40 also inhibited 5α-dihydrotestosterone-stimulated growth in LNCaP cells dose-dependently. The inhibitory effect of SQ40 in anchorage-independent growth of LNCaP cells was also demonstrated using soft agar assay. SQ40 suppressed LNCaP cell growth via G₀/G₁ phase arrest which was accompanied by the down-regulation of CDK4, CDK2, Cyclin D1 and Cyclin D3 and up-regulation of p21^Waf1/Cip1 protein levels. SQ40 at higher concentrations or longer treatment duration can cause G₂M growth arrest leading to apoptotic cell death as demonstrated by the detection of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase cleavage in LNCaP cells. Moreover, SQ40 also inhibited androgen receptor translocation to nucleus which is important for the transactivation of its target gene, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and resulted in a significant reduction of PSA secretion after the treatment. In addition, intraperitoneal injection of 5 and 10 mg/kg of SQ40 also significantly suppressed the LNCaP tumor growth on mouse xenograft model. Results from the present study suggest that the standardized total quassinoids composition from E. longifolia promotes anti-prostate cancer activities in LNCaP human prostate cancer cells.

Gastroprotective activity of polyphenolic-rich extract of Potentilla mooniana

CONTEXT

Potentilla mooniana Wight. (Rosaceae) is a plant found in the Himalayan region where the root is traditionally used to treat stomach problems including gastric-ulcer.

OBJECTIVE

To scientifically validate the gastro-protective effect and derive the possible mechanistic activity of the ethanol root extract from P. mooniana (EPM).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The gastroprotective effect of EPM (100-400 mg/kg, p.o.) was evaluated on both the physical (Pyloric ligation, PL; Cold restrain stress, CRS) and chemical (absolute ethanol, EtOH; aspirin, ASP) ulcerogens induced ulceration in rats. The mechanistic activity of EPM was tested on various gastric-ulcer parameters, namely gastric pH, volume, acid-pepsin output, DNA content, histamine level, H(+)K(+)-ATPase activity, mucus content, microvascular permeability, antioxidant markers, and gastric-histopathological study.

RESULTS

EPM significantly reduces the ulcer score against all the four tested gastric-ulcer models. In the PL model, EPM showed significant reduction (p < 0.05) in acid-pepsin output and cell shedding; however, no significant effect was observed on gastric volume, cell proliferation, stomach glandular weight, and histamine levels. EPM (400 mg/kg, p.o.) when compared with ulcer control showed significant increase in gastric pH by 41.6% and decrease in H(+)K(+)-ATPase activity by 47.73%. In addition, EPM showed significant increase in mucus content by 58.60% and a decrease in the microvascular permeability of Evans Blue by 85.00%, justifying its protective effects. Furthermore, EPM also showed significant antioxidant activity and histopathologically possessed excellent cytoprotective effect.

CONCLUSION

The gastro-protective effect of EPM is attributed mainly to the defensive mechanism owing to the presence of a good quantity of polyphenolic components.

Pharmacological mechanisms underlying gastroprotective activities of the fractions obtained from Polygonum minus in Sprague Dawley rats

The leaves of Polygonum minus were fractionated using an eluting solvent to evaluate the pharmacological mechanisms underlying the anti-ulcerogenic activity of P. minus. Different P. minus fractions were obtained and evaluated for their ulcer preventing capabilities using the ethanol induction method. In this study, Sprague Dawley rats weighing 150–200 g were used. Different parameters were estimated to identify the active fraction underlying the mechanism of the gastroprotective action of P. minus: the gastric mucus barrier, as well as superoxide dismutase, total hexosamine, and prostaglandin synthesis. Amongst the five fractions from the ethanolic extract of P. minus, the ethyl acetate:methanol 1:1 v/v fraction (F2) significantly (p < 0.005) exhibited better inhibition of ulcer lesions in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, rats pre-treated with F2 showed a significant elevation in superoxide dismutase (SOD), hexosamine and PGE2 levels in the stomach wall mucosa in a dose-dependent matter. Based on these results, the ethyl acetate:methanol 1:1 v/v fraction was considered to be the best fraction for mucous protection in the ethanol induction model. The mechanisms underlying this protection were attributed to the synthesis of antioxidants and PGE2.