Effects of horminone on liver mixed function mono-oxygenases and glutathione enzyme activities of Wistar rat

Proliferative effect of aqueous extract of Hyptis fructicosa on liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy in rats

PURPOSE

To evaluate the effect of aqueous extract of Hyptis fructicosa on hepatic regeneration after partial hepatectomy in rats.

METHODS

Sixteen rats were divided in two groups: C (Control Group) and HF (Whose rats received aqueous extract of Hyptis fructicosa during 4 days using the dose of 100 mg/kg/day). On the consecutive day of this treatment, the animals of both groups underwent hepatectomy of about 67% of liver. Twenty four hours later, they were sacrificed, and the remaining mass of liver was removed and prepared to be studied through the PCNA immunohistochemical technique.

RESULTS

The liver regeneration index of HF group was 53.56 ± 18.91%, while in C group was 21.12 ± 8.29% (p=0.0003).

CONCLUSION

These results show that the administration of aqueous extract of Hyptis fructicosa using the dose of 100mg/kg/day increased the hepatocyte proliferation in the group HF.

Free Radical Scavenging Activity-Guided Isolation of a Diterpenoid from Plectranthus punuctatus

Free radical scavenging activity-guided investigation of the acetone extract of Plectranthus punuctatus (L'Her) (Lamiaceae) resulted in the isolation of a novel diterpenoid 3,11,12,14,19-pentahydroxy-5,8,11,13-abietatraen-7-pyran[4,6]-16-dione whose structure was elucidated based on spectral evidence. The isolated compound showed a significant antioxidant activity in the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and deoxyribose degradation assays with IC50 values of 9.65 μg/mL and 5.25 μg/mL, respectively.

Gastroprotective effect and cytotoxicity of abietane diterpenes from the Chilean Lamiaceae Sphacele chamaedryoides (Balbis) Briq

Objectives

The aim of this report was to isolate, identify and assess the gastroprotective effect and cytotoxicity of abietane diterpenes from the Chilean medicinal plant Sphacele chamaedryoides (Balbis) Briq. (Lamiaceae).

Methods

The isolated compounds were identified by spectroscopic means. The gastroprotective effect of the compounds was studied on the HCl/EtOH-induced gastric lesions model in mice. The cytotoxicity of the compounds was assessed on human normal lung fibroblasts (MRC-5) and gastric adenocarcinoma cells (AGS).

Key findings

From the aerial parts of the plant, five phenolic and five p-quinone abietanes, the sesquiterpene spathulenol and two flavonoids were obtained. The main diterpene from the plant was carnosol (7). Lansoprazole at 20 mg/kg reduced gastric lesions by 64.7% (P < 0.01), being statistically similar to carnosol at doses of 10 and 20 mg/kg; the percent lesion reduction with 7 at 5 mg/kg was 49.3%. At a single oral dose of 5 mg/kg, the diterpenes bearing a p-quinone moiety −6,7-dehydroroyleanone (1), royleanone (2), 7,20-epoxyroyleanone (3), taxoquinone (5) and horminone (6) - presented a gastroprotective effect of 54.4, 70.8, 65.0, 35.8 and 52.7%, respectively. Of the C-7 hydroxy derivatives, the activity was much lower for the 7β-OH isomer. The phenolic diterpenes 7 and 7-oxo-11,12,14-trihydroxy-8,11,13-abietatrien-20-al (8) inhibited gastric lesions by 49.3 and 53.0%, respectively. Royleanone (2), 7,20-epoxyroyleanone (3), horminone (6), 8 and spathulenol proved to be cytotoxic with IC50 values in the range of 11–67 μM. The selective cytotoxicity of compounds 1 (IC50: 61 and 366 μM) and 5 (IC50: 310 and 27 μM) against AGS cells and fibroblasts, respectively, merit additional studies.

Conclusions

All the abietanes obtained from S. chamaedryoides present either one or two phenolic OH groups, a quinone system, or both. Several compounds present in the plant showed higher gastroprotective effect than lansoprazole. The cytotoxic effect of most compounds was found at fairly high concentrations and lacked cell specificity. Further studies are required using different tumour cell lines and viability/proliferation assays to assess the specificity of the isolated compounds. The selective cytotoxicity of compounds 1 and 5 against AGS cells and fibroblasts, respectively, merit additional studies.

Alterations in hepatic metabolism of adult male rats following exposure to hydroxyprogesterone during embryonic development

AIM

To investigate the effect of in utero exposure to hydroxyprogesterone (HP) on liver metabolism in adult male albino rats.

METHODS

Pregnant Wistar strain albino rats were exposed to supra-normal levels (10 mg/kg and 25 mg/kg) of HP on days 1, 7 and 14 of pregnancy. The male pups were maintained under controlled conditions and the rats were killed 90 days after birth. The liver tissue was immediately excised, weighed and used for biochemical assays.

RESULTS

The activity levels of succinate dehydrogenase (SDH), glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-PDH), malate dehydrogenase (MDH) and aminotransaminases were significantly increased in the livers of rats exposed to HP during embryonic development. The lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity level was significantly decreased in the liver of experimental rats. Furthermore, there was a significant elevation of activity levels of antioxidant enzymes (glutathione S-transferase [GST] and catalase [CAT]) with an increased lipid peroxidation in the hepatic tissue of experimental rats compared with the control group.

CONCLUSION

The results of the present study suggest that there is an increase in the oxidative metabolism, antioxidative mechanism and levels of lipid peroxidation in rats exposed to HP during embryonic development. The increased aminotransaminase activities in these rats reveal tissue damage and disruption of mitochondrial integrity.

Abietanes from Plectranthus grandidentatus and P. hereroensis against methicillin- and vancomycin-resistant bacteria

The antimicrobial activity of 10 natural abietanes isolated from Plectranthus grandidentatus and P. hereroensis acetonic extract was evaluated against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecalis (VRE). The results revealed that the most active diterpenes were coleon U (1), 7alpha-acetoxy-6beta-hydroxyroyleanone (2) and horminone (3). Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values ranging 0.98-15.63 microg/ml were obtained for MRSA clinical strains, and MIC values of 15.63 and 31.25 microg/ml were obtained for VRE clinical strains. Some structure-activity relationships are emphasized.

Plectranthus: a review of ethnobotanical uses

Plectranthus is a large and widespread genus with a diversity of ethnobotanical uses. The genus is plagued with numerous nomenclatural disharmonies that make it difficult to collate accurate data on the uses. The aim of this review is to gather together all ethnobotanical information on Plectranthus and to map the data onto the most up-to-date phylogenetic classification in order to see if there are similar uses among related species and hence provide a framework for the prediction and exploration of new uses of species. The uses of 62 species of Plectranthus were mapped onto a current phylogeny based on DNA sequence data. The phylogeny reveals two major Clades, 1 and 2. The members of Clade 1 (corresponding to the formally recognized genus Coleus) were richer in number and diversity of uses than members of Clade 2 (comprising the remaining species of Plectranthus). The high incidence of synonymy can lead to problems in uncovering a species' ethnobotanical profile. About 30% of all citations of Plectranthus use a synonym and most of the synonyms are attributed to 10 of the most used species, 9 of which are in Clade 1. Members of the 'Coleus' Clade are the most studied group both taxonomically and economically. The higher incidence of study may be as a result of the higher diversity of uses and the fact that species in Clade 1, such as Plectranthus barbatus, Plectranthus amboinicus and Plectranthus mollis, are geographically more widespread than those in Clade 2. Plectranthus species in Clade 1 are frequently used as medicines and are used to treat a range of ailments, particularly digestive, skin, infective and respiratory problems. Plectranthus used as foods, flavours, fodder and materials are also mostly found in Clade 1. Monoterpenoids, sesquiterpenoids, diterpenoids and phenolics have been reported in species of Plectranthus. The abietane diterpenoids are the most diverse of the diterpenoids isolated from species of Plectranthus. The labdane diterpenoid, forskolin, occurs in Plectranthus barbatus and could explain some of the traditional uses of this species. This review highlights the fact that not enough is known about the chemistry of other species of Plectranthus to explain their traditional uses.

New eudesmane sesquiterpenes from Plectranthus cylindraceus

Three new eudesmane sesquiterpenes, plectranthone (1), desacetylplectranthone (2), isodeacetylplectranthone (3), and the three known flavonols pachypodol, casticin, and chrysosplenol D were isolated for the first time from the aerial parts of Plectranthus cylindraceus. Their structures have been established on the basis of spectral data. The structures and relative stereochemistries of 1 and 2 were confirmed by single-crystal X-ray analysis.