Non-volatile pungent compounds isolated from Zingiber officinale and their mechanisms of action

Multiple effects of spicy flavors on neurological diseases through the intervention of TRPV1: a critical review

The spicy properties of foods are contributed by various spicy flavor substances (SFs) such as capsaicin, piperine, and allicin. Beyond their distinctive sensory characteristics, SFs also influence health conditions and numerous studies have associated spicy flavors with disease treatment. In this review, we enumerate different types of SFs and describe their role in food processing, with a specific emphasis on critically examining their influence on human wellness. Particularly, detailed insights into the mechanisms through which SFs enhance physiological balance and alleviate neurological diseases are provided, and a systematic analysis of the significance of transient receptor potential vanilloid type-1 (TRPV1) in regulating metabolism and nervous system homeostasis is presented. Moreover, enhancing the accessibility and utilization of SFs can potentially amplify the physiological effects. This review aims to provide compelling evidence for the integration of food flavor and human health.

Concept of dementia (Nisy ā n) in Unani system of medicine and scientific validation of an important Unani pharmacopoeial preparation 'Majoon Vaj' for its management: a review

OBJECTIVES

This review focused on the concept of dementia in the Unani system of medicine and comprehensive, updated information on Majoon Vaj about the phytochemistry, nootropic, CNS activities and provide insights into potential opportunities for future research.

METHODS

The classical literature on Majoon Vaj for its anti-dementic properties, and therapeutic uses were gathered from nearly thirteen classical Unani books including Unani Pharmacopoeia. The information of pharmacognosy, phytochemical and pharmacological activities of Majoon Vaj and its ingredient was collected by browsing the Internet (PubMed, ScienceDirect, Wiley online library, Google Scholar, ResearchGate). The relevant primary sources were probed, analysed, and included in this review. The keywords used to browse were Majoon Vaj, Dementia, Nootropic, Acorus calamus, Piper nigram, Zingiber officinalis, Nigella sativa, Carum carvi, Plumbago zeylanica, and β-asarone. Relevant Sources were gathered up to July 2021, and the chemical structures were drawn using ACD/ChemSketch software. The species name and synonyms were checked with WFO (2021): World Flora online (http://www.worldfloraonline.org) an updated version of 'The Plant List.'

RESULTS

Majoon Vaj contains an excess of bioactive compounds e.g., alkaloids, phenols, flavonoids, tannins, diterpenes, coumarins, carbohydrates, and fixed oils and its ingredients possess broad pharmacological properties, including cognitive-enhancing, neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antimicrobial properties.

CONCLUSIONS

The literature of Unani medicine is quite rich in discussing the pathophysiological basis of memory disorders. It argues that memory, retention, and retrieval are regulated by a complex process involving various faculties. Majoon Vaj seems to have great potential for therapeutic applications in the treatment of dementia and thus encourage more preclinical and clinical trials in this field.

Two new diterpenoids from the rhizomes of Zingiber officinale

Two undescribed labdane diterpenoids (5S,8S,9R,10S,11E)-8,17-epoxy-13,14-dinorlabd-11-en-13-one (1) and (5S,9R,10S,12E)-17-hydroxy-labd-7,12-dien-15(16)-olide (2), together with seven known sesquiterpenoids (3-9) and two known monoterpenoids (10-11) were isolated from the dried rhizome of Zingiber officinale. Their structures were elucidated by detailed spectroscopic data (IR, UV, HR-ESI-MS, 1D and 2D NMR), X-ray crystallographic and ECD analysis. Moreover, all the 11 compounds were tested for α-glucosidase inhibitory effects and 9 was found to exhibit stronger inhibitory effects at IC50 = 4.8 μM against a positive control acarbose with IC50 = 414.6 μM.

Multivariate analysis of original identification and chemical markers exploration of Chinese ginger

Ginger (Zingiber officinale) is one of the most widely consumed dietary supplements. However, the content of active ingredients varied greatly from place to place. In this study, we first identified and compared the compositions of ginger samples from six different origins. Then, we evaluated the anti-inflammatory activity of different samples in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. The results indicated that highly variable in chemical composition and activity for ginger from different origin. Further, correlation analysis showed that isoborneol, terpineol, α-curcumene, germacrene D, α-elemol and 8-shogaol exhibited a strong correlation with inflammatory factors, which could be used as potential chemical markers to evaluate quality and distinguish source of ginger. Finally, comprehensive evaluation found that the ginger from Sichuan exerts stronger anti-inflammatory properties. This study will help to select ginger varieties with excellent characteristics, provide theoretical basis for the development and utilization of ginger.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10068-022-01229-2.

Network pharmacology-based analysis of heat clearing and detoxifying drug JC724 on the treatment of colorectal cancer

BACKGROUND

Heat-clearing and detoxifying drugs has protective effect on colorectal cancer (CRC). Given the complicated features of Traditional Chinese medicine formulas, network pharmacology is an effective approach for studying the multiple interactions between drugs and diseases.

AIM

To systematically explore the anticancer mechanism of heat-clearing and detoxifying drug JC724.

METHODS

This study obtained the active compounds and their targets in JC724 from Traditional Chinese Medicine System Pharmacology Database. In addition, the CRC targets were obtained from Drugbank, TTD, DisGeNET and GeneCards databases. We performed transcriptome analysis of differentially expressed genes in CRC treated with JC724. Venn diagram was used to screen the JC724-CRC intersection targets as candidate targets. Core targets were selected by protein-protein interaction network and herb ingredient-target-disease network analysis. The functional and pathway of core targets were analysed by enrichment analysis.

RESULTS

We found 174 active ingredients and 283 compound targets from JC724. 940 CRC-related targets were reserved from the four databases and 304 CRC differentially expressed genes were obtained by transcriptome analysis. We constructed the network and found that the five core ingredients were quercetin, β Beta sitosterol, wogonin, kaempferol and baicalein. The core JC724-CRC targets were CYP1A1, HMOX1, CXCL8, NQO1 and FOSL1. JC724 acts on multiple signaling pathways associated with CRC, including the Nrf2 signaling pathway, oxidative stress, and the IL-17 signaling pathway.

CONCLUSION

In this study, we systematically analyzed the active ingredients, core targets and main mechanisms of JC724 in the treatment of CRC. This study could bring a new perspective to the heat-clearing and detoxifying therapy of CRC.

Ginger from Farmyard to Town: Nutritional and Pharmacological Applications

Ginger (Zingiber officinale) is one of the most widely used natural products consumed as a spice and medicine for treating diabetes, flatulent intestinal colic, indigestion, infertility, inflammation, insomnia, a memory booster, nausea, rheumatism, stomach ache, and urinary tract infections. To date, over 400 bioactive components, such as diarylheptanoids, gingerol analogues, phenylalkanoids, sulfonates, monoterpenoid glycosides, steroids, and terpene compounds have been derived from ginger. Increasing evidence has revealed that ginger possesses a broad range of biological activities, especially protective effects against male infertility, nausea and vomiting, analgesic, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory, anti-obesity, and other effects. The pharmacological activities of ginger were mainly attributed to its active phytoconstituents such as 6-gingerol, gingerdiol, gingerol, gingerdione, paradols, shogaols, sesquiterpenes, zingerone, besides other phenolics and flavonoids. In recent years, in silico molecular docking studies revealed that gingerol (6-gingerol, 8-gingerol, and 10-gingerol) and Shogaol (6-shogaol, 8-shogaol, 10-shogaol) had the best binding affinities to the receptor protein in disease conditions such as diabetes, inflammation, obesity, and SARS-CoV-2. Furthermore, some clinical trials have indicated that ginger can be consumed for alleviation of nausea and vomiting induced by surgery, pain, diabetes, obesity, inflammation, male infertility. This review provides an updated understanding of the scientific evidence on the development of ginger and its active compounds as health beneficial agents in future clinical trials.

The development of novel cytochrome P450 2J2 (CYP2J2) inhibitor and the underlying interaction between inhibitor and CYP2J2

Human Cytochrome P450 2J2 (CYP2J2) as an important metabolic enzyme, plays a crucial role in metabolism of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Elevated levels of CYP2J2 have been associated with various types of cancer, and therefore it serves as a potential drug target. Herein, using a high-throughput screening approach based on enzymic activity of CYP2J2, we rapidly and effectively identified a novel natural inhibitor (Piperine, 9a) with IC₅₀ value of 0.44 μM from 108 common herbal medicines. Next, a series of its derivatives were designed and synthesised based on the underlying interactions of Piperine with CYP2J2. As expected, the much stronger inhibitors 9k and 9l were developed and their inhibition activities increased about 10 folds than Piperine with the IC₅₀ values of 40 and 50 nM, respectively. Additionally, the inhibition kinetics illustrated the competitive inhibition types of 9k and 9l towards CYP2J2, and K_i were calculated to be 0.11 and 0.074 μM, respectively. Furthermore, the detailed interaction mechanism towards CYP2J2 was explicated by docking and molecular dynamics, and our results revealed the residue Thr114 and Thr 315 of CYP2J2 were the critical sites of action, moreover the spatial distance between the carbon atom of ligand methylene and Fe atom of iron porphyrin coenzyme was the vital interaction factor towards human CYP2J2.

Ginger and its active compounds in cancer therapy: From folk uses to nano-therapeutic applications

Ginger is a spice that is renowned for its characteristic aromatic fragrance and pungent taste, with documented healing properties. Field studies conducted in several Asian and African countries revealed that ginger is used traditionally in the management of cancer. The scientific community has probed into the biological validation of its extracts and isolated compounds including the gingerols, shogaols, zingiberene, and zingerone, through in-vitro and in-vivo studies. Nonetheless, an updated compilation of these data together with a deep mechanistic approach is yet to be provided. Accordingly, this review highlights the mechanisms and therapeutics of ginger and its bioactive compounds focused on a cancer context and these evidence are based on the (i) cytotoxic effect against cancer cell lines, (ii) enzyme inhibitory action, (iii) combination therapy with chemotherapeutic and phenolic compounds, (iv) possible links to the microbiome and (v) the use of nano-formulations of ginger bioactive compounds as a more effective drug delivery strategy in cancer therapy.

Diarylheptanoid analogues from the rhizomes of Zingiber officinale and their anti-tumour activity

Diarylheptanoid analogues from the rhizomes of Zingiber officinale and their anti-tumour activity.

Controllable P Doping of the LaCoO3 Catalyst for Efficient Propane Oxidation: Optimized Surface Co Distribution and Enhanced Oxygen Vacancies

The properties of LaCoO₃ are modified by a controllable P doping strategy via a simple sol-gel route. It is demonstrated that appropriate P doping is beneficial for forming a relatively pure perovskite phase and hinders the growth of perovskite nanoparticles. The combined results of density functional theory (DFT), extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS), X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES), temperature-programmed reduction of hydrogen (H₂-TPR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and temperature-programmed desorption of ammonia (NH₃-TPD) reveal that appropriate P doping gives rise to more oxygen vacancies, optimized distribution of Co ions, and improved surface acidity, which are beneficial for the adsorption of active oxygen species and the activation of propane molecules, resulting in an excellent catalytic oxidation performance. Especially, LaCo_0.97P_0.03O₃ exhibits more surface-active oxygen species, higher bulk Co³⁺ proportion, increased surface Co²⁺ species, and increased acidity, resulting in its superior propane oxidation performance, which is dominated by the Langmuir-Hinshelwood mechanism. In situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) confirms that the presence of P will accelerate oxygen mobility, which in turn promotes the oxidation rate. Moreover, the obtained LaCo_0.97P_0.03O₃ catalyst displays excellent thermal stability during the 60 h durability test at 400 °C and strong resistance against 5 vol % H₂O and/or 5 vol % CO₂ for prolonged 150 h.

Structure-based design of human pancreatic amylase inhibitors from the natural anthocyanin database for type 2 diabetes

Malvidin 3-O-arabinoside is identified as a novel human pancreatic amylase inhibitor from the natural anthocyanin database with a structure-based design approach.

Exploring Pharmacological Mechanisms of Xiang Ju Tablets in the Treatment of Allergic Rhinitis via a Network Pharmacology Approach

In this study, allergic rhinitis (AR) disease targets and Xiang Ju tablet-associated targets were determined through the use of databases for the identification of putative therapeutic targets and then combined. After the production of a putative therapeutic target interaction network for Xiang Ju tablets against AR, topological analysis was used to determine the core targets of Xiang Ju tablets in AR treatment. For all putative therapeutic targets, analyses of biological function and pathway enrichment were performed to optimize the biological processes and key signaling pathways of Xiang Ju tablets in AR treatment. The top 5 therapeutic targets of Xiang Ju tablets in AR treatment were identified and included CXCL8, IL1B, IL6, IL10, and TNF. The biological processes, molecular functions, and cell composition related to the use of Xiang Ju tablets in AR treatment were predominantly associated with cytokine production, regulation of protein secretion, and regulation of peptide secretion; cytokine activity, cytokine receptor binding, and receptor ligand activity; and platelet alpha granule lumen, collagen-containing extracellular matrix, and platelet alpha granule. In addition, the top 64 key signaling pathways were identified.