LC-ESI-MS/MS analysis of phenolic compounds and in vitro cytotoxicity and apoptosis-inducing effects of Nonea pulmonarioides extracts

The chemical composition of Nonea pulmonarioides extracts were investigated for the first time. The phytoconstituents of the methanol extracts were screened by using LC/MS-MS technique. The anticancer activity of the acetone and methanol extracts were measured against four cancer cell lines; MCF-7, PC3, HT-29, and U-87 MG. Thirty phenolic compounds were identified, rosmarinic (90.06 mg analyte/g extract) and fumaric acids (39.737 mg analyte/g extract) were major compounds of the studied species. Moreover, both methanol and acetone extracts were found to have strong anticancer activities. The acetone extract HT-29 (with IC50 of 10.17 ± 0.25 µg/mL) compared with standard cis-platin (with IC50 of 22.20 ± 0.72 µg/mL) with apoptotic mediated programmed cell death. These findings identified N. pulmonarioides as a potential species exhibiting anticancer properties. In conclusion, the compelling results show that the methanol extract contains possible bioactive compounds with anticancer properties that require isolation and further characterisation.

Gastroprotective, Biochemical and Acute Toxicity Effects of Papaver decaisnei against Ethanol-Induced Gastric Ulcers in Rats

Papaver decaisnei (P. decaisnei) has been used as folkloric medicine for many health issues including gastric problems. The current study investigates the gastroprotective roles of P. decaisnei against ethanol-induced ulcers in rodents. Sprague Dawley rats (30) were separated into five groups: the normal group (G1) and the ulcer control group (G2) were orally administered 0.5% carboxymethylcellulose (CMC); the reference group (G3) was administered 20 mg/kg of Omeprazole; two experimental groups were fed with 200 mg/kg (G4) and 400 mg/kg (G5) of the P. decaisnei extract (PDE), respectively. Next, the rats were given absolute ethanol and sacrificed for the analysis of the gastric mucosal injury through microscopic, enzymatic, histologic, and immunohistochemistry assays. The ulcer controls showed significant superficial hemorrhagic gastric mucosal lesions, with a decreased gastric wall mucus and edema production, whereas fewer were found for the reference and plant-treated rats. Furthermore, the PDE pre-treated rats had a significantly reduced the periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) staining intensity, produced the upregulation of the HSP70 protein, and the downregulation of the Bax protein expressions in the stomach epithelium. P. decaisnei displayed a significant role in the upregulation of endogenous antioxidant enzymes (SOD, CAT, and PGE2), significantly reduced malondialdehyde (MDA), TNF-a, IL-6, and upraised the IL-10 levels. Based on the positive impacts, the PDE can be proposed as the protective/treatment agent against gastric ulcers and stomach lesions.

Iridoids Isolation from a Phytochemical Study of the Medicinal Plant Teucrium parviflorum Collected in Iraqi Kurdistan

Herbal medicines are still widely practiced in Kurdistan Region-Iraq, especially by people living in villages on mountainous regions. Among plants belonging to the genus Teucrium (family Lamiaceae), which are commonly employed in the Kurdish traditional medicine, we have analyzed, for the first time, the methanol and aqueous methanol extracts of T. parviflorum aerial parts. The plant is mainly used by Kurds to treat jaundice, liver disorders and stomachache. We aimed to determine the phytochemical profile of the extracts and the structures of the main components, so to provide a scientific rationale for the ancient use of the plant in the ethno-pharmacological field. TLC analysis of the two extracts on silica gel and reversed phase TLC plates, using different visualization systems, indicated similar contents and the presence of phenolics, flavonoids, terpenoids and sugars. The chlorophyll-free extracts exhibited weak/no antimicrobial activities against a panel of bacteria (MICs = 800–1600 µg/mL) and fungal strains (MICs ≥ 5 mg/mL). At the concentration of 600 µg/mL, the methanol extract showed moderate antiproliferative effects against A549 and MCF-7 cancer cell lines in the MTS assay. Moreover, both extracts exhibited a significant dose-dependent free radical scavenging action against the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical (EC₅₀ = 62.11 and 44.25 μg/mL, respectively). In a phytochemical study, a high phenolic content (77.08 and 81.47 mg GAE/g dry extract, respectively) was found in both extracts by the Folin–Ciocalteu assay. Medium pressure liquid chromatographic (MPLC) separation of the methanol extract on a reversed phase cartridge eluted with a gradient of MeOH in H₂O, afforded two bioactive iridoid glucosides, harpagide (1) and 8-O-acetylharpagide (2). The structures of 1 and 2 were established by spectral data, chemical reactions, and comparison with the literature. Interestingly, significant amounts of hepatotoxic furano neo-clerodane diterpenoids, commonly occurring in Teucrium species, were not detected in the extract. The wide range of biological activities reported in the literature for compounds 1 and 2 and the significant antiradical effects of the extracts give scientific support to the traditional use in Iraqi Kurdistan of T. parviflorum aerial parts for the preparation of herbal remedies.

Microwave-Assisted Extraction and Phytochemical Profile of Nonea pulmonarioides and Its Antifungal, Antibacterial, and Antioxidant Activities

Microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) was chosen to isolate secondary natural compounds from Nonea pulmonarioides. MAE is an efficient approach compared to maceration. In our study of N. pulmonarioides, the Folin–Ciocalteu and trichloroaluminum techniques were used to determine the total phenolic and flavonoid contents. Antioxidant activity was determined by the β-carotene/linoleic acid test. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was measured using the microwell dilution assay method. Overall, MAE may represent a substantially faster extraction system (5 min) with an even greater extraction yield than maceration extraction (24 h). Phytochemical screening indicated the existence of classes of several secondary metabolites. The methanol extract had a high total phenolic content (TPC) of 113.33 ± 1.06 μg of gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/mg of dry plant weight, while the total flavonoid content (TFC) in the acetone extract was 44.26 ± 0.88 μg of quercetin equivalent (QE)/mg of the dry plant. The antioxidant activity data correlated well with the acetone extract (32.41 ± 0.93, I%) compared to the other extracts. The antimicrobial assay (MIC) results showed high activity of the extract against Candida albicans for the petroleum ether extract, which was significantly higher than against other microorganisms. The quantitative gas chromatography-mass spectrophotometry (GC-MS) analysis of the extracts confirmed that the most abundant compound in the methanol extract was ethyl tridecanoate (45.94%), while nonadecane was the predominant compound in the acetone (35.7%) and the petroleum ether (18.34%) extracts.

Chemical Constituents from the Roots and Rhizomes of Sophora tonkinensis and Their Effects on Proprotein Convertase Substilisin/Kexin Type 9 Expression

This study was conducted to further investigate bioactive molecules from Sophora tonkinensis that can inhibit proprotein convertase substilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) expression. After interpreting NMR spectroscopic data and MS spectral data of all isolates, a new naturally occurring compound, 6-hydroxy-vitexin-2″-O-rhamnoside (7), was identified along with 30 known compounds. The calculation of the gauge-including atomic orbital (GAIO) and electronic circular dichroism (ECD) proposed the absolute configuration of 17 as (2S,3R)-methyl-2-(4-hydroxybenzyl)tartrate by comparing the calculated ECD with experimental data. All isolates were tested for their inhibitory effects on PCSK9 mRNA expression. Of the tested compounds, (+)-isolariciresinol (12) inhibited PCSK9 expression via downregulation of HNF1α and SREBPs.

Anticancer, Free Radicals, and Digestive Enzyme Inhibitory Activities of Rubus sanctus Schreb Root Four Solvent Fractions

BACKGROUND

Humankind used herbal products as a source of medicines since they understood their therapeutic benefits from ancient times. Therefore, the current research aimed to determine the anticancer, antioxidant, and metabolic enzyme inhibitory activities of Rubus sanctus (RS) root four solvent fractions for the first time.

METHODS

The antioxidant, antilipase, and anti-α-amylase potentials of (RS) four solvent fractions were evaluated using standard biomedical assays. Moreover, the DNA cell cycle of liver cancer was assessed using a propidium iodide (PI) assay. At the same time, the apoptosis activity was estimated utilizing flow the cytometry method.

RESULTS

The methanol and acetone (RS) fractions showed the highest antioxidant activity with IC50 values of 0.078 ± 0.22 and 0.67 ± 0.25 μg/ml, respectively, compared with Trolox, which has an antioxidant IC50 value of 2.039 ± 0.52 μg/ml. Moreover, the methanol (RS) fraction has the highest anti-α-amylase activity with an IC50 value of 20.12 ± 0.34 μg/ml compared with acarbose, which has an IC50 value of 6.565 ± 0.3 μg/ml. Also, the acetone (RS) fraction revealed the highest antilipase activity with an IC50 value of 6.03 ± 1.23 μg/ml compared with the positive control orlistat which has an IC50 value of 0.39 ± 0.45 μg/ml. The aqueous, methanol, acetone, and hexane fractions of the (RS) roots decreased the secretion of the α-fetoprotein in the liver cancer cells. The acetone fraction was the most potent α-fetoprotein inhibitor with an average of 237 ± 12.5% compared with the average of the untreated cells, which was 4066.6 ± 202%. The hexane fraction was the most effective in diminishing apoptosis with an average of 14.5 ± 1.6%, compared with 49% ± 2 untreated cells' average. In inhibiting cell cycle progression, it was recognized that methanol fraction seems to be the most powerful amplifier of the (RS) effect, as it increased the proportion of the cells with an average of 24.5 ± 2.2%, compared with 7.4 ± 1.8% in the doxorubicin (DOX). Data indicated a decrease in cell proliferation rate by prolonging the G2-M phase and thus slowing cancer progression. Our results suggest that (RS) roots four solvent fractions have potential anticancer activity.

CONCLUSION

The (RS) roots four solvent fractions have potential anticancer, antioxidant, antilipase, and α-amylase inhibitory activities. It could be a promising source for applications in the functional food, nutraceutical, and pharmaceutical industries.

Phytochemistry of Verbascum Species Growing in Iraqi Kurdistan and Bioactive Iridoids from the Flowers of Verbascum calvum

Traditional medicine is still widely practiced in Iraqi Kurdistan, especially by people living in villages on mountainous regions; medicinal plants are also sold in the markets of the large towns, such as at Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Autonomous Region. About a dozen of Verbascum species (Scrophulariaceae) are commonly employed in the Kurdish traditional medicine, especially for treating burns and other skin diseases. However, the isolation of bioactive secondary metabolites from these plants has not been the subject of intense scientific investigations in Iraq. Therefore, the information reported in the literature about the species growing in Kurdistan has been summarized in the first part of this paper, although investigations have been performed on vegetable samples collected in neighbouring countries, such as Turkey and Iran. In the second part of the work, we have investigated, for the first time, the contents of a methanol and a hydromethanol extract of V. calvum flowers. The extracts exhibited weak antimicrobial activities, whereas the methanol extract showed significant antiproliferative effects against an A549 lung cancer cell line. Moreover, both extracts exhibited a significant dose-dependent free radical scavenging action against the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical, comparable to that of ascorbic acid. In the subsequent phytochemical study, a high phenolic content was determined in both extracts by the Folin–Ciocalteu assay and medium-pressure liquid chromatographic (MPLC) separation led to the isolation of iridoid glucosides ajugol and aucubin from the methanol extract. In conclusion, the high anti-inflammatory effects of aucubin and the remarkable antioxidant (antiradical) properties of the extracts give scientific support to the traditional use of V. calvum flowers for the preparation in Kurdistan of remedies to cure skin burns and inflammations.