Characterization and anti-uterine tumor effect of extract from Prunella vulgaris L

Phenolic acids from Prunella vulgaris alleviate cardiac remodeling following myocardial infarction partially by suppressing NLRP3 activation

Acute myocardial infarction (MI) is one of the leading causes of mortality around the world. Prunella vulgaris (Xia-Ku-Cao in Chinese) is used in traditional Chinese medicine practice for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. However, its active ingredients and mechanisms of action on cardiac remodeling following MI remain unknown. In this study, we investigated the cardioprotective effect of P. vulgaris on MI rat models. MI rats were treated with aqueous extract of P. vulgaris or phenolic acids from P. vulgaris, including caffeic acid, ursolic acid or rosmarinic acid, 1 day after surgery and continued for the following 28 days. Then the cardioprotective effect, such as cardiac function, inflammatory status, and fibrosis areas were evaluated. RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) analysis, real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), western blotting, and ELISA were used to explore the underlying mechanism. In addition, ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometer analysis was used to identify the chemicals from P. vulgaris. THP-1NLRP3-GFP cells were used to confirm the inhibitory effect of P. vulgaris and phenolic acids on the expression and activity of NLRP3. We found that P. vulgaris significantly improved cardiac function and reduced infarct size. Meanwhile, P. vulgaris protected cardiomyocyte against apoptosis, evidenced by increasing the expression of anti-apoptosis protein Bcl-2 in the heart and decreasing lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels in serum. Results from RNA-seq revealed that the therapeutic effect of P. vulgaris might relate to NLRP3-mediated inflammatory response. Results from real-time PCR and western blotting confirmed that P. vulgaris suppressed NLRP3 expression in MI heart. We also found that P. vulgaris suppressed NLRP3 expression and the secretion of HMGB1, IL-1β, and IL-18 in THP-1NLRP3-GFP cells. Further studies indicated that the active components of P. vulgaris were three phenolic acids, those were caffeic acid, ursolic acid, and rosmarinic acid. These phenolic acids inhibited LPS-induced NLRP3 expression and activity in THP-1 cells, and improved cardiac function, suppressed inflammatory aggregation and fibrosis in MI rat models. In conclusion, our study demonstrated that P. vulgaris and phenolic acids from P. vulgaris, including caffeic acid, ursolic acid, and rosmarinic acid, could improve cardiac function and protect cardiomyocytes from ischemia injury during MI. The mechanism was partially related to inhibiting NLRP3 activation.

Analysis of the phytochemical components of Prunella vulgaris using high-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry combined with molecular networking and assessment of their antioxidant and anti-α-glucosidase activities

Prunella vulgaris has long been used in traditional medicine and is consumed as a tea in China. Here, the total phenolic and flavonoid concentrations of plants from different geographical regions were measured. It was found that the total phenolic acid concentration ranged from 4.15 to 8.82 g of gallic acid equivalent per 100 g of dry weight (DW), and the total flavonoid concentration was 4.67-7.33 g of rutin equivalent per 100 g DW. Antioxidant activities were measured using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and 2,2'-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt, and the results ranged from 73.47% to 94.43% and 74.54% to 93.39%, respectively, whereas α-glucosidase inhibition was between 75.31% and 95.49%. Correlation analysis showed that the total flavonoids in P. vulgaris had superior antioxidant and anti-α-glucosidase activities compared to the total phenolic compounds. The active components of P. vulgaris were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry combined with both classical molecular networking and feature-based molecular networking on the Global Natural Products Social platform, identifying 32 compounds, namely 14 flavonoids, 12 phenolic compounds, and 6 other chemical components. These results could provide useful information on the use of P. vulgaris as a functional tea.

Prunella vulgaris L.: An Updated Overview of Botany, Chemical Composition, Extraction Methods, and Biological Activities

Prunella vulgaris L. (PV) is a well-known renewable drug resource full of different groups of biologically active substances with a wide range of pharmacological actions and applications in medicine. In this review, we present an updated comprehensive overview of the botany, extracting methods, chemical composition, and pharmacological activity of different parts of PV extracts. As a result of this review, it was found that chemical composition of PV depends on various factors ranging from the part of the plant to the method of extraction. We also highlight extraction methods that have not been previously used for obtaining PV extracts and may have high scientific interest. With this review, we hope to guide present and future professionals and provide possible previously unexplored areas to find new solutions associated with PV plant.

Water-Extracted Prunella vulgaris Alleviates Endometriosis by Reducing Aerobic Glycolysis

Endometriosis is a chronic inflammatory disorder caused by abnormal adhesion of endometrial tissue to the outside of the uterus. The combination of surgery, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and hormone treatment is well established therapy for endometriosis, however, case reports have showed that high rates of relapse and unpleasant side effect. For these reasons, recently, the studies have been focused on the Warburg-like metabolic shift of endometriosis. Prunella vulgaris is one of traditionally used herbal medicine for inflammatory disease and the anti-estrogenic effects of P. vulgaris is well-established. Therefore, in this work, we evaluated water-extracted P. vulgaris (PV) as a potential treatment for endometriosis. To this, we artificially induced endometriosis in ovarectomized mice by intra-peritoneal inoculation of uterus extracts. PV was orally administered, and PV significantly alleviated endometriosis, particularly the growth of ectopic endometrial lesions in artificially endometriosis-induced mice. For the mechanism study of anti-endometriosis by PV, we designed an in vitro study using human normal endometrial stromal cells (T-HESCs) and human endometrial cell (12Z) obtained from patients with endometriosis. PV strongly induced the apoptosis of 12Z cells rather than T-HESCs by control the activity or expression of aerobic glycolysis enzymes, such as lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA), pyruvate dehydrogenase A, and pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1/3. In addition, lactate production was enhanced, and oxygen consumption rate was suppressed in 12Z cells upon PV treatment. These changes in aerobic glycolysis eventually caused mitochondrial damage following decreased mitochondrial membrane potential and excessive mitochondrial ROS production. Especially, ulsolic acid (UA), one of the compounds in PV considerably led 12Z cell apoptosis with inhibition of LDHA activity. Therefore, UA could be a major active substance of PV in terms of endometriosis inhibitors. In conclusion, this study provides the evidence that the beneficial efficacy of PV for the prevention/treatment of endometriosis.