Garlic Extract: Inhibition of Biochemical and Biophysical Changes in Glycated HSA

Antioxidant, antibacterial and antiviral effects of the combination of ginger and garlic extracts

Garlic and ginger are well known as safe alternatives to traditional therapies. Limited information exists regarding antioxidant, antibacterial and antiviral capabilities of the combination of ginger and garlic. Standard methodologies were employed to determine the phytochemical compositions. Antioxidant activities were evaluated through DPPH and FRAP assays. Notably, in DPPH assay, combination of ginger and garlic extracts displayed significantly higher (85.44%, p < 0.005) antioxidant activity even at lower concentrations (6 mg/ml) compared to ginger and garlic extracts alone. Similar findings were observed for FRAP assay. At low concentration of extracts (25 µg/ml), combination of ginger and garlic exhibited significant (p < 0.005) increase in reducing activity (51%) compared to ginger or garlic extracts alone. Significant antibacterial and antiviral activities were exhibited by the combination of both ginger and garlic extracts as compared to ginger and garlic extracts alone. The combined effect of garlic and ginger exhibited a synergistic effect in bacterial and viral growth inhibition. These findings suggest that the diverse phytochemical compositions of the ginger and garlic varieties contribute to their strong antioxidant properties, potentially positioning them as valuable therapeutics for bacterial and viral infections. Further analysis will be required for their widespread utilization and pharmaceutical applications.

Synthesis, Characterization, Antiglycation Evaluation, Molecular Docking, and ADMET Studies of 4-Thiazolidinone Derivatives

The design and development of new small-molecule glycation inhibitors are essential for preventing various chronic diseases, including diabetes mellitus, immunoinflammation, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases. 4-Thiazolidinone or thiazolidine-4-one is a well-known heterocyclic compound with the potential to inhibit the formation of advanced glycation end products. In the present work, we report the synthesis and characterization of four new 5-arylidene 3-cyclopropyl-2-(phenylimino)thiazolidin-4-one (1-4) compounds and their human serum albumin glycation inhibitory activity. One of the compounds 5-(2H-1,3-benzodioxol-5-ylmethylidene)-3-cyclopropyl-2-(phenylimino)-1,3-thiazolidin-4-one (3) showed potent inhibition in the synthesis of initial, intermediary, and final products of glycation reactions. Besides, conformational changes in the α-helix and β-sheet (due to hyperglycemia) were also found to be reversed upon the addition of (3). Experimental findings were complemented by computational [molecular docking, ADME/Tox, and density functional theory (DFT)] studies. The docking scores of the compounds were in order 1 > 3 > 2 > 4, indicating the importance of the polar group at the 5-arylidene moiety. The results of ADME/Tox and DFT calculations revealed the safe nature of the compounds with high drug-likeness and stability. Overall, we speculate that the results of this study could provide valuable insights into the biological activity of 4-thiazolidinones.

Pharmacological Profile of Nigella sativa Seeds in Combating COVID-19 through In-Vitro and Molecular Docking Studies

COVID-19 infection is associated with elevated oxidative stress, systemic hyper-inflammatory responses, endothelial dysfunction, and red blood cell membrane deformability. Nigella sativa extract is widely used in alternative and complementary medicine systems in a large population, due to its highly therapeutic, economic, natural, and safe nature. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of N. sativa extract on oxidative stress, hemolysis, proteolysis, and glycation through in vitro studies, as well as to find out its anti-viral potential against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) using in silico studies. N. sativa seed extract (at 600 µg/mL) displayed 67.33% scavenging activity in the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) test, and 70.28% hydrogen peroxide reducing activity. N. sativa exhibited anti-proteolytic activity by decreasing heat-induced denaturation of bovine serum albumin (BSA) and egg albumin by 63.14% and 57.95%, respectively, and exhibited anti-proteinase potential of 66.28% at 600 μg/mL. In addition, heat-induced hemolysis and hypersalinity-induced hemolysis were inhibited by 57.86% and 61.7%, respectively, by the N. sativa seeds. N. sativa also inhibited browning intensity by 56.38%, and percent aggregation index by 51.38%, amyloid structure by 48.28%, and AGE-specific fluorescence by 52.18%, thereby protecting the native structure of BSA from glycation. The binding interactions between bioactive molecules of N. sativa seed with SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein were proven by using in silico molecular docking tools. The functional amino acids involved in the interactions are Asp467, Thr108, Thr114, Ile468, Asn234, Gln155, Glu465, Arg466, Gly232, and Ile233, indicating the inhibiting property of N. sativa on SARS-CoV-2. Finally, we may infer that phytoconstituents of N. sativa seeds have the potential to protect against the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2. Studies on N. sativa seeds might act as a path to develop a potent alternative therapy against viral infections, especially COVID-19 infection, in the future. However, the limitations linked with the use of natural products are also needed to be considered in this regard.

Biophysical, Biochemical, and Molecular Docking Investigations of Anti-Glycating, Antioxidant, and Protein Structural Stability Potential of Garlic

Garlic has been reported to inhibit protein glycation, a process that underlies several disease processes, including chronic complications of diabetes mellitus. Biophysical, biochemical, and molecular docking investigations were conducted to assess anti-glycating, antioxidant, and protein structural protection activities of garlic. Results from spectral (UV and fluorescence) and circular dichroism (CD) analysis helped ascertain protein conformation and secondary structure protection against glycation to a significant extent. Further, garlic showed heat-induced protein denaturation inhibition activity (52.17%). It also inhibited glycation, advanced glycation end products (AGEs) formation as well as lent human serum albumin (HSA) protein structural stability, as revealed by reduction in browning intensity (65.23%), decrease in protein aggregation index (67.77%), and overall reduction in cross amyloid structure formation (33.26%) compared with positive controls (100%). The significant antioxidant nature of garlic was revealed by FRAP assay (58.23%) and DPPH assay (66.18%). Using molecular docking analysis, some of the important garlic metabolites were investigated for their interactions with the HSA molecule. Molecular docking analysis showed quercetin, a phenolic compound present in garlic, appears to be the most promising inhibitor of glucose interaction with the HSA molecule. Our findings show that garlic can prevent oxidative stress and glycation-induced biomolecular damage and that it can potentially be used in the treatment of several health conditions, including diabetes and other inflammatory diseases.