Pharmacological Actions of Cassia auriculata L. and Cissus quadrangularis Wall.: A Short Review

Anil Kumar N, Sharopov F, Ramírez-Alarcón K, Ruiz-Ortega A, Abdulmajid Ayatollahi S, Valere Tsouh Fokou P, Kobarfard F, Amiruddin Zakaria Z, Iriti M, Taheri Y, Martorell M, Sureda A, N. Setzer W, Durazzo A, Lucarini M, Santini A, Capasso R, Adrian Ostrander E, -ur-Rahman A, Iqbal Choudhary M, C. Cho W, Sharifi-Rad J. Antidiabetic Potential of Medicinal Plants and Their Active Components

Diabetes mellitus is one of the major health problems in the world, the incidence and associated mortality are increasing. Inadequate regulation of the blood sugar imposes serious consequences for health. Conventional antidiabetic drugs are effective, however, also with unavoidable side effects. On the other hand, medicinal plants may act as an alternative source of antidiabetic agents. Examples of medicinal plants with antidiabetic potential are described, with focuses on preclinical and clinical studies. The beneficial potential of each plant matrix is given by the combined and concerted action of their profile of biologically active compounds.

Involvement of opioidergic and serotonergic systems in the analgesic activity of Cissus quadrangularis L. stem extract in mice

BACKGROUND

Cissus quadrangularis L. (Vitaceae) is used as a bonesetter and as an analgesic. However, the bioactive fractions and the pharmacological mechanism of analgesic activity are not clearly known. Hence, this study aimed to characterize the analgesic activity profile of successively extracted fractions of C. quadrangularis and the pharmacological mechanism of analgesic activity in mice.

METHODS

Dried C. quadrangularis stem was extracted successively with chloroform and methanol. The dried extracts were separately administered to mice intraperitoneally at the doses of 75, 150 and 300 mg/kg. The mice were tested separately in hot plate and tail flick tests. The mechanism of analgesic activity of chloroform extract was explored in the hot plate test at the dose of 300 mg/kg after pretreatment with naloxone, p-chlorophenylalanine methyl ester (pCPA) and phentolamine. The data were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance followed by Dunnett's test.

RESULTS

Chloroform extract showed significant (p<0.05) analgesic effect at the doses of 75, 150 and 300 mg/kg in hot plate and tail flick tests. Methanol extract showed significant (p<0.05) analgesic effect at the dose of 300 mg/kg in hot plate and tail flick tests. Analgesic activity was not blocked (p<0.05) in the group pretreated with phentolamine but blocked in the groups pretreated with naloxone and pCPA.

CONCLUSIONS

The chloroform extract was found to be more potent than methanol extract in inducing analgesic effect in mice, and the analgesic activity may be mediated through opioidergic and serotonergic pathways.

Hepatoprotective potential of Cassia auriculata roots on ethanol and antitubercular drug-induced hepatotoxicity in experimental models

CONTEXT

Tarvada [Cassia auriculata Linn. (Caesalpiniaceae)] is used against liver ailments in Indian folk medicine, but there is a lack of scientific evidence for this traditional claim.

OBJECTIVE

The present study investigated the protective effect of methanol extract of tarvada (MECA) roots on ethanol and antitubercular drug induced hepatotoxicity in rats.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In the therapeutic model, ethanol (40%, 4 g/kg b.w., p.o.) was administered to rats for 21 days and the intoxicated rats were treated with MECA (300 and 600 mg/kg, b.w.) and silymarin (100 mg/kg, b.w.) for next 7 days. In the prophylactic model, MECA and silymarin were administered simultaneously along with a combination of isoniazid (27 mg/kg, b.w.), rifampicin (54 mg/kg, b.w.) and pyrazinamide (135 mg/kg, b.w.) for 30 days. After the study duration, serum levels of AST, ALT, ALP, total bilirubin, total cholesterol, total protein, albumin were estimated along with hepatic catalase (CAT), reduced glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA) and liver histopathology in each group.

RESULTS

Administration of tarvada root extract significantly (p < 0.01 and p < 0.05) lowered the elevated levels of serum AST, ALT, ALP, total bilirubin, total cholesterol, total protein and restored the abnormal levels of enzymatic antioxidants and MDA in liver due to toxicant administration in a dose-dependent manner. These results were confirmed by histopathological analysis.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

Results suggest that tarvada root extract possess potent hepatoprotective activity against ethanol and antitubercular drug-induced hepatotoxicity in rats, which could be due to an inhibition of hepatic metabolizing enzymes and antioxidant activity.

Antibacterial and ulcer healing effects of organoselenium compounds in naproxen induced and Helicobacter pylori infected Wistar rat model

Aim of the present study was to evaluate in vitro toxicity and in vivo antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antiulcer, and antioxidant activities of two organoselenium compounds, selenocystine (SeCys) and ebselen (Ebs). The study was conducted in experimentally induced ulcers in rodent model infected with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). In vitro toxicological studies on normal splenic lymphocytes revealed that SeCys and Ebs were non-toxic to the cells even at 100 μM concentration. Antibacterial activity was observed at 500 μg/mL concentration of either of the compounds against H. pylori. In vivo studies after treatment with SeCys and Ebs (500 μg/kg/day) resulted in significant reduction in ROS production and inhibition of lipid peroxidation in gastric tissue. The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of both the compounds were also confirmed by their ability to lower GSH reduction, to induce the expression of antioxidant genes such as GPx-4, and MnSOD and to suppress inflammatory genes namely COX-2, TNF-α and TGF-β. In addition, the immunomodulatory activity of both the compounds was evident by enhance of the CD4 levels and maintenance of the IgG, IL-6 and IL-10 levels. Persistent treatment (500 μg/kg, for 28 days) with both the compounds showed considerable (p<0.05) ulcer healing property supporting its role in gastro protection. In conclusion, the results of our study suggest that both SeCys and Ebs possess broad spectrum of activities without any potential toxicity.