Phytochemical Properties and In Vitro Biological Activities of Phenolic Compounds from Flower of Clitoria ternatea L.

Phenolic compounds from the flower of Clitoria ternatea L. (PCFCTL) were extracted using a high-speed shearing extraction technique and purified by AB-8 macroporous resins, and the phytochemical composition of the purified phenolic compounds from the flower of Clitoria ternatea L. (PPCFCTL) was then analyzed. Subsequently, its bioactivities including antioxidant properties, enzyme inhibitory activities, and antiproliferative activities against several tumor cell lines were evaluated. Results indicated that the contents of total phenolics, flavonoids, flavonols, flavanols, and phenolic acids in PPCFCTL were increased by 3.29, 4.11, 2.74, 2.43, and 2.96-fold, respectively, compared with those before being purified by AB-8 macroporous resins. The results showed PPCFCTL have significant antioxidant ability (measured by reducing power, RP, and ferric reducing antioxidant power method, FRAP) and good DPPH, ABTS+, and superoxide anion radical scavenging activities. They can also significantly inhibit lipase, α-amylase, and α-glucosidase. In addition, morphological changes of HeLa, HepG2, and NCI-H460 tumor cells demonstrated the superior antitumor performance of PPCFCTL. However, the acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity was relatively weak. These findings suggest that PPCFCTL have important potential as natural antioxidant, antilipidemic, anti-glycemic and antineoplastic agents in health-promoting foods.

Extraction and purification of total flavonoids from Eupatorium lindleyanum DC. and evaluation of their antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory activities.

The health benefits and promising medical treatment potential of total flavonoids from Eupatorium lindleyanum DC. (TFELDC) have been recognized. The process parameters of extracting total flavonoids from Eupatorium lindleyanum DC. by ultrasonic-microwave synergistic extraction (UMSE) were optimized, and they were purified by AB-8 macroporous resin in the current study. In addition, the antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory activities of the purified TFELDC (PTFELDC) were evaluated. The results showed that the optimal parameters of UMSE were as follows: ethanol volume fraction 71.5%, L/S ratio 12.2 ml/g, microwave power 318 W, and extraction time 143 s. After TFELDC were purified by AB-8 macroporous resin, the total flavonoid contents of PTFELDC increased from 208.18 ± 1.60 to 511.19 ± 3.21 mg RE/g FDS. Compared with TFELDC, the content of total flavonoids in PTFELDC was increased by 2.46 times. The antioxidant activities of PTFELDC were assessed using DPPH radical, superoxide anion radical, reducing power, and ferric reducing antioxidant power assays, and the IC50 values were found to be 37.13, 19.62, 81.22, and 24.72 µg/ml, respectively. The enzyme inhibitory activities of PTFELDC were measured using lipase, α-amylase, α-glucosidase, and acetylcholinesterase assays with the IC50 values 1.38, 2.08, 1.63, and 0.58 mg/ml, respectively. By comparing with their positive controls, it was found that PTFELDC had good antioxidant activities, and lipase, α-amylase, and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities, However, the acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity was relatively weaker. These results suggested that PTFELDC have a promising potential as natural antioxidant, antilipidemic, and hypoglycemic drugs used in functional foods or pharmaceuticals.

Underestimated disease prevalence and severe phenotypes in patients with biallelic variants: A cohort study of primary familial brain calcification from China.

BACKGROUND: Primary familial brain calcification (PFBC) is a rare calcifying disorder of the brain with extensive clinical and genetic heterogeneity. Its prevalence is underestimated due to clinical selection bias (compared with symptomatic PFBC patients, asymptomatic ones are less likely to undergo genetic testing). METHODS: A total of 273 PFBC probands were enrolled in a multicenter retrospective cohort study by two different approaches. In Group I (nonsystematic approach), 37 probands diagnosed at our clinic were enrolled. In Group II (systematic approach), 236 probands were enrolled by searching the medical imaging databases of 50 other hospitals using specific keywords. Genetic testing of four genes known to be causative of autosomal dominant PFBC was performed in all probands using cDNA. All identified variants were further confirmed using genomic DNA and classified according to ACMG-AMP recommendations. RESULTS: Thirty-two variants including 22 novel variants were detected in 37 probands. Among these probands, 83.8% (31/37) were asymptomatic. Two probands with homozygous pathogenic SLC20A2 variants presented more severe brain calcification and symptoms. Based on the variant detection rate of probands in Group II, we extrapolated an overall minimal prevalence of PFBC of 6.6 per 1,000, much higher than previously reported (2.1 per 1000). CONCLUSIONS: We identified a higher proportion of genetically confirmed PFBC probands who were asymptomatic. These patients would be overlooked due to clinical selection bias, leading to underestimation of the disease prevalence. Considering that PFBC patients with biallelic variants had more severe phenotypes, this specific condition should be focused on in genetic counseling.