Targeted polymeric nanoparticle for anthracycline delivery in hypoxia-induced drug resistance in metastatic breast cancer cells.

Poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles are intensively studied nanocarriers in drug delivery because of their biodegradability and biochemical characteristics. Polyethylene glycol (PEG) coating for nanocarriers gives them long circulation time in blood and makes them invisible to the reticuloendothelial system. Breast cancer cells have greater uptake of hyaluronic acid compared to normal cells as it binds to their overexpressed CD44 receptors. Since hypoxia plays an important role in cancer metastasis; we formulated PEG-PLGA nanoparticles coated with hyaluronic acid as targeted delivery system for doxorubicin (DOX) using nanoprecipitation method, and characterized them for chemical composition, size, surface charge, shape, and encapsulation efficiency. Then we tested them in vitro on hypoxia-optimized metastatic breast cancer cells. The nanoparticles were spherical with an average size of about 106 ± 53 nm, a negative surface charge (-15 ± 3 mV), and high encapsulation efficiency (73.3 ± 4.1%). In vitro investigation with hypoxia-elevated CD44 MDA-MB-231 cells showed that hyaluronic acid-targeted nanoparticles maintained their efficacy despite hypoxia-induced drug resistance unlike free DOX and nontargeted nanoparticles. In conclusion, this study revealed a simple third generation nanoparticle formulation for targeted treatment of hypoxia-induced drug resistance in breast cancer metastatic cells. Further, optimization is needed including In vivo efficacy and nanoparticle-specific pharmacokinetic studies.

Disposal practice and factors associated with unused medicines in Malaysia: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: The improper disposal of unused medicines is a worldwide concern because of its impact on the environment, economy, and health. This study aims to describe the disposal practice of unused medicine and identify factors associated with unused medicines in Malaysia. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional, face to face interview-based survey using a structured questionnaire. We used a convenience sampling method to recruit participants from Kuala Lumpur and Selangor in Malaysia. RESULTS: We interviewed 1184 participants, and the response rate was 96%. Out of the total respondents, 995 (84%) reported having unused medicines. About a quarter of respondents kept unused medicines in the cabinet, and another quarter disposed of them into the trash or toilet. Only half of the respondent who used medicines for chronic illnesses had unused medicines compared to about 90% of respondents who used medicines for acute illnesses. The main reason for having unused medicines among those who used medicines for chronic illness was non-adherence (69%, p <  0.05). Only 27% of these respondents returned unused medicines under the "Medicine Return Programme (MRP)". The other group who used medicines for acute illnesses had unused medicines because their health conditions improved. Thus, most of the unused medicines will eventually end up in household waste. A multivariate logistic regression analysis identified respondents who used medicines for acute illnesses as the strongest predictor of having unused medicines (Odds Ratio (OR) = 29.8; p <  0.001), followed by those who pay for their medicines (OR = 6.0; p < 0.001) and those who were willing to participate the Medicine Return Programme (OR = 2.5; p = 0.009). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of unused medicines and their improper disposal were high in Malaysia. Unused medicines are associated with people who use medicines for acute illnesses, pay for their medication, and are willing to participate in an MRP. Rationale prescription and optimal dispensing practice, together with a broader MRP facilities coverage, could reduce unused medicine possession.

Annexin A1: A Bane or a Boon in Cancer? A Systematic Review.

Annexin A1 has been extensively investigated as an anti-inflammatory protein, but its role in different types of cancer has not been consolidated in a single systematic review to date. Thus, the aim of this paper is to systematically review and critically analyse 18 studies (in-vivo and in-vitro) to consolidate, in a concerted manner, all the information on differential expression of Annexin A1 in different types of cancer and the role this protein plays in tumorigenesis. Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Science, and ScienceDirect were used for the literature search and the keywords used are "annexin A1," "lipocortin 1," "cancer," "malignancy," "neoplasm," "neoplasia," and "tumor." A total of 1128 articles were retrieved by implementing a standard search strategy subjected to meticulous screening processes and 442 articles were selected for full article screening. A total of 18 articles that adhered to the inclusion criteria were included in the systematic review and these articles possessed low to moderate bias. These studies showed a strong correlation between Annexin A1 expression and cancer progression via modulation of various cancer-associated pathways. Differential expression of Annexin A1 is shown to play a role in cellular proliferation, metastasis, lymphatic invasion, and development of resistance to anti-cancer treatment. Meta-analysis in the future may provide a statistically driven association between Annexin A1 expression and malignancy progression.

How well does self-reported adherence fare compared to therapeutic drug monitoring in HAART?

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to determine how well self-reported adherence fares compared to therapeutic drug monitoring in monitoring HAART adherence. METHODS: We administered a validated self-reported adherence (SRA) questionnaire to 925 HIV patients on HAART in a large Malaysian hospital from 2010 to 11. We also performed Therapeutic Drug monitoring (TDM) by concurrently collecting and testing blood samples for Efavirenz, Nevirapine and Lamivudine using Liquid Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry. We compared the SRA against the TDM results. Sensitivity, specificity, positive (PPV) and negative predictive (NPV) and diagnostic accuracy values were computed for each drug. RESULTS: Self-reported adherence (SRA) over-estimates adherence by between 6 and 10 percentage points compared to therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM). SRA is highly sensitive with sensitivity exceeding 0.90 but is not very specific (0.56-0.63). PPV for SRA ranged between 0.76 (Lamivudine) and 0.84 (Efavirenz) while NPV ranged between 0.78 (Lamivudine) and 0.81 (Efavirenz). Overall diagnostic accuracy ranged between 0.76 (Lamivudine) and 0.84 (Nevirapine). CONCLUSION: Self-reported adherence is a surprisingly accurate instrument for measuring HAART adherence compared to TDM and can be reliably used in practice in resource-poor settings.

Formulation and In Vivo Pain Assessment of a Novel Niosomal Lidocaine and Prilocaine in an Emulsion Gel (Emulgel) of Semisolid Palm Oil Base for Topical Drug Delivery.

This study aimed to formulate semisolid niosomal encapsulated lidocaine and prilocaine using the patented palm oil base Hamin-C® for further characterization and in vivo pain assessment. Seven formulations were initially studied with various chemical compositions. A thin-layer film hydration method was used to produce niosome using a mixture of surfactant (Span® 40 or Span® 60) and cholesterol (CHOL) at a 1:1 ratio, with/without a charge-inducing agent (diacetyl phosphate) (DCP) and with/without labrasol®. Niosome F1 formulation had been identified as the highest %EE achieved, at 53.74 and 55.63% for prilocaine and lidocaine, respectively. Furthermore, NIO-HAMIN F1 emulgel indicated the best formulation with higher permeability of prilocaine and lidocaine compared to the rest of the formulations. The reformulation of optimization of NIO-HAMIN F1 emulgel using a cold process to NIO-HAMIN F1-C emulgel to improve the viscosity resulted in higher diffusion of prilocaine and lidocaine by 5.71 and 33.38%, respectively. In vivo pain perception studies by verbal rating score (VRS) and visual analogue score (VAS) on healthy subjects show a comparable local anesthetic effect between NIO-HAMIN F1-C emulgel and EMLA® cream.

The Chemotherapeutic Efficacy of Hyaluronic Acid Coated Polymeric Nanoparticles against Breast Cancer Metastasis in Female NCr-Nu/Nu Nude Mice.

Polyethylene glycol (PEG) coated Poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs) for cancer treatment are biocompatible, nonimmunogenic and accumulate in tumour sites due to the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR). Doxorubicin (DOX) is a potent but cardiotoxic anticancer agent. Hyaluronic acid (HA) occurs naturally in the extra-cellar matrix and binds to CD44 receptors which are overexpressed in cancer metastasis, proven to be characteristic of cancer stem cells and responsible for multidrug resistance. In this study, an athymic mice model of breast cancer metastasis was developed using red fluorescent protein (RFP)-labelled triple negative cancer cells. The animals were divided into four treatment groups (Control, HA-PEG-PLGA nanoparticles, PEG-PLGA nanoparticles, and Free DOX). The tumour size growth was assessed until day 25 when animals were sacrificed. Mice treated with HA-PEG-PLGA NPs inhibited tumour growth. The tumour growth at day 25 (118% ± 13.0) was significantly (p < 0.05) less than PEG-PLGA NPs (376% ± 590 and control (826% ± 970). Fluorescent microscopy revealed that HA-PEG-PLGA NPs had significantly (p < 0.05) less metastasis in liver, spleen, colon, and lungs as compared to control and to Free DOX groups. The efficacy of HA-PEG-PLGA NPs was proven in vivo. Further pharmacokinetic and toxicity studies are required for this formulation to be ready for clinical research.

Diosmetin Exerts Synergistic Effects in Combination with 5-Fluorouracil in Colorectal Cancer Cells.

5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) is a chemotherapeutic medication commonly used to treat colorectal cancer (CRC); however, the drug-associated adverse effects and toxicity have greatly affected its clinical use. Exploring another therapeutic strategy that lowers the toxicity of 5-FU while having a synergistic effect against CRC is thus a viable option. Diosmetin, a natural flavonoid, has been shown to inhibit the proliferation of many cancer cells, including CRC cells. This study aims to investigate the synergistic effect of diosmetin and 5-FU on HCT116 and HT29 colorectal cancer cells and to explore the apoptotic activity of this combination. The MTT assay was used to assess the viability of cells treated with monotherapy and combination therapy. The combination index (CI) and dose reduction index (DRI) were calculated using the CompuSyn software (version 1.0). The SynergyFinder 2.0 software was used to calculate the synergy score, while the Combenefit software was employed to perform isobologram analysis and synergism determination. The AO/PI double staining technique was used to detect the apoptotic characteristics of cells, whereas the flow cytometry technique was used to investigate the apoptosis induction and cell cycle arrest in cells. The combination of 5-FU and diosmetin showed a synergistic effect in HCT116 cells with a mean CI value of 0.66 ± 0.4, and an additive effect in HT29 cells with a CI value of 1.0 ± 0.2. The DRI of 5-FU in HCT116 cells was three times lower in the combination therapy compared to monotherapy of 5-FU. AO/PI microscopic examination and Annexin V analysis revealed that the combination-treated cells had more apoptotic cells than the monotherapy-treated cells, which was activated mainly through intrinsic apoptosis pathway. HCT116 cell death was confirmed by mitotic arrest in the G2/M phase. Our findings suggest that 5-FU/diosmetin combination exhibits synergistic effect against HCT116 cancer cells, and potentially reduces the unfavorable adverse effect of 5-FU while enhancing the anticancer efficacy by inducing apoptosis and interrupting mitosis. Further research studies are needed to validate the combination's anti-tumorigenic activities in a xenograft animal model.

Quantitation of ethanol in UTI assay for volatile organic compound detection by electronic nose using the validated headspace GC-MS method.

Disease detection through gas analysis has long been the topic of many studies because of its potential as a rapid diagnostic technique. In particular, the pathogens that cause urinary tract infection (UTI) have been shown to generate different profiles of volatile organic compounds, thus enabling the discrimination of causative agents using an electronic nose. While past studies have performed data collection on either agar culture or jellified urine culture, this study measures the headspace volume of liquid urine culture samples. Evaporation of the liquid and the presence of background compounds during electronic nose (e-nose) device operation could introduce variability to the collected data. Therefore, a headspace gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for quantitating ethanol in the headspace of the urine samples. By leveraging the new method to characterize the sample stability during e-nose measurement, it was revealed that ethanol concentration dropped more than 15% after only three measurement cycles, which equal 30 minutes for this study. It was further shown that by using only data within the first three cycles, better accuracies for between-day classification were achieved, which was 73.7% and 97.0%, compared to using data from within the first nine cycles, which resulted in 65.0% and 81.1% accuracies. Therefore, the newly developed method provides better quality control for data collection, paving ways for the future establishment of a training data library for UTI.

Multifunctional applications of natural polysaccharide starch and cellulose: An update on recent advances.

The emergence of clinical complications and therapeutic challenges for treating various diseases necessitate the discovery of novel restorative functional materials. Polymer-based drug delivery systems have been extensively reported in the last two decades. Recently, there has been an increasing interest in the progression of natural biopolymers based controlled therapeutic strategies, especially in drug delivery and tissue engineering applications. However, the solubility and functionalisation due to their complex network structure and intramolecular bonding seem challenging. This review explores the current advancement and prospects of the most promising natural polymers such as cellulose, starch and their derivatives-based drug delivery vehicles like hydrogels, films and composites, in combating major ailments such as bone infections, microbial infections, and cancers. In addition, selective drug targeting using metal-drug (MD) and MD-based polymeric missiles have been exciting but challenging for its application in cancer therapeutics. Owing to high biocompatibility of starch and cellulose, these materials have been extensively evaluated in biomedical and pharmaceutical applications. This review presents a detailed impression of the current trends for the construction of biopolymer-based tissue engineering, drug/gene/protein delivery vehicles.

Renal Nano-drug delivery for acute kidney Injury: Current status and future perspectives.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) causes considerable morbidity and mortality, particularly in the case of post-cardiac infarction or kidney transplantation; however, the site-specific accumulation of small molecule reno-protective agents for AKI has often proved ineffective due to dynamic fluid and solute excretion and non-selectivity, which impedes therapeutic efficacy. This article reviews the current status and future trajectories of renal nanomedicine research for AKI management from pharmacological and clinical perspectives, with a particular focus on appraising nanosized drug carrier (NDC) use for the delivery of reno-protective agents of different pharmacological classes and the effectiveness of NDCs in improving renal tissue targeting selectivity and efficacy of said agents. This review reveals the critical shift in the role of the small molecule reno-protective agents in AKI pharmacotherapy - from prophylaxis to treatment - when using NDCs for delivery to the kidney. We also highlight the need to identify the accumulation sites of NDCs carrying reno-protective agents in renal tissues during in vivo assessments and detail the less-explored pharmacological classes of reno-protective agents whose efficacies may be improved via NDC-based delivery. We conclude the paper by outlining the challenges and future perspectives of NDC-based reno-protective agent delivery for better clinical management of AKI.

Evaluation of the effects of Mitragyna speciosa alkaloid extract on cytochrome P450 enzymes using a high throughput assay.

The extract from Mitragyna speciosa has been widely used as an opium substitute, mainly due to its morphine-like pharmacological effects. This study investigated the effects of M. speciosa alkaloid extract (MSE) on human recombinant cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzyme activities using a modified Crespi method. As compared with the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method, this method has shown to be a fast and cost-effective way to perform CYP inhibition studies. The results indicated that MSE has the most potent inhibitory effect on CYP3A4 and CYP2D6, with apparent half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC(50)) values of 0.78 µg/mL and 0.636 µg/mL, respectively. In addition, moderate inhibition was observed for CYP1A2, with an IC(50) of 39 µg/mL, and weak inhibition was detected for CYP2C19. The IC(50) of CYP2C19 could not be determined, however, because inhibition was <50%. Competitive inhibition was found for the MSE-treated CYP2D6 inhibition assay, whereas non-competitive inhibition was shown in inhibition assays using CYP3A4, CYP1A2 and CYP2C19. Quinidine (CYP2D6), ketoconazole (CYP3A4), tranylcypromine (CYP2C19) and furafylline (CYP1A2) were ACCESSused as positive controls throughout the experiments. This study shows that MSE may contribute to an herb-drug interaction if administered concomitantly with drugs that are substrates for CYP3A4, CYP2D6 and CYP1A2.

Cathinone: An alkaloid of Catha edulis (Khat) exacerbated hyperglycemia in diabetes-induced rats.

Cathinone, the main bioactive alkaloid of Catha edulis (khat), slightly increased the blood sugar levels of healthy animals, while its effect on blood sugar levels of diabetic animals has not yet been reported. This study investigated the in vitro inhibition of cathinone on α-amylase and α-glucosidase as well as its in vivo glycemic effects in diabetes-induced rats. Rats were fed on a high fat diet for five weeks, which then intraperitoneally injected with streptozotocin (30 mg/kg). Diabetic rats were distributed randomly into diabetic control (DC, n = 5), 10 mg/kg glibenclamide-treated group (DG, n = 5), and 1.6 mg/kg cathinone-treated group (CAD, n = 5). Additional healthy untreated rats (n = 5) served as a nondiabetic negative control group. Throughout the experiment, fasting blood sugar (FBS), caloric intake and body weight were recorded weekly. By the 28th day of treatment, rats were euthanized to obtain blood samples and pancreases. The results demonstrated that cathinone exerted a significantly less potent in vitro inhibition than α-acarbose against α-amylase and α-glucosidase. As compared to diabetic control group, cathinone significantly increased FBS of diabetic rats, while insulin levels of diabetic rats significantly decreased. In conclusion, cathinone was unable to induce a substantial in vitro inhibition on α-amylase and α-glucosidase, while it exacerbated the hyperglycemia of diabetes-induced rats.

LPS Preconditioning Attenuates Apoptosis Mechanism by Inhibiting NF-κB and Caspase-3 Activity: TLR4 Pre-activation in the Signaling Pathway of LPS-Induced Neuroprotection.

Neuroinflammation, an inflammatory response within the nervous system, has been shown to be implicated in the progression of various neurodegenerative diseases. Recent in vivo studies showed that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) preconditioning provides neuroprotection by activating Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), one of the members for pattern recognition receptor (PRR) family that play critical role in host response to tissue injury, infection, and inflammation. Pre-exposure to low dose of LPS could confer a protective state against cellular apoptosis following subsequent stimulation with LPS at higher concentration, suggesting a role for TLR4 pre-activation in the signaling pathway of LPS-induced neuroprotection. However, the precise molecular mechanism associated with this protective effect is not well understood. In this article, we provide an overall review of the current state of our knowledge about LPS preconditioning in attenuating apoptosis mechanism and conferring neuroprotection via TLR4 signaling pathway.

Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry Method for the Determination of Vardenafil and Its Application of Bioequivalence.

A simple, rapid, and sensitive method of liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the determination of vardenafil in rabbit plasma. A simple protein precipitation method with ice-cold acetonitrile was used for plasma extraction. The mass transitions m/z 489⟶151 and m/z 390⟶169 were used to measure vardenafil and tadalafil (internal standard), respectively, with a total assay run time of 6 min. The limit of detection was 0.2 ng/mL. The assay was reproducible with intra-assay and interassay precision ranging 1.17%-9.17% and 1.31%-5.86%, respectively. There was also good intra-assay and interassay accuracy between 89.3%-105.3% and 94%-102% of the expected value, respectively. The linearity range was 0.5-60 ng/mL in rabbit plasma (r 2 ≥ 0.99). The measured AUC from 0 to 24 h (AUC0 - 24t ) for the test and reference formulations were 174.38 ± 95.91 and 176.45 ± 76.88, respectively. For the test, C max and T max were 75.36 ± 59.53 ng/mL and 1.42 ± 0.19 h, whereas, for the reference, these were 58.22 ± 36.11 ng/mL and 2.04 ± 0.33 h, respectively. The test formulation achieved a slightly lower AUC0 - 24t value (p > 0.05), higher C max values (p > 0.05), faster T max (p < 0.05), and almost equal bioavailability compared with the reference formulation.

Punicalagin Regulates Apoptosis-Autophagy Switch via Modulation of Annexin A1 in Colorectal Cancer.

Punicalagin (PU), a polyphenol extracted from pomegranate (Punica granatum) husk is proven to have anti-cancer effects on different types of cancer including colorectal cancer (CRC). Its role in modulating endogenous protein as a means of eliciting its anti-cancer effects, however, has not been explored to date. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the role of PU in modulating the interplay between apoptosis and autophagy by regulating Annexin A1 (Anx-A1) expression in HCT 116 colorectal adenocarcinoma cells. In the study, selective cytotoxicity, pro-apoptotic, autophagic and Anx-A1 downregulating properties of PU were shown which indicate therapeutic potential that this polyphenol has against CRC. Autophagy flux analysis via flow cytometry showed significant autophagosomes degradation in treated cells, proving the involvement of autophagy. Proteome profiling of 35 different proteins in the presence and absence of Anx-A1 antagonists in PU-treated cells demonstrated a complex interplay that happens between apoptosis and autophagy that suggests the possible simultaneous induction and inhibition of these two cell death mechanisms by PU. Overall, this study suggests that PU induces autophagy while maintaining basal level of apoptosis as the main mechanisms of cytotoxicity via the modulation of Anx-A1 expression in HCT 116 cells, and thus has a promising translational potential.

Lipopolysaccharide Pre-conditioning Attenuates Pro-inflammatory Responses and Promotes Cytoprotective Effect in Differentiated PC12 Cell Lines via Pre-activation of Toll-Like Receptor-4 Signaling Pathway Leading to the Inhibition of Caspase-3/Nuclear Factor-κappa B Pathway.

Lipopolysacharide (LPS) pre-conditioning (PC), has been shown to exert protective effects against cytotoxic effects. Therefore, we hypothesized, the tolerance produced by LPS PC will be resulted by the alterations and modifications in gene and protein expression. With reference to the results of MTT assays, AO/PI staining, and Annexin V-FITC analyses of LPS concentration (0.7815-50 µg/mL) and time-dependent (12-72 h) experiments, the pre-exposure to 3 µg/mL LPS for 12 h protected the differentiated PC12 cells against 0.75 mg/mL LPS apoptotic concentration. LPS-treated cells secreted more inflammatory cytokines like IL-1α, IL-1ß, IL-2, IL-3, IL-4, IL-6, IL-17, IFN-γ, and TNF-α than LPS-PC cells. The production of inflammatory mediators ROS and NO was also higher in the LPS-induced cells compared to LPS-PC cells. Conversely, anti-inflammatory cytokines (like IL-10, IL-13, CNTF, and IL-1Ra) were upregulated in the LPS-PC cells but not in the LPS-induced cells. Meanwhile, the LPS initiated caspase-8 which in turn activates effector caspase 3/7. When the activities of caspases in the LPS-induced cells were inhibited using z-VADfmk and z-DEVDfmk, the expressions of c-MYC and Hsp70 were increased, but p53 was reduced. The potential molecules associated with protective and destructive effect was measured by RT2 Profiler PCR array to elucidate the signaling pathways and suggested inhibition NF-κB/caspase-3 signaling pathway regulates the cytoprotective genes and proto-oncogenes. In conclusion, this study provides a basis for future research to better understand the molecular mechanism underlying LPS pre-conditioning /TLR4 pre-activation and its functional role in offering cytoprotective response in neuronal environment.

Biochemical and toxicological effects of methanolic extract of Asparagus africanus Lam in Sprague-Dawley rats.

Asparagus africanus Lam. is a plant used traditionally to treat different ailments. Currently, scanty information is available on its safety. The aim of this study is to determine the acute toxicity of the methanolic extract on vital organs and its associated biochemical parameters. Fifteen female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into five groups. Group I served as normal control, groups II, III, IV, and V were orally administered single dose of crude extract dissolved in distilled water at 5 mg/kg BW, 50 mg/kg BW, 300 mg/kg BW and 2,000 mg/kg BW. Rats were observed for 14 days and body weights were recorded. On day 15, the rats were sacrificed and blood samples were collected for biochemical and haematological analyses, while the liver and kidneys were sampled for histopathological examination. Body weight and haematology parameters results showed significance difference (p < 0.05) among means of HGB, RDW, RBC, and MCHC; likewise, (p < 0.001) for WBC and platelet among treated groups. Histopathology result showed that kidneys appeared normal while livers were congested with mildly swollen hepatocytes and occasional binucleation. Focal lobular hepatitis was observed in all treated animals. However, hepatic enzymes were not significantly affected and no histopathological harmful effects were observed in kidney. In conclusion, methanolic extracts of A. africanus are safe up to 2,000 mg/kg BW. The obtained results could be used as a justification for the traditional application of the plant for treatment of various ailments.

Evaluating the oestrogenic activities of aqueous root extract of Asparagus africanus Lam in female Sprague-Dawley rats and its phytochemical screening using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS).

Asparagus africanus Lam. is a plant used traditionally for natal care. This study evaluates the oestrogenic activities of aqueous root extract and screens for possible bioactive phytochemicals. Oestrogenicity of A. africanus was evaluated in ovariectomised rats treated with 50, 200, and 800 mg/kgBW doses twice daily for three days. Ethinyl estradiol (EE)1 mg/kg was used as positive control, and hormonal analysis and gene expression were carried out. The findings demonstrated that the extract produced a dose-dependent increase in the oestrogen levels with a significant increase compared to untreated rats. Pre-treatment with oestrogen receptor antagonist (ORA) prior to A. africanus treatment reversed the trend. Gene expression analysis on rats treated with 200 mg/kgBW A. africanus showed significant (p < 0.005) upregulation of oestrogen receptor alpha (ERα), while pre-treating animals with (ORA) significantly (p < 0.005) increased the expression of calbindin 3 (Calb3) in the EE group as compared to the untreated rats. The GC/MS results showed the presence of steroidal saponins such as stigmasterol and sarsasapogenin. These might be the bioactive constituents that exhibited these activities. The oestrogenic properties of A. africanus revealed in this study could contribute to the antifertility properties of the plant. However, further pharmacological studies are required to confirm the antifertility effect.

Urine NMR Metabolomic Study on Biochemical Activities to Investigate the Effect of P. betle Extract on Obese Rats.

The present studies are to evaluate the ability of PB to induce weight loss and urine metabolite profile of Piper betle L. (PB) leaf extracts using metabolomics approach. Dried PB leaves were extracted with ethanol 70% and the studies were performed in different groups of rats fed with high fat (HFD) and normal diet (ND). Then, fed with the PB extract with 100, 300, and 500 mg/kg and two negative control groups given water (WTR). The body weights were monitored and evaluated. Urine was collected and 1H NMR-based metabolomics approach was used to detect the metabolite changes. Results showed that PB-treated group demonstrated inhibition of body weight gain. The trajectory of urine metabolites showed that PB-treated group gave the different distribution from week 12 to 16 compared with the control groups. In 1H NMR metabolomic approach analysis, the urine metabolites gave the best separation in principle component 1 and 3, with 40.0% and 9.56% of the total variation. Shared and unique structures (SUS) plot model showed that higher concentration PB-treated group was characterized by high level of indole-3-acetate, aspartate, methanol, histidine, and creatine, thus caused an increased the metabolic function and maintaining the body weight of the animals treated.

Prenatal developmental toxicity evaluation of Verbena officinalis during gestation period in female Sprague-Dawley rats.

Verbena officinalis is widely used by women for maintaining general health and treating various gynaecological disorders during pregnancy. A case report has indicated that the consumption of V. officinalis induced an abortifacient effect. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the prenatal developmental toxicity of this plant according to OECD guideline (no. 414). A total of 50 pregnant female rats (dams) were distributed into five groups (n = 10); 500 mg/kg 1000 mg/2000 mg/kg and 3000 mg/kg of V. offcinalis extracts and the fifth group served as a normal control. All dams received their respective oral single daily treatment from the 6th to the 20th day of gestation. Maternal clinical toxicity signs, body weight and weight gain were recorded. Caesarean sections were performed on day 21 to evaluate embryo-foetal developmental toxicity. For dams, ovaries were harvested and weighed. The number of corpora lutea, implantation sites, and resorptions were recorded. No mortality was observed in dams, but their body weight gain was significantly reduced particularly in dams treated with 2000 and 3000 mg/kg V. officinalis. Asymmetrical distribution of implantation sites and embryos were observed. Embryo-fetotoxicity retardation was observed as evident by the decrease in foetal weight, head cranium, tail length, and higher incidence in the pre-and post-implantation loss. Some foetal skeleton abnormalities such as incomplete ossification of skull, sternebrae, and metatarsal bones were observed in foetuses of the 2000 and 3000 mg/kg V. officinalis-treated dams. LC/MS analysis identified the major constituents including geniposidic acid, tuberonic acid glucoside, luteolin 7, 3'-digalacturonide, iridotrial and apigenin. The glycosylated flavonoids such as apigenin and luteolin could be responsible for the reported prenatal developmental toxicity. In conclusion, the use of V. officinalis during pregnancy is not safe indicating evidence-based toxic effects on the reproductive performance of dams and dose-dependent risk potentials to the foetuses.