Antiviral Activity of Cananga odorata Against Hepatitis B Virus.

Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection can lead to liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Current therapeutic drugs for chronic hepatitis B using pegylated interferons and nucleos(t)ide analogs have limited efficacy. Therefore, the development of novel and safe antivirals is required. Natural products including medicinal plants produce complex and structurally diverse compounds, some of which offer suitable targets for antiviral screening studies. In the present study, we screened various crude extracts from Indonesian plants for anti-HBV activity by determining their effects on the production of extracellular HBV DNA in Hep38.7-Tet cells and HBV entry onto a HBV-susceptible cell line, HepG2-NTCP, with the following results: (1) In Hep38.7-Tet cells, Cananga odorata exhibited the highest anti-HBV activity with a 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 56.5 µg/ml and 50% cytotoxic concentration (CC50) of 540.2 µg/ml (Selectivity Index: 9.6). (2) The treatment of HepG2-NTCP cells with Cassia fistula, C. odorata, and Melastoma malabathricum at concentrations of 100 µg/ml lowered the levels of HBsAg production to 51.2%, 58.0%, and 40.1%, respectively, compared to untreated controls, and IC50 and CC50 values of C. odorata were 142.9 µg/ml and >400 µg/ml. In conclusion, the C. odorata extract could be a good candidate for the development of anti-HBV drugs.

Coffee Intake and Liver Enzyme Association in Korean Immigrants and Japanese: A Comprehensive Cross-Sectional Study.

OBJECTIVES: Significant inverse association between coffee intake and the levels of liver enzymes has been reported. We demonstrated higher prevalence of metabolic syndrome in Korean immigrants (KIs) than in indigenous Japanese (IJs). The aim of this study was to investigate whether the association between coffee intake and liver enzyme levels was different between the 2 ethnic groups. METHODS: This study is a cross-sectional study including a total of 966 subjects comprising KIs and IJs. The association between the quintiles of coffee intake and dichotomous values of liver enzymes was evaluated by logistic regression analysis in KIs, IJs, a high-risk group (current smokers or alcohol drinkers ≥45 g/day), and a low-risk group (non-smokers and alcohol drinkers <45 g/day). RESULTS: In KIs, a significant inverse association between coffee intake and serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels was observed. In the IJs, a significant inverse association between coffee intake and serum alanine aminotransferase levels was observed. In the high-risk group, a significant inverse association between coffee intake and serum AST and gamma-glutamyltransferase levels was observed. CONCLUSION: No difference was observed between KIs and IJs regarding the association between coffee and liver enzymes. Coffee might inhibit hepatic damage by alcohol drinking and smoking.

Inhibition of hepatitis C virus replication by chalepin and pseudane IX isolated from Ruta angustifolia leaves.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is highly prevalent among global populations, with an estimated number of infected patients being 170 million. Approximately 70-80% of patients acutely infected with HCV will progress to chronic liver disease, such as liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma, which is a substantial cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. New therapies for HCV infection have been developed, however, the therapeutic efficacies still need to be improved. Medicinal plants are promising sources for antivirals against HCV. A variety of plants have been tested and proven to be beneficial as antiviral drug candidates against HCV. In this study, we examined extracts, their subfractions and isolated compounds of Ruta angustifolia leaves for antiviral activities against HCV in cell culture. We isolated six compounds, chalepin, scopoletin, γ-fagarine, arborinine, kokusaginine and pseudane IX. Among them, chalepin and pseudane IX showed strong anti-HCV activities with 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 1.7 ± 0.5 and 1.4 ± 0.2 µg/ml, respectively, without apparent cytotoxicity. Their anti-HCV activities were stronger than that of ribavirin (2.8 ± 0.4 µg/ml), which has been widely used for the treatment of HCV infection. Mode-of-action analyses revealed that chalepin and pseudane IX inhibited HCV at the post-entry step and decreased the levels of HCV RNA replication and viral protein synthesis. We also observed that arborinine, kokusaginine and γ-fagarine possessed moderate levels of anti-HCV activities with IC50 values being 6.4 ± 0.7, 6.4 ± 1.6 and 20.4 ± 0.4 µg/ml, respectively, whereas scopoletin did not exert significant anti-HCV activities at 30 µg/ml.