Antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antiproliferative activities of Kalanchoe gracilis (L.) DC stem.

Oxidative stress and inflammation are related to several chronic diseases including cancer and atherosclerosis. Kalanchoe gracilis (L.) DC is a special folk medicinal plant in Taiwan. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antiproliferative activities of the methanolic extract and fractions of the stem of K. gracilis. TEAC, total phenolic compound content, total flavonoid content, DPPH radical scavenging activity, reducing power, inhibition of NO production in LPS-induced RAW264.7 cells, and inhibition of cancer cell proliferation were analyzed. Among all fractions, the chloroform fraction showed the highest TEAC and DPPH radical scavenging activities. The chloroform fraction also had the highest content of polyphenols and flavonoids. Chloroform fractions also decreased LPS-induced NO production and expressions of iNOS and COX-2 in RAW264.7 cells. The antiproliferative activities of the methanolic extract and fractions were studied in vitro using HepG2 cells, and the results were consistent with their antioxidant capacities. Chloroform fractions had the highest antiproliferative activity with an IC(50) of 136.85 ± 2.32 µg/ml. Eupafolin also had good pharmacological activity in the antioxidant, anti-inflammation and antiproliferative. Eupafolin might be an important bioactive compound in the stem of K. gracilis. The above experimental data indicated that the stem of K. gracilis is a potent antioxidant medicinal plant, and such efficacy may be mainly attributed to its polyphenolic compounds.

Hepatoprotective effect of Scoparia dulcis on carbon tetrachloride induced acute liver injury in mice.

This study aims to investigate the hepatoprotective activity and active constituents of the ethanol extract of Scoparia dulcis (SDE). The hepatoprotective effect of SDE (0.1, 0.5 and 1 g/kg) was evaluated on the carbon tetrachloride (CCl(4))-induced acute liver injury. The active constituents were detected by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Mice pretreated orally with SDE (0.5 and 1.0 g/kg) and silymarin (200 mg/kg) for five consecutive days before the administering of a single dose of 0.2% CCl(4) (10 ml/kg of bw, ip) showed a significant inhibition of the increase of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST). Histological analyses also showed that SDE (0.5 and 1.0 g/kg) and silymarin reduced the extent of liver lesions induced by CCl(4), including vacuole formation, neutrophil infiltration and necrosis. Moreover, SDE decreased the malondialdehyde (MDA) level and elevated the content of reduced glutathione (GSH) in the liver as compared to those in the CCl(4) group. Furthermore, SDE (0.5 and 1.0 g/kg) enhanced the activities of anti-oxidative enzymes including superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione reductase (GRd) and glutathione-S-transferase (GST). The quantities of active constituents in SDE were about 3.1 mg luteolin/g extract and 1.1 mg apigenin/g extract. The hepatoprotective mechanisms of SDE were likely associated to the decrease in MDA level and increase in GSH level by increasing the activities of antioxidant enzymes such as SOD, GPx, GRd and GST. These results demonstrated that SDE could alleviate CCl(4)-induced acute liver injury in mice.

Analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities of the methanol extract of Kalanchoe gracilis (L.) DC stem in mice.

In this study, we evaluated the analgesic effect of the methanol extract of Kalanchoe gracilis (MKGS) stem in animal models by inducing writhing response with acetic acid and conducting formalin test. The anti-inflammatory effect of MKGS was also estimated on mice with lambda-carrageenan induced paw edema model. In order to investigate the anti-inflammatory mechanism of MKGS, we analyzed the activities of glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and glutathione reductase (GRx) in the liver, and the levels of interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-alpha), malondialdehyde (MDA) and nitric oxide (NO) in the edema paw tissue. In the analgesic tests, MKGS (0.5 and 1.0 g/kg) decreased both the acetic acid-induced writhing response and the licking time in the late phase of the formalin test. In the anti-inflammatory test, MKGS (0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 g/kg) decreased paw edema at the third, fourth, fifth and sixth hours after lambda-carrageenan had been administrated. Furthermore, MKGS increased the activities of SOD and GRx in liver tissues and decreased MDA level in the edema paws three hours after lambda-carrageenan was injected. MKGS also affected the levels of IL-1beta, TNF-alpha and NO induced by lambda-carrageenan. All these results suggested that MKGS possessed analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. The anti-inflammatory mechanism of MKGS might be related to the lowering of MDA level in the edema paw via increasing the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and GRx in the liver, as well as the decreases in the levels of TNF-alpha and NO, and the production of IL-1beta in inflamed tissues.

Antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of Desmodium triflorum (L.) DC.

This study evaluated the antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of the crude extract and fractions of Desmodium triflorum (L.) DC. The total phenolic content, 1,1-diphenyl-2- picrylhydrazyl hydrate (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity, trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), reducing power, total flavonoid content of D. triflorum were evaluated for the exploration of its antioxidant activities. Furthermore, its antiproliferative activities were investigated through the MTT method. It was compared with the antioxidant capacities of known antioxidants, including catechin, alpha-tocopherol, trolox and ascorbic acid. Among all fractions, ethyl acetate fraction was the most active in scavenging DPPH and TEAC radicals, of which 0.4 mg was equivalent to 186.6 +/- 2.5 microg and 82.5 +/- 2.1 microg of alpha-tocopherol and trolox respectively. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents of the crude extract were equivalent to 36.60 +/- 0.1 mg catechin and 45.6 +/- 0.6 mg rutin per gram respectively. In the reducing power assay, 1.25 mg of crude extract was similar to 61.2 +/- 0.3 microg of ascorbic acid. For the assessment of the safety and toxicity of D. triflorum, LD(50) of the crude extract was greater than 10 g/kg when administered to mice through gastric intubation. The above experimental data indicated that D. triflorum was a potent antioxidant medicinal plant, and such efficacy may be mainly attributed to its polyphenolic compounds.

Analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities of methanol extract from Desmodium triflorum DC in mice.

In this study, we evaluated the analgesic effect of methanol extract from Desmodium triflorum DC (MDT) by using animal models of acetic acid-induced writhing response and formalin test. The anti-inflammatory effect of MDT was investigated by lambda-carrageenan-induced paw edema in mice. In order to study the anti-inflammatory mechanism of MDT, we detected the activities of glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and glutathione reductase (GRd) in the liver, the levels of interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-alpha), malondialdehyde (MDA) and nitric oxide (NO) in the edema paw tissue. In the analgesic test, MDT (0.5 and 1.0 g/kg) decreased the acetic acid-induced writhing response and the licking time on the late phase in the formalin test. In the anti-inflammatory test, MDT (0.5 and 1.0 g/kg) decreased the paw edema at the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th hour after lambda-carrageenan administration. On the other hand, MDT increased the activities of SOD and GRd in liver tissues and decreased the MDA level in the edema paw at the 3rd hour after lambda-carrageenan-induced inflammation. MDT also affected the levels of interleukin-1beta, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, NO and MDA which were induced by lambda-carrageenan. The results suggested that MDT possessed analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. The anti-inflammatory mechanism of MDT might be related to the decreases in the level of MDA in the edema paw via increasing the activities of SOD and GRd in the liver, and the NO level via regulating the IL-1beta production and the level of TNF-alpha in the inflamed tissues.