Uleine Disrupts Key Enzymatic and Non-Enzymatic Biomarkers that Leads to Alzheimer's Disease.

BACKGROUND: Alzheimer´s disease, a progressive and degenerative disorder of the brain, is the most common cause of dementia among the elderly. To face its multifactorial nature, the use of single compounds that can simultaneously modulate different targets involved in the neurodegenerative cascade has emerged as an interesting therapeutic approach. OBJECTIVE: This work investigated the ability of uleine, the major indole alkaloid purified from stem barks of the Brazilian medicinal plant Himatanthus lancifolius, to interact with crucial Alzheimer´s disease disruptive targets associated with two of its major neurodegenerative pathways: acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase (cholinergic pathway) and ß-secretase and ß-amyloid peptide (amyloidogenic pathway). METHODS: Uleine's capacity to inhibit human acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase enzymes was determined measuring the difference between reaction rates with and without uleine monitored at 412 nm using 5,5'- dithiobis-(2- nitrobenzoic acid) as colorimetric agent. FRET based assay was used to evaluate ß-secretase inhibition using DABCYL- Ser-Glu-Val-Asn-Leu-Asp-Ala-Glu-Phe-EDANS as substrate and ß-amyloid peptide spontaneous aggregation assay was performed using the thioflavin T spectroscopy assay. Cell viability and toxicity experiments with PC12 and SH-SY5Y cell lines were performed using the MTT colorimetric assay. RESULTS: Uleine demonstrated strong inhibitory activities for both cholinesterases (IC50 279.0±4.5 and 24.0±1.5 µM, respectively) and ß-secretase (IC50 180±22 nM). Above all, uleine significantly inhibited the self-aggregation of amyloid- ß peptide and was not toxic for PC12 or SH-SY5Y neuronal cells. CONCLUSION: These data show for the first time that the natural compound uleine has a novel, multieffective ability to decelerate or even inhibit the development of Alzheimer´s disease.

Cytotoxicity and apoptogenic effects of Lafoensia pacari.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: The stem barks of Lafoensia pacari have been traditionally used not only by South Amerindians but also by Brazilian and Paraguayan populations for treating a variety of unhealthy conditions to which their biological potential has been scientifically documented in several reports over the last decade. Although its anticancer usage is also popular, no scientific support for such activity has been found. AIM: To provide scientific evidence for the anticancer popularity of Lafoensia pacari. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Extracts prepared according to the popular use along with a methanol extract and its four fractions were produced from Lafoensia pacari stem barks. The chromatogram profile of each one was obtained by HPLC. Several tumor cell lines were exposed to these solutions in in vitro assays and the effects evaluated by morphological, growth, and cell cycle status changes. RESULTS: High toxicity determined by the lactate dehydrogenase levels with a significant drop in the cell proliferation index were found for all cell lines included in this study after exposition to Lafoensia pacari extract and fractions. The morphological features along with the expression of annexin V have strongly suggested apoptosis induction, which has been confirmed by G0/G1 cell cycle arrest. CONCLUSIONS: The data have clearly shown that exposition of human tumor cell lines to Lafoensia pacari stem barks extract leads to apoptosis induction due to cell cycle arrest in G0/G1 phases, supporting its anticancer use.

Effects of Himatanthus lancifolius on human leukocyte chemotaxis and their adhesion to integrins.

The aim of this work was to investigate the anti-inflammatory activities of the uleine-rich fraction extracted from the barks of Himatanthus lancifolius (Muell. Arg.) Woodson (Apocynaceae). To achieve this, we focused on its in vitro effects on some steps of the inflammatory response using peripheral human leukocytes. The results presented herein show that the uleine-rich fraction significantly inhibits the migration of casein-induced granulocytes and their adhesion to fibronectin and vitronectin, along with mononuclear cells, by down-regulating the expression of alpha 4beta1 and alpha5beta1 integrins. The data suggest that H. LANCIFOLIUS has the potential of interferring with leukocyte trafficking through its uleine-rich fraction, emphasizing its usefulness in inflammatory conditions. DEXA:dexamethasone disodium phosphate FN:fibronectin PMN:polymorphonuclear URF:uleine-rich fraction VN:vitronectin.

Gastroprotective mechanisms of indole alkaloids from Himatanthus lancifolius.

The indole alkaloids mixture (AlkF) obtained from the barks of Himatanthus lancifolius (Muell. Arg.) Woodson was evaluated for gastroprotective properties in rodents. The AlkF potently protected rats from experimentally induced gastric lesions by ethanol (ED (50) = 30 mg/kg, p. o.) and reduced gastric acid hypersecretion induced by pylorus ligature (ED (50) = 82 mg/kg, i. d.). Protective effects of the AlkF in the ethanol and hypersecretion models included increase of GSH levels of gastric mucosa indicating activation of GSH-dependent cytoprotective mechanisms. Also, an increase of the antioxidant capacity as measured through glutathione S-transferase activity was observed in the hypersecretory but not in the ulcerative model. Furthermore, the amount of nitric oxide derivatives (NO (3) + NO (2)) in the forestomach was increased while the amount released into the gastric juice during pylorus ligature was decreased by the AlkF suggesting an alteration of NO-related mechanisms. Reduction of gastric acid hypersecretion induced by pylorus ligature seems to correlate with the blockade of H (+),K (+)-ATPase activity as determined in vitro by the capacity of the AlkF mix to decrease the hydrolysis of ATP by the ATPase isolated from dog gastric mucosa (EC (50) = 212 microg/mL). Cholinergic mechanisms can be excluded since intestinal transit was not modified with doses up to 100 mg/kg ( p. o.). GC-MS investigation of components of the AlkF resulted in the identification of 3 main indole alkaloids, uleine (53 %), its isomer (13 %), demethoxyaspidormine (23.8 %) and traces of at least other five alkaloids. Collectively, the results show the novel gastroprotective properties of the indole AlkF of H. lancifolius through a variety of mechanisms.

Involvement of nitric oxide in the gastroprotective effects of an aqueous extract of Pfaffia glomerata (Spreng) Pedersen, Amaranthaceae, in rats.

The plants belonging to Pfaffia genus are used in folk medicine to treat gastric disturbances. This study examined the effects of an aqueous extract of Pfaffia glomerata (Spreng) Pedersen (AEP) on the gastrointestinal tract. Wistar rats were pretreated orally (p.o.) with the AEP (125, 250, 500 and 1000 mg.kg(-1)) before induction of ulcers by hypothermic restraint stress (HRS, 3 h restraint stress at 4 degrees C), ethanol (ET, 70%; 0.5 ml/animal; p.o.) or indomethacin (IND, 20 mg.kg(-1); s.c.). Control animals received water (C) or ranitidine (60 mg.kg(-1)) p.o. The AEP protected rats against HRS and ET-induced ulcers, but was not able to protect the gastric mucosa against IND-induced ulcers. When injected into the duodenal lumen, the AEP reduced total acidity and both basal and histamine-stimulated acid secretion in pylorus-ligated rats. In addition, gastric secretion from AEP-treated animals exhibited increased concentrations of nitrite and nitrate. Treatment of animals with L-NAME (120 mg.kg(-1), p.o.) prevented both the reduction of total acidity and the increase in NOx levels promoted by AEP treatment. In conclusion, AEP effectively protected the gastric mucosa and inhibited gastric acid secretion in rats, probably by involving the histaminergic pathway and an enhanced production of nitric oxide in the stomach.