Water extracts of Brassica oleracea var. costata potentiate paraquat toxicity to rat hepatocytes in vitro.

Tronchuda cabbage extracts have been proven to have antioxidant potential against various oxidative species in cell free systems, though its antioxidant potential in cellular models remained to be demonstrated. In the present study, we used primary cultures of rat hepatocytes for the cellular assay system and paraquat PQ exposure as a pro-oxidant model agent, to test whether tronchuda cabbage hydrolysed water extracts provide protective or aggravating effects towards PQ-induced oxidative stress and cell death. For this purpose cellular parameters related to oxidative stress were measured, namely the generation of superoxide anion, glutathione oxidation, lipid peroxidation, intracellular ATP levels, activation of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB), activity of antioxidant enzymes, and cell death. The obtained results demonstrated that the studied hydrolysed water extracts of tronchuda cabbage, especially rich in kaempferol (84%) and other polyphenols, namely hydroxycinnamic acids and traces of quercetin, can potentiate the toxicity of PQ in primary cultures of rat hepatocytes. These results highlight that prospective antioxidant effects of plant extracts, observed in vitro, using non-cellular systems, are not always confirmed in cellular models, in which the concentrations required to scavenge pro-oxidant species may be highly detrimental to the cells.

Hydroxyl radical and hypochlorous acid scavenging activity of small centaury (Centaurium erythraea) infusion. A comparative study with green tea (Camellia sinensis).

Small centaury (Centaurium erythraea Rafin.) is a herbal species with a long use in traditional medicine due to its digestive, stomachic, tonic, depurative, sedative and antipyretic properties. This species is reported to contain considerable amounts of polyphenolic compounds, namely xanthones and phenolic acids as the main constituents. Although the antiradicalar activity of some pure polyphenolic compounds is already known, it remains unclear how a complex mixture obtained from plant extracts functions against reactive oxygen species. Thus, the ability of small centaury infusion to act as a scavenger of the reactive oxygen species hydroxyl radical and hypochlorous acid was studied and compared with that of green tea (Camellia sinensis L.). Hydroxyl radical was generated in the presence of Fe3+-EDTA, ascorbate and H2O2 (Fenton system) and monitored by evaluating hydroxyl radical-induced deoxyribose degradation. The reactivity towards hypochlorous acid was determined by measuring the inhibition of hypochlorous acid-induced 5-thio-2-nitrobenzoic acid oxidation to 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid). The obtained results demonstrate that small centaury infusion exhibits interesting antioxidant properties, expressed both by its capacity to effectively scavenge hydroxyl radical and hypochlorous acid, although with a lower activity against the second than that observed for green tea. Green tea exhibited a dual effect at the hydroxyl radical scavenging assay, stimulating deoxyribose degradation at lower dosages.

Antioxidant activity of Centaurium erythraea infusion evidenced by its superoxide radical scavenging and xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity.

Centaurium erythraea Rafin. (Gentianaceae) has long been used in traditional medicine. This plant contains considerable amounts of polyphenolic compounds, namely, xanthones and phenolic acids as the main constituents. Because phenolic groups exhibit activity as radical scavengers and/or metal chelators, this study evaluated the superoxide radical scavenging properties of a lyophilized infusion obtained from C. erythraea flowering tops. Superoxide radical scavenging activity was assayed using enzymatic (xanthine/xanthine oxidase) and nonenzymatic (NADH/phenazine methosulfate) superoxide generating systems. This study provided evidence that C. erythraea exhibits interesting antioxidant properties, expressed either by the capacity to scavenge superoxide radical or to noncompetitively inhibit xanthine oxidase. The main phenolic compounds present in this extract were several esters of hydroxycinnamic acids, namely, p-coumaric, ferulic, and sinapic acids.

Analysis of vervain flavonoids by HPLC/Diode array detector method. Its application to quality control.

A reversed-phase HPLC procedure is proposed for the determination of seven flavonoids (luteolin, nepetin, hispidulin, jaceosidin, cirsimaritin, cirsilineol, and eupatorin) in vervain samples. A simple extractive technique was developed, involving only extraction with ethyl ether, which allowed the elimination of phenolic acids, yielding a sufficiently purified flavonoid fraction. All of the analyzed vervain samples showed a common flavonoid pattern, in which hispidulin and jaceosidin were the major compounds and nepetin was the minor compound.