ABSTRACT
Lavandula L. genus plants have always been relevant as medicines for various purposes in food, medicine, pharmaceuticals, cosmetology and aromology. Ukraine is a new territory in the mass plant cultivation and lavender essential oil production. Therefore, the issue of integrated use of herbal raw materials and their intended use is still relevant. For the first time, ten samples of Lavendula angustifolia herb from 5 growing regions of Ukraine were studied for the composition and content of polyphenols and terpenoids using HPLC and HPTLC methods, respectively, to assess the prospects and quality of herbal raw materials. The results obtained showed that L. angustifolia herb has pronounced antioxidant activity due to the high content of phenolic compounds, namely hyperoside (5.665-11.629â mg/g), vanillic acid (5.986-11.196â mg/g), rosmarinic acid (0.211 to 1.488â mg/g), caffeic acid (0.369-3.835â mg/g), chlorogenic acid (0.239-4.619â mg/g), genistein-7-O-glucoside, as well as due to the presence of linalool and linalyl acetate, which was confirmed by qualitative analysis. The total antioxidant activity was the highest in samples from Lviv Botanical Garden (0.293 Trolox mg/mL), Kyiv OLawander (0.288 Trolox mg/mL), Kharkiv Bohodukhiv (0.270 Trolox mg/mL) which is due to the qualitative composition of phenolic compounds. At the same time, the most intense zones of terpenoids in lavender herb were noted for images from Kharkiv region Lebiazhe and Kitchenkivka villiges. Cluster analysis showed priority in the selection of marker compounds (vanillic acid, hyperoside, chlorogenic acid, rosmarinic acid) for lavender herb based on their quantitative content in the samples. In the future, lavender herb from Ukraine can be considered as a promising raw material with neuroprotective properties as part of its complex use, as research continues.
ABSTRACT
The anti-aging effects of alpha-lipoic acid (αLA), a natural antioxidant synthesized in human tissues, have attracted a growing interest in recent years. αLA is a short- -chain sulfur-containing fatty acid occurring in the mitochondria of all kinds of eukaryotic cells. Both the oxidized disulfide of αLA and its reduced form (dihydrolipoic acid, DHLA) exhibit prominent antioxidant function. The amount of αLA inside the human body gradually decreases with age resulting in various health disorders. Its lack can be compensated by supplying from external sources such as dietary supplements or medicinal dosage forms. The primary objectives of this study were the analysis of updated information on the latest two-decade research regarding the use of αLA from an anti-aging perspective. The information was collected from PubMed, Wiley Online Library, Scopus, ScienceDirect, SpringerLink, Google Scholar, and clinicaltrials.gov. Numerous in silico, in vitro, in vivo, and clinical studies revealed that αLA shows a protective role in biological systems by direct or indirect reactive oxygen/nitrogen species quenching. αLA demonstrated beneficial properties in the prevention and treatment of many age-related disorders such as neurodegeneration, metabolic disorders, different cancers, nephropathy, infertility, and skin senescence. Its preventive effects in case of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases are of particular interest. Further mechanistic and clinical studies are highly recommended to evaluate the wide spectrum of αLA therapeutic potential that could optimize its dietary intake for prevention and alleviation disorders related to aging.
ABSTRACT
Neuroinflammation plays an important role in the pathogenesis of epilepsy, so it is necessary to clarify the influence of standard antiepileptic drugs as well as adjuvant agents (e.g., cardiac glycoside digoxin, which previously showed a clear anticonvulsant potential) on cyclooxygenase pathway and neuron-specific enolase under the conditions of chronic epileptogenesis. The aim of the article is to determine the effect of digoxin, sodium valproate, and celecoxib per se, as well as the combination of digoxin with sodium valproate on the content of cyclooxygenase 1 and 2 types, prostaglandins E2, F2α, I2, thromboxane B2, 8-isoprostane and neuron-specific enolase in the brain of mice in the pentylenetetrazole-induced kindling model. It was found that only the combination of sodium valproate with digoxin provides a complete protective effect (absence of seizures) and shows the clearest influence on neuroinflammation markers and neuronal damage than monotherapy with each of these drugs and celecoxib, which appeared to be an ineffective anticonvulsant. The obtained results indicate that digoxin is a promising adjuvant drug to classical antiepileptic drugs (mostly sodium valproate) in epilepsy treatment.c.
Subject(s)
Epilepsy , Valproic Acid , Rats , Mice , Animals , Valproic Acid/pharmacology , Valproic Acid/therapeutic use , Anticonvulsants/pharmacology , Anticonvulsants/therapeutic use , Pentylenetetrazole/pharmacology , Pentylenetetrazole/therapeutic use , Celecoxib/pharmacology , Celecoxib/therapeutic use , Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthases/therapeutic use , Digoxin/therapeutic use , Neuroinflammatory Diseases , Rats, Wistar , Epilepsy/chemically induced , Epilepsy/drug therapy , Phosphopyruvate Hydratase/therapeutic useABSTRACT
Crocus sativus L. (saffron) has been traditionally used as a food coloring or flavoring agent, but recent research has shown its potent pharmacological activity to tackle several health-related conditions. Crocus sp. leaves, and petals are the by-products of saffron production and are not usually used in the medicine or food industries. The present study was designed to determine the chemical composition of the water and ethanolic extracts of C. sativus leaves and test their cytotoxic activity against melanoma (IGR39) and triple-negative breast cancer (MDA-MB-231) cell lines by MTT assay. We also determined their anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-viral activities. HPLC fingerprint analysis showed the presence of 16 compounds, including hydroxycinnamic acids, xanthones, flavonoids, and isoflavonoids, which could contribute to the extracts' biological activities. For the first time, compounds such as tectoridin, iristectorigenin B, nigricin, and irigenin were identified in Crocus leaf extracts. The results showed that mangiferin (up to 2 mg/g dry weight) and isoorientin (8.5 mg/g dry weight) were the major active ingredients in the leaf extracts. The ethanolic extract reduced the viability of IGR39 and MDA-MB-231 cancer cells with EC50 = 410 ± 100 and 330 ± 40 µg/mL, respectively. It was more active than the aqueous extract. Kaempferol and quercetin were identified as the most active compounds. Our results showed that Crocus leaves contain secondary metabolites with potent cytotoxic and antioxidant activities.