Anti-Helicobacter pylori activity of the methanolic extract of Geum iranicum and its main compounds.

Geum iranicum Khatamsaz, belonging to the Rosaceae family, is an endemic plant of Iran. The methanol extract of the roots of this plant showed significant activity against one of the clinical isolates of Helicobacter pylori which was resistant to metronidazole. The aim of this study was the isolation and evaluation of the major compounds of G. iranicum effective against H. pylori. The compounds were isolated using various chromatographic methods and identified by spectroscopic data (1H and 13C NMR, HMQC, HMBC, EI-MS). An antimicrobial susceptibility test was performed employing the disk diffusion method against clinical isolates of H. pylori and a micro dilution method against several Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria; additionally the inhibition zone diameters (IZD) and minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) values were recorded. Nine compounds were isolated: two triterpenoids, uvaol and niga-ichigoside F1, three sterols, beta-sitosterol, beta-sitosteryl acetate, and beta-sitosteryl linoleate, one phenyl propanoid, eugenol, one phenolic glycoside, gein, one flavanol, (+)-catechin, and sucrose. The aqueous fraction, obtained by partitioning the MeOH extract with water and chloroform, was the most effective fraction of the extract against all clinical isolates of H. pylori. Further investigation of the isolated compounds showed that eugenol was effective against H. pylori but gein, diglycosidic eugenol, did not exhibit any activity against H. pylori. The subfraction D4 was the effective fraction which contained tannins. It appeared that tannins were probably the active compounds responsible for the anti-H. pylori activity of G. iranicum. The aqueous fraction showed a moderate inhibitory activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The MIC values indicated that Gram-positive bacteria including Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Bacillus subtilis are more susceptible than Gram-neagative bacteria including Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Flavonoids, cinnamic acid and phenyl propanoid from aerial parts of Scrophularia striata.

No phytochemical investigation regarding Scrophularia striata Boiss. (Scrophulariaceae) has been performed, although several reports about other Scrophularia species have been published. The inhibitory effects of aerial parts of S. striata on matrix metalloproteinase expression elaborate a new approach to treat variety of malignant and inflammatory disorders. Five known compounds, including cinnamic acid, three flavonoids (quercetine, isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside and nepitrin) and one phenyl propanoid glycoside (acteoside 1) were isolated from S. striata Boiss. by chromatographic techniques and the structures of compounds were characterized by spectroscopic methods. This is the first report regarding the isolation of these compounds from S. striata.

A TLC bioautographic assay for the detection of nitrofurantoin resistance reversal compound.

A simple TLC bioautographic method was developed for detection of antibiotic resistance reversal agents. In this study, the retention factor values of the components of some essential oils not previously shown to have any antibacterial activity were evaluated on nitrofurantoin supplemented agar media. The active component of Artemisia annua, Artemisia dracunculus and Eucalyptus globulus essential oils was piperitone which increased the antibacterial activity of nitrofurantoin against Enterobacter cloacae. Piperitone was not detected in the essential oil of Humulus lupulus and we could not observe any clear areas in this bioautographic method.

Antimicrobial activity and main chemical composition of two smoke condensates from Peganum harmala seeds.

The smoke of Peganum harmala seeds is traditionally used in Iran as a disinfectant agent. The aim of this study was to determine the antimicrobial activity of two smoke condensates from Peganum harmala seeds. Furthermore the composition of smoke preparations was studied using gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy analysis. The most prevalent compound detected in a dichloromethane extract was harmine. Standard harmine as well as the dichloromethane extract showed antimicrobial activity against all test strains. Harmine was not detected in an n-hexane extract and we did not observe antimicrobial activity from this smoke preparation at the tested concentrations.

Neuroprotective Effect of Total and Sequential Extract of Scrophularia striata Boiss. in Rat Cerebellar Granule Neurons Following Glutamate- Induced Neurotoxicity: An In-vitro Study.

Neuroprotective effect of the extract from aerial parts of Scrophularia striata Boiss (Scrophulariaceae) was investigated against glutamate-induced neurotoxicity on cultured rat pups Cerebellar Granule Neurons (CGNs). CGNs from 8 days old Sprague-Dawley rat were prepared and cultured. The experiments were performed after 8 days in culture. The plant was collected from the northeastern part (Ruin region) of Iran and air-dried at room temperature. The total extract was prepared with maceration of prepared powder in ethanol 80% for three times. SEQUENTIAL EXTRACTS WERE OBTAINED USING DRIED AND POWDERED AERIAL PARTS WITH INCREASINGLY POLAR SOLVENTS: petroleum ether, chloroform, ethyl acetate and methanol 80% solution. Cultured cells were exposed to 125 µM of glutamate for 12 h following a 24 h of incubation with test fractions at concentration of 10 mcg/mL. Morphological assay was performed using invert light microscope after fixation and staining with haematoxylin. Neuronal viability was measured using MTT assay. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS software. One way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed by Tukey post-hoc test. Values were considered statistically significant when p-value ≤ 0.05. Results of this study showed a significant neuroprotective activity of high polarity methanolic fraction of aerial parts of Scrophularia striata against glutamate-induced neurotoxicity in a dosedependent manner. Treatment with 10 mcg/mL of the fractions showed the best result.

Evaluation of systemic administration of Boswellia papyrifera extracts on spatial memory retention in male rats.

Time-dependent effects of ethanolic extract of Boswellia papyrifera, administered systemically, on spatial memory retention in the Morris water maze were investigated in male rats. A total extract of Boswellia papyrifera (300 mg/kg) was administered every eight hours to three groups of rats by gavage for 1, 2 and 4 weeks. In a separate set of experiments, three doses of a fraction of the extract, called the boswellic acids (100, 200 and 300 mg/kg) were administered by gavage to three groups of rats three times a day for 2 weeks. Following these applications, animals were trained for 4 days. Behavioral testing for evaluation of spatial memory retention was performed 48 h after completion of training. Boswellia papyrifera extracts and boswellic acids caused a significant reduction in escape latency and distance traveled but had no influence on swimming speed. These findings provide evidence that Boswellia papyrifera extracts affect spatial memory retention irrespective of the treatment period. In addition our data show that systemic administration of the boswellic acids fraction enhanced spatial memory retention in a dose-dependent manner. These improving effects may be due to some extent to the interactions of these products with inflammatory mediators, neurotransmitter signaling cascades or protein kinase pathways in the brain.

Inhibitory effect of aerial parts of Scrophularia striata on matrix metalloproteinases expression.

It has been shown that destruction of the extracellular matrix (ECM) by matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) leads to tumor invasion, metastasis and angiogenesis. The aim of the present research was to verify the effects of a total extract and sequential extracts of Scrophularia striata Boiss (Scrophulariaceae) on MMPs activity. The fibro sarcoma cell line (wehi-164) was used to assess MMPs inhibitory effect. The MMPs activity was evaluated using a zymoanalysis method. The results of this study showed that the highest MMPs inhibitory effect (55.6%) was observed after treatment with 10 microg/mL of the high polarity methanol solution extract corresponding to its lowest cytotoxicity effect (4%). It is concluded that the aerial parts of S. striata might contain various polar compounds that inhibit MMPs.