Identification of geranic acid, a tyrosinase inhibitor in lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus).

Lemongrass is a popular Asian herb having a lemon-like flavor. Very recently, potent tyrosinase inhibitory activity has been found in lemongrass in addition to various biological activities reported in the literature. The aim of the present study is to identify the active compounds in the lemongrass.

Tyrosinase inhibitory activity of ethanol extracts from medicinal and edible plants cultivated in okinawa and identification of a water-soluble inhibitor from the leaves of Nandina domestica.

The tyrosinase inhibitory activity of the extracts of 53 parts of 36 plant species cultivated for edible and medicinal use in Okinawa was investigated. The extract of Nandina domestica showed potent activity among these. The inhibitor in the extract was purified by assay-guided fractionation to give a simple phenol glucoside.

Anti-inflammatory and potential cancer chemopreventive constituents of the fruits of Morinda citrifolia (Noni).

A new anthraquinone, 1,5,15-tri-O-methylmorindol (1), and two new saccharide fatty acid esters, 2-O-(beta-D-glucopyranosyl)-1-O-hexanoyl-beta-D-gluropyranose (4) and 2-O-(beta-D-glucopyranosyl)-1-O-octanoyl-beta-D-gluropyranose (5), have been isolated from a methanol extract of the fruits of Morinda citrifolia (noni) along with 10 known compounds, namely, two anthraquinones (2, 3), six saccharide fatty acid esters (6-11), an iridoid glycoside (12), and a flavanol glycoside (13). Upon evaluation of six compounds (5-7, 9, 10, and 13) for inhibitory activity against 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-induced inflammation (1 microg/ear) in mice, four saccharide fatty acid esters, 5-7 and 9, exhibited potent anti-inflammatory activity, with ID50 values of 0.46-0.

Cytotoxic screening of medicinal and edible plants in Okinawa, Japan, and identification of the main toxic constituent of Rhodea japonica (Omoto).

The cytotoxic activity of ethanol extracts from 53 parts of 36 species of medicinal and edible plants cultivated in Okinawa was measured by using K562 human leukemia cells by a flow cytometric method. Two extracts from Rhodea japonica and Hypericum chinense were cytotoxic at a concentration of 10 microg/ml. The main cytotoxic constituent of Rhodea japonica was isolated and identified to be rhodexin A, which has been isolated as a cardetonic agent of the plant.

Simple detection method of powerful antiradical compounds in the raw extract of plants and its application for the identification of antiradical plant constituents.

A simple detection method for a powerful radical scavenging compound in a mixture containing a large variety of compounds, such as the raw extract of edible plants, was developed using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) as the radical reagent. The method was established on the basis of the features of the typical chain-breaking antioxidation reaction mechanism, which suggests that the radical scavenging antioxidant should be converted to other stable nonradical compounds during the reaction. This method requires only a simple HPLC instrument, and the disappearance or decrease in the peak intensity, which is induced by the addition of DPPH.