The role of turmerones on curcumin transportation and P-glycoprotein activities in intestinal Caco-2 cells.

The rhizome of Curcuma longa (turmeric) is often used in Asia as a spice and as a medicine. Its most well-studied component, curcumin, has been shown to exhibit poor bioavailability in animal studies and clinical trials. We hypothesized that the presence of lipophilic components (e.

Immunostimulatory activities of polysaccharide extract isolated from Curcuma longa.

Several curcuminoids and sesquiterpenoids isolated from Curcuma longa (CL) have been shown to have many pharmacological activities. In the present study, the immunomodulatory activities of the polar fractions of CL hot water extracts were investigated using human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). Our results showed that the high polarity fraction of the hot water extract exhibited stimulatory effects on PBMC proliferation as shown in [methyl-(3)H]-thymidine incorporation assay.

Authentication of the anti-tumor herb Baihuasheshecao with bioactive marker compounds and molecular sequences.

Baihuasheshecao (), a Chinese herb for cancer treatment, is frequently adulterated by a related species . DNA sequencing of the complete internal transcribed spacer region was applied to differentiate from and other closely related species. The molecular data showed that four out of seven herb samples of Baihuasheshecao were adulterants.

Antitussive and central respiratory depressant effects of Stemona tuberosa.

Aims Of The Study: Stemona alkaloids with distinctly different chemical skeletons are recently reported as the active components in the antitussive herb Baibu derived from the root-tubers of Stemona tuberosa. This study aims to determine if alkaloids of this herb contribute equally to the antitussive functions, act on the same sites of cough reflex, and play any role in inducing central respiratory depressant effects.

Materials And Methods: Antitussive potency of four major alkaloids was evaluated on guinea pigs with citric acid aerosol to induce cough.

Proteomic characterization of Sophoraflavone J-induced apoptosis in HepG2 cells.

Chinese herb Radix sophorae is widely applied as an anticarcinogenic/antimetastatic agent against liver cancers. In the current study, Sophoraflavone J, a flavonoid constituent enriched in the root of Radix sophorae, induced apoptosis in human hepatoma HepG2 cells via the intrinsic mitochondrial death pathway. The molecular mechanism of the cytotoxic effect was further investigated by a comparative proteomic approach.

Quality evaluation of Radix Stemonae through simultaneous quantification of bioactive alkaloids by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with diode array and evaporative light scattering detectors.

A high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with diode array detection and evaporative light scattering detection (HPLC-DAD-ELSD) method was developed to simultaneously quantify six major bioactive alkaloids belonging to different structure types in Radix Stemonae, Bai-Bu in Chinese, a traditionally used antitussive and insecticidal medicinal material in China and other countries of Southeast Asia. Diode array detector (DAD) with the wavelengths at 307 and 260 nm was used to monitor the conjugated system of protostemonine (2) and maistemonine (4), respectively, whereas evaporative light scattering detector (ELSD) was employed to detect croomine (1), stemoninine (3), neotuberostemonine (5) and tuberostemonine (6), the other four analytes with no or poor chromophores. The assay was validated to be sensitive, precise and accurate, with a detection limit of 3.

Leachianone A as a potential anti-cancer drug by induction of apoptosis in human hepatoma HepG2 cells.

The Chinese herbal medicine Radix Sophorae is widely applied as an anti-carcinogenic/ anti-metastatic agent against liver cancer. In this study, Leachianone A, isolated from Radix Sophorae, possessed a profound cytotoxic activity against human hepatoma cell line HepG2 in vitro, with an IC(50) value of 3.4microg/ml post-48-h treatment.

Lignans from Dysosma versipellis with inhibitory effects on prostate cancer cell lines.

A new monoepoxylignan, dysosmarol (1), along with eight known compounds, podophyllotoxin (2), 4'-demethylpodophyllotoxin (3), deoxypodophyllotoxin (4), 4'-demethyldeoxypodophyllotoxin (5), diphyllin (6), kaempferol, quercetin, and beta-sitosterol, were isolated from the roots of Dysosma versipellis. The structure of 1 was elucidated by spectroscopic methods. Aryltetralin lignans 2-4 showed the most potent inhibitory activities against the growth of androgen-sensitive (LNCaP) and androgen-independent (PC-3) human prostate cancer cell lines, with IC50 values in the ranges 0.

Antitussive effects of Stemona tuberosa with different chemical profiles.

The root tubers of Stemona tuberosa, Stemona japonica and Stemona sessilifolia are recognized by the Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China as authentic sources of the herb Radix Stemonae (Baibu). Careful anatomical analyses of these three species, whose identities were confirmed by flowering and fruiting samples, revealed that the root tubers of Stemona tuberosa could be distinguished from those of the other two species by the presence of scattered fibers in the cortex and pith and by the absence of thickened striations on the surface of velamen cells. HPLC analyses demonstrated that the total alkaloid profiles could be grouped into four types represented as the major component by stenine-type Stemona alkaloids such as tuberostemonine (4) and neotuberostemonine (3), or by non-stenine types such as croomine (1) and stemoninine (2).

Alkaloids and chemical diversity of Stemona tuberosa.

Phytochemical investigation of the chemical components of Stemona tuberosa led to the isolation of two new alkaloids named tuberostemonine K (1) and tuberospironine (2), together with the known tuberostemonine (3). The new structures of 1 and 2 were elucidated through extensive spectroscopic analyses, while the molecular structure of 3 was confirmed by X-ray analysis. A gradient reversed-phase HPLC-ELSD method was established for the investigation of the chemical diversity of S.

Analyses of Stemona alkaloids in Stemona tuberosa by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry.

Alkaloid profiles in Stemona tuberosa were found to be highly variable. Six Stemona alkaloids isolated from the plant were subjected to on-line high-performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HPLC/ESI-MS) and tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) analyses. Their fragmentation patterns and products were useful for their characterization.

Pheophorbide a, a major antitumor component purified from Scutellaria barbata, induces apoptosis in human hepatocellular carcinoma cells.

Scutellaria barbata has long been used as a Chinese medicine for the treatment of liver diseases such as hepatitis and hepatocellular carcinoma. In the present study, a bioassay-guided method was used to isolate the most active components from Scutellaria barbata. The anti-proliferative effects on human hepatoma HepG2 and Hep3B cells of each fraction at every stage of the purification were monitored.

Isolation and chemotaxonomic significance of tuberostemospironine-type alkaloids from Stemona tuberosa.

An alkaloid named 6alpha-hydroxycroomine (1) as well as the known croomine (2), both belonging to the tuberostemospironine-alkaloid type, were isolated from Stemona tuberosa as the major components. The structure of 1 was elucidated through extensive spectroscopic analyses. Comparison of the HPLC profiles of the total alkaloids and the crude methanol extract showed that both compounds are naturally occurring.

Chemistry and biological activities of caffeic acid derivatives from Salvia miltiorrhiza.

Caffeic acid (3,4-dihydroxycinnamic acid), one of the most common phenolic acids, frequently occurs in fruits, grains and dietary supplements for human consumption as simple esters with quinic acid or saccharides, and are also found in traditional Chinese herbs. Caffeic acid derivatives occur as major water-soluble components of Salvia miltiorrhiza, including caffeic acid monomers and a wide variety of oligomers. This review provides up-to-date coverage of this class of phenolic acids in regard to structural classification, natural resources, chemical and biosyntheses, analytical methods and biological activities including antioxidant, anti-ischemia reperfusion, anti-thrombosis, anti-hypertension, anti-fibrosis, antivirus and antitumor properties.

Antitussive activity of Stemona alkaloids from Stemona tuberosa.

Bioactivity-directed fractionation of the crude extract of Stemona tuberosa led to the isolation and characterization of four new stenine-type Stemona alkaloids, namely tuberostemonine J ( 2), tuberostemonine H ( 3), epi-bisdehydrotuberostemonine J ( 4) and neostenine ( 5), together with the known neotuberostemonine ( 1). These five isolated alkaloids were examined for antitussive activity in guinea pig after cough induction by citric acid aerosol stimulation. In this report, we demonstrated, for the first time, that compounds 1 and 5 showed significant antitussive activities.