beta-carboline alkaloids are found in several medicinal plants and display a variety of actions on the central nervous, muscular and cardiovascular systems. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of systemic administration of beta-carboline alkaloids on object recognition in mice. Adult Swiss mice received an intra-peritoneal injection (i.p.) of alkaloids (1.0, 2.5 or 5.0 mg/kg) 30 min before training in an object recognition task. The fully aromatic beta-carbolines, harmine and harmol, induced an enhancement of short-term memory (STM) at all doses tested when compared to controls. Harmaline, a dihydro beta-carboline and inverse agonist of the MK-801 binding site on the N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor, also induced an enhancement of both short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM). These results demonstrate that systemic administration of beta-carboline alkaloids can improve object recognition memory in mice.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lfs.2006.07.004 | DOI Listing |
Bioorg Med Chem Lett
January 2025
School of Chinese Materia Medica, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488 China. Electronic address:
Harmaline as a natural compound possessed a wide range of pharmacological activities. In this study, 22 novel harmaline-based derivatives were synthesized and screened for in vitro anti-proliferation activity against three cancer cell lines, HCT116, MCF7, and MGC803. The modification site was at the position N-9 of harmaline.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Neuropsychopharmacol
January 2025
Department of Adult Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric University Clinic Zurich and University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Background: Recent interest in the clinical use of psychedelics has highlighted plant-derived medicines like ayahuasca showing rapid-acting and sustainable therapeutic effects in various psychiatric conditions. This traditional Amazonian plant decoction contains N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and β-carboline alkaloids such as harmine. However, its use is often accompanied by distressing effects like nausea, vomiting, and intense hallucinations, possibly due to complex pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK-PD) interactions and lack of dose standardization.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMolecules
December 2024
Faculty of Pharmacy and Biochemistry, University of Zagreb, A. Kovačića 1, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia.
As the resistance of to the existing antimalarials increases, there is a crucial need to expand the antimalarial drug pipeline. We recently identified potent antimalarial compounds, namely harmiquins, hybrids derived from the β-carboline alkaloid harmine and 4-amino-7-chloroquinoline, a key structural motif of chloroquine (CQ). To further explore the structure-activity relationship, we synthesised 13 novel hybrid compounds at the position -9 of the β-carboline ring and evaluated their efficacy in vitro against 3D7 and Dd2 strains (CQ sensitive and multi-drug resistant, respectively).
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December 2024
Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Taizhou University, Taizhou 318000, China.
A comprehensive phytochemical investigation of the twigs/leaves and flower buds of , a rare deciduous shrub native to China, led to the isolation of 39 structurally diverse compounds. These compounds include 11 iridoid glycosides (- and -), 20 triterpenoids (, , and -), and 8 phenylpropanoids (-). Among these, amabiliosides A () and B () represent previously undescribed bis-iridoid glycosides, while amabiliosides C () and D () feature a unique bis-iridoid-monoterpenoid indole alkaloid scaffold with a tetrahydro--carboline-5-carboxylic acid moiety.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur J Pharmacol
February 2025
School of Pharmaceutical Science, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510006, China. Electronic address:
Stroke is a serious condition with sudden onset, high severity, and significant rates of mortality and disability, ranking as the second leading cause of death globally at 11.6%. Hemorrhagic stroke, characterized by non-traumatic rupture of cerebral vessels, can cause secondary brain injury such as neurotoxicity, inflammation, reactive oxygen species, and blood-brain barrier (BBB) damage.
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