The genus Silene is renowned in Turkey for its traditional use as food and medicine. Currently, there are 138 species of Silene in Turkey, amongst which have been several studies for possible pharmacological potential and application in food industry. However, there is currently a paucity of data on Silene salsuginea Hub.-Mor. This study endeavours to access its antioxidant, enzyme inhibitory, and anti-inflammatory properties. Besides, reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector (RP-HPLC-DAD) was used to detect phenolic compounds, and molecular docking was performed to provide new insights for tested enzymes and phenolics. High amounts of apigenin (534 μg/g extract), ferulic acid (452 μg/g extract), p-coumaric acid (408 μg/g extract), and quercetin (336 μg/g extract) were detected in the methanol extract while rutin (506 μg/g extract) was most abundant in the aqueous extract. As for their biological properties, the methanol extract exhibited the best antioxidant effect in the DPPH and CUPRAC assays, and also the highest inhibition against tyrosinase. The aqueous extract was the least active enzyme inhibitor but showed the highest antioxidant efficacy in the ABTS, FRAP, and metal chelating assays. At a concentration of 15.6 μg/mL, the methanol extract resulted in a moderate decrease (25.1%) of NO production in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated cells. Among the phenolic compounds, epicatechin, (+)-catechin, and kaempferol showed the highest binding affinity towards the studied enzymes in silico. It can be concluded that extracts of S. salsuginea are a potential source of functional food ingredients but need further analytical experiments to explore its complexity of chemical compounds and pharmacological properties as well as using in vivo toxicity models to establish its maximum tolerated dose.
1. Nitric oxide (NO) is formed enzymatically from l-arginine in the presence of nitric oxide synthase (NOS). Nitric oxide is generated constitutively in endothelial cells via sheer stress and blood-borne substances. Nitric oxide is also generated constitutively in neuronal cells and serves as a neurotransmitter and neuromodulator in non-adrenergic, non-cholinergic nerve endings. Furthermore, NO can also be formed via enzyme induction in many tissues in the presence of cytokines. 2. The ubiquitous presence of NO in the living body suggests that NO plays an important role in the maintenance of health. Being a free radical with vasodilatory properties, NO exerts dual effects on tissues and cells in various biological systems. At low concentrations, NO can dilate the blood vessels and improve the circulation, but at high concentrations it can cause circulatory shock and induce cell death. Thus, diseases can arise in the presence of the extreme ends of the physiological concentrations of NO. 3. The NO signalling pathway has, in recent years, become a target for new drug development. The high level of flavonoids, catechins, tannins and other polyphenolic compounds present in vegetables, fruits, soy, tea and even red wine (from grapes) is believed to contribute to their beneficial health effects. Some of these compounds induce NO formation from the endothelial cells to improve circulation and some suppress the induction of inducible NOS in inflammation and infection. 4. Many botanical medicinal herbs and drugs derived from these herbs have been shown to have effects on the NO signalling pathway. For example, the saponins from ginseng, ginsenosides, have been shown to relax blood vessels (probably contributing to the antifatigue and blood pressure-lowering effects of ginseng) and corpus cavernosum (thus, for the treatment of men suffering from erectile dysfunction; however, the legendary aphrodisiac effect of ginseng may be an overstatement). Many plant extracts or purified drugs derived from Chinese medicinal herbs with proposed actions on NO pathways are also reviewed.
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is the main risk factor for developing colorectal cancer which is common in patients of all ages. 5-Aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA), structurally related to the salicylates, is highly active in the treatment of IBD with minor side effects. In this study, the synthesis of galactose and fructose esters of 5-ASA was planned to evaluate the role of glycoconjugation on the bioactivity of the parent drug. The antibacterial activity of the new compounds were evaluated against two Gram-negative and two Gram-positive species of bacteria, with a notable effect observed against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli in comparisons with the 5-ASA. Cytotoxicity testing over HT-29 and 3T3 cell lines indicated that the toxicity of the new products against normal cells was significantly reduced compared with the original drug, whereas their activity against cancerous cells was slightly decreased. The anti-inflammatory activity test in RAW264.7 macrophage cells indicated that the inhibition of nitric oxide by both of the monosaccharide conjugated derivatives was slightly improved in comparison with the non-conjugated drug.
Benzothiazole and its natural or synthetic derivatives have been used as precursors for several pharmacological agents for neuroprotective, anti-bacterial, and anti-allergic activities. The objective of the present study was to evaluate effects of benzothiazole analogs (compounds 1-26) for their immunomodulatory activities. Eight compounds (2, 4, 5, 8-10, 12, and 18) showed potent inhibitory activity on PHA-activated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) with IC50 ranging from 3.7 to 11.9 μM compared to that of the standard drug, prednisolone <1.5 μM. Some compounds (2, 4, 8, and 18) were also found to have potent inhibitory activities on the production of IL-2 on PHA/PMA-stimulated PBMCs with IC50 values ranging between <4.0 and 12.8 μM. The binding interaction of these compounds was performed through silico molecular docking. Compounds 2, 8, 9, and 10 significantly suppressed oxidative burst ROS production in phagocytes with IC50 values between <4.0 and 15.2 μM. The lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced nitrites in murine macrophages cell line J774 were found to be inhibited by compounds 4, 8, 9, and 18 at a concentration of 25 μg/mL by 56%, 91%, 58%, and 78%, respectively. Furthermore, compounds 5, 8, 12, and 18 showed significant (P<0.05) suppressive activity on Th-2 cytokine, interleukin 4 (IL-4) with an IC50 range of <4.0 to 40.3 μM. Interestingly compound 4 has shown a selective inhibitory activity on IL-2 and T cell proliferation (naïve T cell proliferation stage) rather than on IL-4 cytokine, while compound 12 displayed an interference with T-cell proliferation and IL-4 generation. Moreover compound 8 and 18 exert non-selective inhibition on both IL-2 and IL-4 cytokines, indicating a better interference with stage leading to humoral immune response and hence possible application in autoimmune diseases.
In search of potent anti-inflammatory agents, twenty-four chalcone derivatives including seven new compounds (13 - 17, 21 and 23) containing pyrrole moiety were designed, synthesized, and assessed for their nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) suppression ability on IFN-γ/LPS-induced RAW 264.7 macrophage cells. Results showed that none of the synthesized compounds were PAINS-associated molecules, with 3-(2,5-dimethoxyphenyl)-1-(1H-pyrrol-2-yl)-prop-2-en-1-one (compound 16) exhibiting remarkable inhibition activity towards PGE2 and NO production with IC50 values of 0.5 ± 1.5 µM and 12.1 ± 1.5 µM, respectively. Physicochemical and ADMET studies showed that majority of the compounds obey to Lipinski's rule of five (RO5) having high blood brain barrier (BBB) penetration, human intestinal absorption (HIA), P- glycoprotein (PgP) inhibition and plasma binding protein (PPB) inhibition. The obtained atomic coordinates for the single-crystal XRD of 16 were then applied in a molecular docking simulation, and compound 16 was found to participate in a number of important binding interactions in the binding sites of ERK and mPGES-1. Based on these results, we have observed the potential of compound 16 as a new hit anti-inflammatory agent, and these findings could serve as a basis for further studies on its mechanism of action.
A series of twenty-four 2-benzoyl-6-benzylidenecyclohexanone analogs were synthesized and evaluated for their nitric oxide inhibition and antioxidant activity. Six compounds (3, 8, 10, 17, 18 and 19) were found to exhibit significant NO inhibitory activity in LPS/IFN-induced RAW 264.7 macrophages, of which compound 10 demonstrated the highest activity with the IC50 value of 4.2 ± 0.2 μM. Furthermore, two compounds (10 and 17) displayed antioxidant activity upon both the DPPH scavenging and FRAP analyses. However, none of the 2-benzoyl-6-benzylidenecyclohexanone analogs significantly scavenged NO radical. Structure-activity comparison suggested that 3,4-dihydroxylphenyl ring is crucial for bioactivities of the 2-benzoyl-6-benzylidenecyclohexanone analogs. The results from this study and the reports from previous studies indicated that compound 10 could be a candidate for further investigation on its potential as a new anti-inflammatory agent.
This study investigated the antinociceptive effects of zerumbone in chemical behavioural models of nociception in mice. Zerumbone given through intraperitoneal route (i.p.) produced dose-related antinociception when assessed on acetic acid-induced abdominal writhing test in mice. In addition, the i.p. administration of zerumbone exhibited significant inhibition of the neurogenic pain induced by intraplantar (i.pl.) injection of capsaicin and bradykinin. Likewise, zerumbone given by i.p. route reduced the nociception produced by i.pl. injection of glutamate and phorbol myristate acetate (PMA). The antinociception caused by zerumbone in the acetic acid test was significantly attenuated by i.p. pre-treatment of mice with l-arginine (nitric oxide precursor) and glibenclamide (ATP-sensitive K(+) channel inhibitor). However, the antinociception of zerumbone was enhanced by methylene blue (non-specific gyanylyl cyclase inhibitor). Together, these results indicate that zerumbone produces pronounced antinociception against chemical models of nociception in mice. It also strongly suggests that the l-arginine-nitric oxide-cGMP-PKC-K(+) ATP channel pathways, the TRPV1 and kinin B2 receptors play an important role in the zerumbone-induced antinociception.
A new series of pyrazole, phenylpyrazole, and pyrazoline analogs of diarylpentanoids (excluding compounds 3a, 4a, 5a, and 5b) was pan-assay interference compounds-filtered and synthesized via the reaction of diarylpentanoids with hydrazine monohydrate and phenylhydrazine. Each analog was evaluated for its anti-inflammatory ability via the suppression of nitric oxide (NO) on IFN-γ/LPS-activated RAW264.7 macrophage cells. The compounds were also investigated for their inhibitory capability toward acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), using a modification of Ellman's spectrophotometric method. The most potent NO inhibitor was found to be phenylpyrazole analog 4c, followed by 4e, when compared with curcumin. In contrast, pyrazole 3a and pyrazoline 5a were found to be the most selective and effective BChE inhibitors over AChE. The data collected from the single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis of compound 5a were then applied in a docking simulation to determine the potential binding interactions that were responsible for the anti-BChE activity. The results obtained signify the potential of these pyrazole and pyrazoline scaffolds to be developed as therapeutic agents against inflammatory conditions and Alzheimer's disease.