An alkaloid from Maclurodendron porteri has been isolated and characterized. Extraction process was conducted by acid-base extraction method followed by column chromatography. The structure was established by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. The compound was identified as haplophytin B which occurs commonly in the Rutaceae family. However, this is the first time this alkaloid was isolated and reported from the species. The compound showed no inhibition against Staphylococus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus cereus and Escherichia coli and no cytotoxic activity against H199 and A549 cell lines.
Mast cells play a central role in the pathogenesis of allergic reaction. Activation of mast cells by antigens is strictly dependent on the influx of extracellular calcium that involves a complex interaction between signalling molecules located within the cells. We have previously reported that tHGA, an active compound originally isolated from a local shrub known as Melicope ptelefolia, prevented IgE-mediated mast cell activation and passive systemic anaphylaxis by suppressing the release of interleukin-4 (IL-4) and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α from activated rat basophilic leukaemia (RBL)-2H3 cells. However, the mechanism of action (MOA) as well as the molecular target underlying the mast cell stabilising effect of tHGA has not been previously investigated. In this study, DNP-IgE-sensitised RBL-2H3 cells were pre-treated with tHGA before challenged with DNP-BSA. To dissect the MOA of tHGA in IgE-mediated mast cell activation, the effect of tHGA on the transcription of IL-4 and TNF-α mRNA was determined using Real Time-Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) followed by Calcium Influx Assay to confirm the involvement of calcium in the activation of mast cells. The protein lysates were analysed by using Western Blot to determine the effect of tHGA on various important signalling molecules in the LAT-PLCγ-MAPK and PI3K-NFκB pathways. In order to identify the molecular target of tHGA in IgE-mediated mast cell activation, the LAT and LAT2 genes in RBL-2H3 cells were knocked-down by using RNA interference to establish a LAT/LAT2 competition model. The results showed that tHGA inhibited the transcription of IL-4 and TNF-α as a result of the suppression of calcium influx in activated RBL-2H3 cells. The results from Western Blot revealed that tHGA primarily inhibited the LAT-PLCγ-MAPK pathway with partial inhibition on the PI3K-p65 pathway without affecting Syk. The results from RNAi further demonstrated that tHGA failed to inhibit the release of mediators associated with mast cell degranulation under the LAT/LAT2 competition model in the absence of LAT. Collectively, this study concluded that the molecular target of tHGA could be LAT and may provide a basis for the development of a mast cell stabiliser which targets LAT.
Quorum sensing regulates bacterial virulence determinants, therefore making it an interesting target to attenuate pathogens. In this work, we screened edible, endemic plants in Malaysia for anti-quorum sensing properties. Extracts from Melicope lunu-ankenda (Gaertn.) T. G. Hartley, a Malay garden salad, inhibited response of Chromobacterium violaceum CV026 to N-hexanoylhomoserine lactone, thus interfering with violacein production; reduced bioluminescence expression of E. coli [pSB401], disrupted pyocyanin synthesis, swarming motility and expression of lecA::lux of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1. Although the chemical nature of the anti-QS compounds from M. lunu-ankenda is currently unknown, this study proves that endemic Malaysian plants could serve as leads in the search for anti-quorum sensing compounds.
A new carbazole alkaloid, 3-carbomethoxy-2-hydroxy-7-methoxycarbazole, Clausine-TY (1), together with two known carbazole alkaloid, Clausine-H (2) and Clausine-B (3), were isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of the stem bark of the Malaysian Clausena excavata. The structures of these compounds were elucidated by spectroscopic analyses. The new carbazole alkaloid shows significant cytotoxicity against CEM-SS cell line.
Extraction and chromatographic separation of the extracts of dried stem barks of Glycosmis macrantha lead to isolation of two new acridone alkaloids, macranthanine and 7-hydroxynoracronycine, and a known acridone, atalaphyllidine. The structures of these alkaloids were determined by detailed spectral analysis and also by comparison with reported data.