In the previous study, the artichoke leaf extract showed effective inhibition of AKR1B1, the first enzyme of polyol pathway, which reduces high level of glucose to osmotically active sorbitol, important for development of chronic diabetic complications. In the present study, the effect of artichoke leaf extract and of several participating phenols (caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, quinic acid, and luteolin) was tested on sorbitol level in rat lenses exposed to high glucose ex vivo, on cytotoxicity as well as on oxidative stress in C2C12 muscle cell line induced by high glucose in vitro. The concentration of sorbitol was determined by enzymatic analysis, the cytotoxicity was provided by WST-1 test and intracellular content of reactive oxygen species was determined by fluorescence of 2'-7'-dichlorofluorescein probe. The extract and the compounds tested showed significant protection against toxic effects of high concentration of glucose in both models. On balance, the artichoke leaf extract thus represents a prospective preventive agent of development of chronic diabetic complications, probably due to phenols content, concerning preclinical and clinical studies.
Unlike its aerial parts, the underground parts of Mentha have so far been studied only marginally. By examining the polyphenolic fingerprint, the antioxidant efficacy and the mutual antioxidant behaviour of mixtures of mint rhizomes, our study presents a modest contribution to addressing this gap. Firstly, we examined the composition of the mint rhizomes: Mentha × piperita cv. ‘Perpeta’ (MPP), M. longifolia (ML), and M. × villosa cv. ‘Snežna’ (MVS). Our LC-MS-DAD analysis revealed the presence of ten compounds belonging to groups of phenolic acids and flavonoids, of which the rosmarinic acid (RA) and lithospermic were most strongly represented. Secondly, we evaluated the antioxidant activity of rhizome infusions by DPPH and ABTS and on NIH/3T3 cell lines by DCFH-DA. Thirdly, we determined, examined, and explained the mutual interactions of rhizome infusions mixtures. While most of the combinations acted additive, synergy was observed in ternary infusion mixtures. The synergic action was also detected in the combination of MPP rhizome infusion and RA in the DCFH-DA test. The combinations of mint rhizomes and rosmarinic acid displayed a high dose-reduction index. This leads to beneficial dose reduction at a given antioxidant effect level in mixtures, compared to the dose of the parts used alone. So far, the pharmaceutical and food industry has not used mint rhizomes in commercial products. Hence, our study draws attention to further applications of the Mentha rhizomes as a valuable alternative source of natural antioxidants.
Aldose reductase inhibitors are considered to be potential therapeutic agents for chronic diabetic complications. Diabetes mellitus can be accompanied by elevated blood levels of free fatty acids, which can cause lipotoxicity. Herbal extracts and their constituents are promising agents which have the potential for alleviating these complications. Our study was focused on the influence on these effects by flower infusions from Cornus mas L. and Cornus kousa F.Buerger ex Hance. Initially, phenolic compounds were quantified in the dried flowers. Next, we studied the ability of flower infusions from both plants to inhibit aldose reductase in vitro, the protective role in the cell model of lipotoxicity, and the cytotoxic action on fibroblast cell line NIH-3T3 by 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2 H-tetrazolium bromide assay. Both species are rich in phenolics; C. kousa flowers contain slightly higher amounts of phenolic acids (20.8%) and flavonoids (56.1%) than C. mas (20.2%) and (47.4%), respectively. Both extracts showed effective inhibition, expressed as half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) (the concentration of inhibitor required to exhibit 50% inhibition of the enzyme reaction), of aldose reductase in non-toxic low concentrations (IC50 = 3.06 μg/mL for C. mas and IC50 = 2.49 μg/mL for C. kousa, respectively). In contrast, these concentrations of both extracts had almost no effects in the lipotoxicity cell model. To our knowledge, this study is the first report on C. mas and C. kousa flowers’ aldose reductase inhibitory activity and influence upon lipotoxicity.
The aim of the research was to determine some basic biological activities of less biomedically studied but commonly known two fungi from the Boletaceae family Suillellus rubrosanguineus and Tylopilus felleus, which grow in the forests of Middle Europe. The cytotoxicity tests of the ethanol and chloroform extracts were carried out using NIH-3T3 and MCF-7 cell lines. The presence of alkaloids in the extracts was assessed by the reaction with Dragendorff reagent. In all of the extracts the positive reaction with the reagent was observed. In general, the extracts from Suillellus rubrosanguineus were more cytotoxic than the extracts from Tylopilus felleus and exhibited no selectivity of activities on healthy and cancer cell lines. However, the extracts from Tylopilus felleus proved to be selectively cytotoxic for cancer cell line. Tylopilus extracts or their isolated bioactive compounds could be considered for further study in pre-clinical experiments.
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