Drug resistant tuberculosis remains one of the major challenges associated with treatment and management of tuberculosis (TB) in the public health system and in clinical settings. In 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that about 186,772 people died from drug-resistant tuberculosis out of the 500000 reported cases and this is alarming. There is a pressing need from every angle in drug discovery to develop novel compounds that could possess diverse mechanisms of action to tackle drug-resistant tuberculosis. The Crinum asiaticum bulbs extract are used ethno medicinally to treat upper respiratory tract infections and as well as wound healing agent. The aim of this work is to investigate the in-vitro anti-tuberculosis effect of Crinum asiaticum bulbs extracts and to assess the inhibitory properties against bacteria efflux pumps expression and biofilm formation. The results obtained showed that the Crinum asiaticum bulbs extracts (CAE) were effective in inhibiting Mycobacterium smegmatis (NCTC 8159) and Mycobacterium aurum (NCTC 10437) with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 125 μg/ml and 250 μg/ml against M. smegmatis and M. aurum respectively. The CAE markedly inhibited the efflux pumps of both M. smegmatis and M. aurum from expressing with the chloroform extract producing the greatest inhibition. The CAE (ethanol, methanol, chloroform and hexane) significantly (***ρ˂0.005) inhibited M. smegmatis’ and M. aurum’s biofilm formation in-vitro. Among the various extracts of Crinum asiaticum, the chloroform extract exhibited the greatest inhibition against M. smegmatis and M. aurum biofilm formation with significance levels of ***ρ˂0.005 and ***ρ˂0.005. In conclusion the CAE has anti-tuberculosis effect and could tackle drug resistant TB as exhibited through the anti-efflux and anti-biofilm forming properties of the extract against the selected Mycobacterium species.
Background: Metastatic breast cancer to the lungs is a serious, life-threatening complication that is difficult to cure. Circulating tumor cells play a key role in the metastatic spread of breast cancer to the lungs via the lymphatic or circulatory system. Palmatine is a protoberberine alkaloid, identified as an active component of traditional African herbal preparations. Palmatine has antimetastatic and antiproliferative effects. The inhibitory activity of palmatine on the metastatic colonization of triple negative breast cancer cells in the lungs was investigated in this study.Methods: 4T1 triple breast cancer cells were transplanted synergically to the thoracic duct of the female balb/c mice via the lymphatic system. Palmatine 1, 5 and 10 mg/kg were administered for 28 days. The lungs were analyzed for levels of arterial blood gas, histological damage, immunohistochemical expression of the metastasis-associated protein 1 (MTA1) and tumor suppressor p53 (p53).Results: Administering palmatine 1–10 mg/kg dose dependently improved hypoxemia, ameliorated metastasis associated lung injury; histology score of 3.33 ± 0.33, 1.67 ± 0.33, 1.33 ± 0.33, decreased lung MTA1 (2.19 ± 0.12, 1.83 ± 0.04, 1.84 ± 0.05) and increased p53 expression (1.99 ± 0.06, 2.27 ± 0.12, 2.34 ± 0.12) respectively.Conclusion: Palmatine preserved lung morphology and demonstrated therapeutic potential in aiding the treatment of lung metastasis.
Amaryllidaceae is a significant source of bioactive phytochemicals with a strong propensity to develop new drugs. The genera Allium, Tulbaghia, Cyrtanthus and Crinum biosynthesize novel alkaloids and other phytochemicals with traditional and pharmacological uses. Amaryllidaceae biomolecules exhibit multiple pharmacological activities such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, and immunomodulatory effects. Traditionally, natural products from Amaryllidaceae are utilized to treat non-communicable and infectious human diseases. Galanthamine, a drug from this family, is clinically relevant in treating the neurocognitive disorder, Alzheimer’s disease, which underscores the importance of the Amaryllidaceae alkaloids. Although Amaryllidaceae provide a plethora of biologically active compounds, there is tardiness in their development into clinically pliable medicines. Other genera, including Cyrtanthus and Tulbaghia, have received little attention as potential sources of promising drug candidates. Given the reciprocal relationship of the increasing burden of human diseases and limited availability of medicinal therapies, more rapid drug discovery and development are desirable. To expedite clinically relevant drug development, we present here evidence on bioactive compounds from the genera Allium, Tulgbaghia, Cyrtanthus and Crinum and describe their traditional and pharmacological applications.
Biofilms, are vastly structured surface-associated communities of microorganisms, enclosed within a self-produced extracellular matrix. Microorganisms, especially bacteria are able to form complex structures known as biofilms. The presence of biofilms especially in health care settings increases resistance to antimicrobial agents which poses a major health problem. This is because biofilm-associated persistent infections are difficult to treat due to the presence of multidrug-resistant microorganisms. This chapter will give an idea about documented agents including isolated compounds, crude extracts, decoctions, fractions, etc. obtained from natural sources such as plants, bacteria, fungi, sponge and algae with antibiofilm activities. Furthermore, we have done phylogenetic analysis to identify plant families most prolific in producing plant species and compounds with good antibiofilm properties so as to aid in prioritizing plant species to investigate in future studies. The data in this chapter will help serve as valuable information and guidance for future antimicrobial development.
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