The results obtained suggest the protective nature of crocin against CP-induced oxidative damage/inflammation and organ toxicity.

Platelets are the key players in the development of cardiovascular diseases as the microparticles generated by apoptotic platelets and platelet aggregation contribute actively towards the disease propagation. Thus, the aim of this study was to demonstrate the effect of a phytochemical which can prevent these two processes and thereby project it as a cardio-protective compound. Crocin, a natural carotenoid exhibits a wide spectrum of therapeutic potentials through its antioxidant property. The study demonstrated its effects on cytoplasmic apoptotic events of mitochondrial pathway in platelets. Collagen/calcium ionophore-A23187 stimulated platelets were treated with crocin and endogenous generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) were measured. H(2)O(2)-induced changes in crocin-pretreated platelets such as intracellular calcium, mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm), caspase activity, phosphatidylserine exposure and cytochrome c translocation were determined. Crocin dose-dependently ameliorated collagen- and A23187-induced endogenous generation of ROS and H(2)O(2). It also abolished the H(2)O(2)-induced events of intrinsic pathway of apoptosis. Further, it hindered collagen-induced platelet aggregation and adhesion. The current piece of work clearly suggests its anti-apoptotic effect as well as inhibitory effects on platelet aggregation. Thus, crocin can be deemed as a prospective candidate in the treatment regime of platelet-associated diseases.

Snakebite is a serious medical and socio-economic problem affecting the rural and agricultural laborers of tropical and sub-tropical region across the world leading to high morbidity and mortality. In most of the snakebite incidences, victims usually end up with permanent tissue damage and sequelae with high socioeconomic and psychological impacts. Although, mortality has been reduced markedly due to anti-venom regimen, it is associated with several limitations. Snake venom metalloprotease, hyaluronidase and myotoxic phospholipase A2 are the kingpins of tissue necrosis and extracellular matrix degradation. Thus, inhibition of these enzymes is considered to be the rate limiting step in the management of snakebite. Unfortunately, tissue necrosis and extracellular matrix degradation persists even after the administration of anti-venom. At present, inhibitors from snake serum and plasma, several synthetic compounds and their analogs have been demonstrated to possess anti-snake venom activities, but the use of plant metabolites for this purpose has an added advantage of traditional knowledge and will make the treatment cheaper and more accessible to the affected population. Therefore, the clinical and research forums are highly oriented towards plant metabolites and interestingly, certain phytochemicals are implicated as the antibody elicitors against venom toxicity that can be exploited in designing effective anti-venoms. Based on these facts, we have made an effort to enlist plant based secondary metabolites with antiophidian abilities and their mechanism of action against locally acting enzymes/toxins in particular. The review also describes their functional groups responsible for therapeutic beneficial and certainly oblige in designing potent inhibitors against venom toxins.

Purpose The dietary sesamol is one of the important constituent of sesame seed that has been mainly claimed to combat cardiovascular disease and diabetes, which are the major secondary complications of arthritis. Thus, the present study was designed to evaluate the anti-arthritic, anti-inflammatory and anti-stress potentials of sesamol. Methods Arthritis was induced using Freund's complete adjuvant to hind paw of experimental rats. The physical and biochemical alterations and its recovery by sesamol were assessed by measuring enzymatic and non-enzymatic mediators. Arthritis-induced inflammation, oxidative stress and their protective by sesamol were measured by determining the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and oxidative stress markers. Results In the present study, sesamol was demonstrated to alleviate arthritis-induced cartilage degeneration by mitigating augmented serum levels of hyaluronidase and matrix metalloproteinases (MMP-13, MMP-3 and MMP-9). It also protected bone resorption by reducing the elevated levels of bone joint exoglycosidases, cathepsin D and tartarate-resistant acid phosphatases. Sesamol also abrogated the non-enzymatic inflammatory markers (TNF, IL1b, IL-6, COX-2, PGE 2 , ROS, and H 2 O 2 ,) effectively. In addition, sesamol neutralizes arthritis-induced oxidative stress by restoring the levels of reactive oxygen species, lipid and hydro peroxides and sustained antioxidant homeostasis by re-establishing altered activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione-s-transferase. Conclusion Taken together, the study demonstrated the anti-arthritic, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative stress and chondro-protective potentials of sesamol in vivo. Thus, sesamol could be a single bullet that can fight arthritis as well as the secondary complications of arthritis such as cardio vascular disorders and diabetes.

In current scenario of human health and diseases, drug-induced hepatic injury has been recognized as a serious and unresolved problem. Particularly, chemotherapeutic agents have been reported to induce organ toxicity. The aim of the present study is to evaluate organ toxicity and oxidative damage induced by cyclophosphamide (CP), a chemotherapeutic drug and its amelioration by sesamol, an antioxidant from sesame seeds. CP (150 mg/kg) is injected intraperitonially to experimental rats and from day 2 rats were orally treated with sesamol. Rats were sacrificed to evaluate non-enzymatic and enzymatic oxidative stress parameters in serum and tissue homogenates on day 8. Besides, liver function parameters and pro-inflammatory mediators were assessed. Histopathological studies of liver and kidney were also carried out. Elevated levels of endogenous reactive oxygen species, lipid peroxidation and decreased levels of glutathione, total thiols, along with the reduction in antioxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione-stransferase and glutathione peroxidase, were evident in CP-intoxicated animals. Pro-inflammatory mediators like tumor necrosis factor - α, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6 and cyclooxygenase-2 were also elevated. Moreover, the levels of liver function markers like serum alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase were also altered. Histology of liver and kidney tissues further supported CP-induced organ damage. Altered parameters were significantly restored to normal by oral administration of sesamol (50 mg/kg) suggesting its antioxidative stress, anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective abilities. The study clearly demonstrated the potentiality of sesamol against CPinduced organ toxicity and oxidative stress suggesting its applicability in treatment regime of cancer and other stress-associated disorders as a supportive/auxiliary therapy.