Garcinol, a polyisoprenylated benzophenone derivative, was purified from Garcinia indica fruit rind, and its antioxidative activity, chelating activity, free radical scavenging activity, and anti-glycation activity were studied. Garcinol exhibited moderate antioxidative activity in the micellar linoleic acid peroxidation system and also exhibited chelating activity at almost the same level as citrate. It also showed nearly 3 times greater DPPH (1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) free radical scavenging activity than DL-alpha-tocopherol by weight in aqueous ethanol solution. In a phenazine methosulfate/NADH-nitroblue tetrazolium system, garcinol exhibited superoxide anion scavenging activity and suppressed protein glycation in a bovine serum albumin/fructose system. Thus, garcinol might be beneficial as a potent antioxidant and a glycation inhibitor under specified conditions.
It is known that procyanidins, which are contained in grape
seeds, are antioxidative and have certain
biological effects. Antiulcer activities of grape seed extracts
(GSE-I and GSE-II) and procyanidins
were investigated using rats. GSE-I (with low flavanol content),
GSE-II (with high flavanol content),
and procyanidins at a dose of 200 mg/kg strongly inhibited the stomach
mucosal injury induced by
60% ethanol containing 150 mM hydrochloride. This suppressive
effect seems dependent on the
content of procyanidin oligomers. Procyanidin oligomers (dimers to
hexamers) were prepared and
studied for their antiulcer activities at a dose of 200 mg/kg. The
gastric protective activity of a
series of procyanidins increased with the increasing polymerization of
catechin units. Oligomers
longer than tetramers showed a strong protective effect against gastric
mucosal damage. The binding
ability of procyanidin oligomers to bovine serum albumin in the
acidified solution was strengthened
with the increase of molecules. The mechanism of antiulcer
activity may be the protection by radical
scavenging activity on the stomach surface against radical injury
induced by HCl/EtOH solution
and the defense action of procyanidins covering the stomach surface by
their strong ability to bind
protein.
Keywords: Grape seed extract; antiulcer activity; procyanidin; oligomer;
radical scavenging activity;
HCl/EtOH-induced ulcer
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