Antioxidant and Pro-Oxidant Properties of Carthamus Tinctorius, Hydroxy Safflor Yellow A, and Safflor Yellow A

Abstract

(1) Carthamus Tinctorius L. (safflower) is extensively used in traditional herbal medicine. (2) The aim of this study was to investigate the bioactive properties of polyphenol extracts from flowers of Carthamus Tinctorius (CT) cultivated in Italy. We also evaluated the properties of two bioactive water-soluble flavonoid compounds, hydroxy safflor yellow A (HSYA) and safflor yellow A (SYA), contained in Carthamus Tinctorius petals. (3) The total polyphenol content was 3.5 ± 0.2 g gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/100 g, flavonoids content was 330 ± 23 mg catechin equivalent (CE)/100 g in the flowers. The extract showed a high antioxidant activity evaluated by oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) and 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical-scavenging assays. In addition, flower extract, SYA, and HSYA were able to reduce the susceptibility of low-density lipoprotein to copper-induced lipid peroxidation. In order to investigate the bioactive properties of flower extract, SYA, and HSYA we also studied their modulatory effect of oxidative stress on human dermal fibroblasts (HuDe) oxidized by tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BOOH). The CT extract at concentrations ranging from 0.01–20 μg GAE/mL of polyphenols, exerted a protective effect against t-BOOH triggered oxidative stress. At higher concentration the extract exerted a pro-oxidant effect. Similar results have been obtained using HSYA and SYA. (4) These results demonstrate a biphasic effect exerted by HSYA, SYA, and flower extracts on oxidative stress.

Antioxidant, Antimicrobial and Antiviral Properties of Herbal Materials

“…Many researchers have reported the biomedical applications of herbal medicines [ 346 , 347 , 348 , 349 , 350 , 351 , 352 , 353 , 354 , 355 , 356 , 357 , 358 , 359 , 360 , 361 , 362 , 363 , 364 , 365 ]. Antibiotics and other chemical antimicrobial agents including metal oxide and metal nanoparticles can inhibit bacteria growth but also lead to ROS generation and other side effects.…”

Hydroxysafflor Yellow A: A Systematical Review on Botanical Resources, Physicochemical Properties, Drug Delivery System, Pharmacokinetics, and Pharmacological Effects

“…Hydroxysafflor yellow A (HSYA) is a primary active product derived from safflower ( Carthamus tinctorius L.), a plant of the Compositae ( Asteraceae ) family, which was used to improve blood circulation, eliminate blood stasis, and relieve menstrual pain as early as recorded in Kaibao Bencao . HSYA, as an indicator component to characterize the medical value of safflower recorded in The Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China from 2005 edition, possesses a broad spectrum of pharmacological activities, such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anticoagulant effects, which play an important role acting on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease ( Sun et al, 2010 ; Wu et al, 2012 ; Ma et al, 2019a ; Zhou et al, 2019 ; Bacchetti et al, 2020 ). However, chemical instability and low bioavailability of HSYA severely hamper the clinical applications.…”

Therapeutic Potential of Hydroxysafflor Yellow A on Cardio-Cerebrovascular Diseases

“…In fact, the oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and oxidized LDL (ox-LDL)-induced vascular damage are key events in early AS. Although its LDL-lowering effect remains unknown, HSYA was able to reduce the susceptibility of LDL to copper-induced lipid peroxidation in vitro ( Bacchetti et al., 2020 ). It is interesting to identify the effect of HSYA against ox-LDL formation in vivo .…”