Furanocoumarins from Ruta chalepensis with Amebicide Activity

Abstract

Entamoeba histolytica (protozoan; family Endomoebidae) is the cause of amoebiasis, a disease related to high morbidity and mortality. Nowadays, this illness is considered a significant public health issue in developing countries. In addition, parasite resistance to conventional medicinal treatment has increased in recent years. Traditional medicine around the world represents a valuable source of alternative treatment for many parasite diseases. In a previous paper, we communicated about the antiprotozoal activity in vitro of the methanolic (MeOH) extract of Ruta chalepensis (Rutaceae) against E. histolytica. The plant is extensively employed in Mexican traditional medicine. The following workup of the MeOH extract of R. chalepensis afforded the furocoumarins rutamarin (1) and chalepin (2), which showed high antiprotozoal activity on Entamoeba histolytica trophozoites employing in vitro tests (IC50 values of 6.52 and 28.95 µg/mL, respectively). Therefore, we offer a full scientific report about the bioguided isolation and the amebicide activity of chalepin and rutamarin.

Rue and clove microspheres: antiamebic activity, hemocompatibility, and release kinetics

“…Thus, the present microspheres could be used as adjuvants in the treatment against E. histolytica, in agreement with studies using rue (12,68). Likewise, cloves have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antipyretic properties that do not affect the liver (69)(70)(71).…”

“…Likewise, other studies mentioned the potential antiamoebic activity of plants. In this sense, it was shown high antiprotozoal activity on Entamoeba histolytica trophozoites employing in vitro tests with rue methanolic extract and its fractions as n-hexane, EtOAc, CHCl 3 -EtOAc, and with pancreas extract or Larrea tridentate (ethanolic extract; lignan; IC 50 =186.2 µg/mL), Persea americana (ethanolic extract; glycosides and lignan; IC 50 =296.94 µg/mL), Piper longum (butanol and chloroform extract; coumaparine; IC 50 =186.2 µg/mL), among other studies performed with the crude extracts or secondary metabolites isolated without encapsulation and other parasitic activities such as proteolytic, hemolytic, erythrophagocytosis (12)(13)(14).…”

In Vitro Cytotoxic Activity of Methanol Extracts of Selected Medicinal Plants Traditionally Used in Mexico against Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma

“…Our study demonstrated that R. chalepensis was cytotoxic against the human tumor cell line HEP-G2 and showed the highest SI compared with the other evaluated plants ( Table 2 ). Alkaloids and furanocoumarins are among the primary metabolites identified in plants from the Rutaceae family [ 51 , 52 ]. These metabolites may be responsible for the cytotoxic activity we observed, since several studies evidenced the cytotoxic effect of R. chalepensis extracts against HeLa, MCF-7, and human squamous cell carcinoma (A431) cell lines were due to furanoacridones and acridone alkaloids (arborinin and evoxanthin) [ 53 , 54 ].…”

“…The names and botanical families of species were taxonomically validated using WorldFlora Online, (accessed on 1 August 2022). Plant extraction was performed by subjecting 60 g of milled dry plant material to 600 mL of absolute MeOH in Soxhlet equipment for 48 h [ 51 ]. Extracts were then filtered, rotaevaporated, and stored at 4 °C in amber bottles until use.…”

Preliminary Study of the Antimicrobial, Anticoagulant, Antioxidant, Cytotoxic, and Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Five Selected Plants with Therapeutic Application in Dentistry

“…The extraction was performed with EtOH. For this, 60 g of milled plant material was subjected to extraction with 600 mL of EtOH, each using Soxhlet equipment for 48 h [20]. Before extraction, each specimen was ground using a manual mill, being careful not to pulverize them.…”