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Natural Bioactive Compounds from Traditional Asian Plants—Second Edition

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Natural Products Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2025 | Viewed by 377

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Ritsumeikan University, Shiga, Japan
Interests: molecular biology; biochemistry; pharmacology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

From the various parts of medicinal plants, such as flowers, fruits, leaves, and roots, bioactive compounds are purified and characterized. These natural compounds have been used as crude drugs in traditional medicine in Asia, including China, Japan (Kampo medicine), India (Ayurveda), and Indonesia (Jamu). In crude drugs, there are major constituents, which are included at a high content, and principal constituents, which exhibit pharmacological activities. Although the latter function in vitro and in vivo (animals and humans), they are not well elucidated. This Special Issue covers research on the natural bioactive compounds that are included in crude drugs of traditional medicine. This includes both structural and functional analyses of the constituents, including major constituents and principal constituents, especially in Kampo medicine and Jamu.

Prof. Dr. Mikio Nishizawa
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • natural product
  • medicinal plants
  • traditional medicine
  • bioactive molecules
  • crude drugs

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

16 pages, 1978 KiB  
Article
Comparative Analysis of Anti-Inflammatory Flavones in Chrysanthemum indicum Capitula Using Primary Cultured Rat Hepatocytes
by Keita Minamisaka, Airi Fujii, Cheng Li, Yuto Nishidono, Saki Shirako, Teruhisa Kawamura, Yukinobu Ikeya and Mikio Nishizawa
Molecules 2025, 30(14), 2996; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules30142996 - 16 Jul 2025
Viewed by 247
Abstract
The capitula of Chrysanthemum indicum Linné or C. morifolium Ramatuelle (Kikuka in Japanese) are included in several formulae of Kampo medicines (traditional Japanese medicines), such as Chotosan, which is used for headache and dizziness. Luteolin, the principal constituent of C. indicum [...] Read more.
The capitula of Chrysanthemum indicum Linné or C. morifolium Ramatuelle (Kikuka in Japanese) are included in several formulae of Kampo medicines (traditional Japanese medicines), such as Chotosan, which is used for headache and dizziness. Luteolin, the principal constituent of C. indicum, has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. However, the effects of other flavonoids on this crude drug have not yet been thoroughly investigated. To evaluate and compare anti-inflammatory effects, we used primary cultured rat hepatocytes, which produce proinflammatory mediators, such as nitric oxide (NO) and proinflammatory cytokines, in response to interleukin (IL)-1β. Eight derivatives of 5,7-dihydroxyflavone were purified and identified in the ethyl acetate-soluble fraction of a C. indicum capitulum extract: luteolin (Compound 1), apigenin (2), diosmetin (3), 5,7-dihydroxy-3′,4′,5′-trimethoxyflavone (4), acacetin (5), eupatilin (6), jaceosidin (7), and 6-methoxytricin (8). Luteolin is the most abundant compound in this fraction. All compounds significantly suppressed NO production in hepatocytes, with apigenin and acacetin showing the greatest efficacy. The comparison of the IC50 values of the inhibition of NO production suggests that substitutions by hydroxyl and methoxy groups at the C-3′ and C-4′ positions of 5,7-dihydroxyflavone may be at least essential for the suppression of NO production. In hepatocytes, acacetin and luteolin decreased the levels of mRNAs encoding inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), proinflammatory cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor, IL-6, and type 1 IL-1 receptor, which regulates inflammatory responses. Based on the comparison of the IC50 values and the content, luteolin, jaceosidin, and diosmetin may be responsible for the anti-inflammatory effects of C. indicum capitula. Full article
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