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1342 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Scrophularia ningpoensis Hemsl. on Inhibition of Proliferation, Apoptosis Induction and NF-κB Signaling of Immortalized and Cancer Cell Lines

by Xiao Shen, Tolga Eichhorn, Henry Johannes Greten and Thomas Efferth

Pharmaceuticals 2012, 5(2), 189-208; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph5020189 - 14 Feb 2012

Cited by 37 | Viewed by 10037

Abstract

Scrophularia ningpoensis has been used in China for centuries as a herbal tea to treat various diseases. Based on the numerous animal studies on its pharmaceutical effects and the long time clinical experiences, we studied the molecular and cellular mechanism underlying the bioactivity [...] Read more.

Scrophularia ningpoensis has been used in China for centuries as a herbal tea to treat various diseases. Based on the numerous animal studies on its pharmaceutical effects and the long time clinical experiences, we studied the molecular and cellular mechanism underlying the bioactivity of aqueous extract of Scrophularia and its isolated compounds. Seven isolated compounds, unlike Scrophularia extract, failed to induce cytotoxicity on HaCaT cells, but their combination improved the effect of extract. Tumor cell line selectivity was not observed, when we studied its cytotoxic effect on melanoma cell lines. The apoptotic and anti-inflammatory effects of Scrophularia extract have been demonstrated on HaCaT cells. The extract induced those effects potentially through affecting the MAPK pathway and inhibition of the NF-κB pathway, Microarray-based bioinformatical analyses on the compound acetoside from Scrophularia revealed a gene expression profile which confirmed our findings with the extract on proliferation inhibition, anti-inflammation and apoptosis. With DNA alkylation as major proposed mechanism of action, we assume acetoside as one of the active compounds in Scrophularia. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytomedicine)

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606 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Genetic and Phenotypic Analyses of a Papaver somniferum T-DNA Insertional Mutant with Altered Alkaloid Composition

by Noriaki Kawano, Fumiyuki Kiuchi, Nobuo Kawahara and Kayo Yoshimatsu

Pharmaceuticals 2012, 5(2), 133-154; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph5020133 - 2 Feb 2012

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 8973

Abstract

The in vitro shoot culture of a T-DNA insertional mutant of Papaver somniferum L. established by the infection of Agrobacterium rhizogenes MAFF03-01724 accumulated thebaine instead of morphine as a major opium alkaloid. To develop a non-narcotic opium poppy and to gain insight into [...] Read more.

The in vitro shoot culture of a T-DNA insertional mutant of Papaver somniferum L. established by the infection of Agrobacterium rhizogenes MAFF03-01724 accumulated thebaine instead of morphine as a major opium alkaloid. To develop a non-narcotic opium poppy and to gain insight into its genetic background, we have transplanted this mutant to soil, and analyzed its alkaloid content along with the manner of inheritance of T-DNA insertion loci among its selfed progenies. In the transplanted T₀ primary mutant, the opium (latex) was found to be rich in thebaine (16.3% of dried opium) by HPLC analysis. The analyses on T-DNA insertion loci by inverse PCR, adaptor-ligation PCR, and quantitative real-time PCR revealed that as many as 18 copies of T-DNAs were integrated into a poppy genome in a highly complicated manner. The number of copies of T-DNAs was decreased to seven in the selected T₃ progenies, in which the average thebaine content was 2.4-fold that of the wild type plant. This may indicate that the high thebaine phenotype was increasingly stabilized as the number of T-DNA copies was decreased. In addition, by reverse transcription PCR analysis on selected morphine biosynthetic genes, the expression of codeine 6-O-demethylase was clearly shown to be diminished in the T₀ in vitro shoot culture, which can be considered as one of the key factors of altered alkaloid composition. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytomedicine)

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574 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Molecular Determinants of the Response of Tumor Cells to Boswellic Acids

by Tolga Eichhorn, Henry Johannes Greten and Thomas Efferth

Pharmaceuticals 2011, 4(8), 1171-1182; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph4081171 - 19 Aug 2011

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 7462

Abstract

Frankincense (Boswellia serrata, B. carterii) is used as traditional remedy to treat inflammatory diseases. The molecular effects of the active ingredients, the boswellic acids, on the immune system have previously been studied and verified in several clinical studies. Boswellic acids also [...] Read more.

Frankincense (Boswellia serrata, B. carterii) is used as traditional remedy to treat inflammatory diseases. The molecular effects of the active ingredients, the boswellic acids, on the immune system have previously been studied and verified in several clinical studies. Boswellic acids also inhibit cancer cell growth in vitro and in vivo. The molecular basis of the cytotoxicity of boswellic acids is, however, not fully understood as yet. By mRNA-based microarray, COMPARE, and hierarchical cluster analyses, we identified a panel of genes from diverse functional groups, which were significantly associated with sensitivity or resistance of a- or b-boswellic acids, such as transcription factors, signal transducers, growth regulating genes, genes involved in RNA and protein metabolism and others. This indicates that boswellic acids exert profound cytotoxicity on cancer cells by a multiplicity of molecular mechanisms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytomedicine)

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Review

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226 KiB

Open AccessReview

Phytomedicine in Otorhinolaryngology and Pulmonology: Clinical Trials with Herbal Remedies

by Koosha Ghazi-Moghadam, Hasan Mete Inançlı, Nazanin Bazazy, Peter K. Plinkert, Thomas Efferth and Serkan Sertel

Pharmaceuticals 2012, 5(8), 853-874; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph5080853 - 20 Aug 2012

Cited by 19 | Viewed by 11441

Abstract

Phytomedicine has become an important alternative treatment option for patients in the Western world, as they seek to be treated in a holistic and natural way after an unsatisfactory response to conventional drugs. Ever since herbal remedies have been introduced in the Western [...] Read more.

Phytomedicine has become an important alternative treatment option for patients in the Western world, as they seek to be treated in a holistic and natural way after an unsatisfactory response to conventional drugs. Ever since herbal remedies have been introduced in the Western world, clinicians have raised concerns over their efficacy and possible side-effects. A PubMed (Medline) search was performed covering the last five years (01/07–04/12) and including 55 prospective clinical randomized control trials in the medical specialities Otorhinolaryngology and Pulmonology. In this review, we present evidence-based clinical data with herbal remedies and try to enlighten the question of efficacy and reliability of phytomedicine. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytomedicine)

416 KiB

Open AccessReview

Antimicrobial, Antiviral and Immunomodulatory Activity Studies of Pelargonium sidoides (EPs^® 7630) in the Context of Health Promotion

by Herbert Kolodziej

Pharmaceuticals 2011, 4(10), 1295-1314; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph4101295 - 10 Oct 2011

Cited by 55 | Viewed by 15546

Abstract

Pelargonium species contribute significantly to the health care of a large population in the Southern African region, as part of a long-standing medical system intimately linked to traditional healing practices. Most notably, extracts of the roots of P. sidoides have commonly been applied [...] Read more.

Pelargonium species contribute significantly to the health care of a large population in the Southern African region, as part of a long-standing medical system intimately linked to traditional healing practices. Most notably, extracts of the roots of P. sidoides have commonly been applied for the treatment of dysentery and diarrhoea but only occasionally for respiratory complaints. Clinical trials have shown that a modern aqueous-ethanolic formulation of P. sidoides extracts (EPs^® 7630) is an efficacious treatment for disorders of the respiratory tract, for example bronchitis and sinusitis. It should be noted that EPs^® 7630 is the most widely investigated extract and therefore is the focus of this review. In order to provide a rationale for its therapeutic activity extracts have been evaluated for antibacterial activity and for their effects on non-specific immune functions. Only moderate direct antibacterial capabilities against a spectrum of bacteria, including Mycobacteria strains, have been noted. In contrast, a large body of in vitro studies has provided convincing evidence for an anti-infective principle associated with activation of the non-specific immune system. Interestingly, significant inhibition of interaction between bacteria and host cells, a key to the pathogenesis of respiratory tract infections, has emerged from recent studies. In addition, antiviral effects have been demonstrated, including inhibition of the replication of respiratory viruses and the enzymes haemagglutinin and neuraminidase. Besides, an increase of cilliary beat frequency of respiratory cells may contribute to the beneficial effects of P. sidoides extracts. This example provides a compelling argument for continuing the exploration of Nature and traditional medical systems as a source of therapeutically useful herbal medicines. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytomedicine)

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