Anti-proliferative effects of pandan leaves (Pandanus amarylfolius), kantan flower(Etlingera elatior) and turmeric leaves (Curcuma longa).

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to screen cytotoxic activities of commonly used culinary plants in Malaysia, Pandanus amaryllifolius (daun pandan), Curcuma longa (turmeric leaves) and Etlingera elatior (kantan flower) against selected cancer cell lines. Design/methodology/approach – Plant samples were extracted exhaustively with ethanol and concentrated under rotary evaporator. Cytotoxic evaluation was carried out with plant extracts(0-100mg/ml) using 72-h MTT assay. Findings – Exposure of plant extracts reduced cell viability of HepG2 (hepatocellular carcinoma),HT-29 (colon carcinoma), MDA-MB-231 (non-hormone-dependent breast cancer), MCF-7(hormone-dependent breast cancer) and HeLa (cervical cancer); 50 percent inhibitory values (IC50) were obtained for MDA-MB-231, HepG2, HT-29. Extracts within the concentrations of 10-100mg/ml were found not to be effective against proliferation of MCF-7 and HeLa

Chemical constituents of Tetradium sambucinum (Bl.) Hartley

Detailed extraction and separation of the aerial parts of Tetradium sambucinum (Bl.) Hartley have led to the isolation of decarine, rutaecarpine, aurantiamide acetate and 7-hydroxycoumarin. The structures of the compounds were established by one and two-dimensional 1H- and 13C-NMR as well other spectroscopic methods. The free radical scavenging and cytotoxic activities were assessed by DPPH assay and against two cancer cell lines, respectively

Cytotoxic activity of coumarins from Micromelium minutum

The crude petroleum ether and chloroform extracts of Micromelum minutum (G. Frost.) Wright & Arn (Rutaceae) showed strong cytotoxic activity when tested against a T-lymphoblastic leukemia cell line. Further fractionation of the extracts resulted in the isolation of five new coumarins 3″,4″-dihydrocapnolactone, 2′,3′-epoxyisocapnolactone, 8-hydroxyisocapnolactone-29,39-diol, 8-hydroxy-3″,4″-dihydrocapnolactone-29,39-diol and 8,4″-dihydroxy-3″,4″-dihydrocapnolactone-29,39-diol, and two triterpenes. Some of these compounds were strongly active against T-lymphoblastic leukemia (CEM-SS), promyeolocytic leukemia (HL60), cervical cancer (HeLa) and liver cancer (HepG2) cell lines. 8-Hydroxyisocapnolactone-29,39-diol was found to be the most active with IC50 values of 2.9, 2.5, 6.9, and 5.9 μg/ml, respectively. This was followed by 2′,3′-epoxyisocapnolactone. When evaluated against the normal mouse fibroblast (3T3) cell line, 8-hydroxyisocapnolactone-29,39-diol was found to be inactive, hence it could serve as a valuable lead for further design and synthesis of more active analogues

Coumarins from Malaysian Micromelum minutum

In a continuation of our study of the Rutaceae, detailed chemical investigation on Micromelum minutum (Rutaceae) collected from Sepilok, Sabah, Malaysia gave four new coumarins. The structures of the coumarins have been fully characterised by spectroscopic methods as 3″,4″-dihydrocapnolactone 1, 2′,3′-epoxyisocapnolactone 2, 8-hydroxyisocapnolactone-2′,3′-diol 3 and 8-hydroxy-3″,4″-dihydrocapnolactone-2′,3′-diol 4

Depression, thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, and suicidal behavior among undergraduate students: a quantitative study in Malaysia

Among Malaysian undergraduate students, little is known about the risk factors associated with suicidal behavior. The aim of this study was to examine the relationships among undergraduate students between depression, burdensomeness, thwarted ownership, and suicidal behavior. The study surveyed 120 undergraduate students in Peninsular Malaysia from a public university. Pearson's Correlation and multiple linear regression were used to evaluate the data. The result shows that around 20% of the participants tend to engage in suicidal behavior. Generally, there is a significant correlation between depression [r(119) = .623, p<.50], thwarted belongingness [r(119) = .397, p<.50], perceived burdensomeness [r(119) = .363, p<.50], and interpersonal needs [r(119) = .443, p<.50], with suicidal behavior among the participants. Among the three variables, only depression significantly predicts suicidal behavior (R²= .40, F (3, 115) = 25.855, p< .05) with the explanation of 38.7%. These findings convey an important message to the student affairs section and counselling unit to conduct periodical mental health screening. Special attention should be given to curtail the role of depression as the catalyst in suicide actions

Examining Parental Expenditure on Children in Ghana

Understanding parental spending on children is crucial for making the right investments to positively influence child well-being and long-term social and economic outcomes. This study uses both quantitative household data from the Ghana Living Standards Survey round six (GLSS 6) and qualitative data based on focus group discussions to provide baseline information on how much couples spend on their children in various age brackets. Overall, the results show that older children attract higher expenditures than younger children. Household expenditures on children decrease with successive children, and non-poor couple-households spend almost twice as much as very poor couples. Furthermore, urban parents incur higher child expenditures than their rural counterparts. Finally, food and education account for the largest share of the expenditures on children

<it>In vitro</it> evaluation of <it>Pandanus amaryllifolius</it> ethanol extract for induction of cell death on non-hormone dependent human breast adenocarcinoma MDA-MB-231 cell via apoptosis

Abstract Background Our previous study had shown that P. amaryllifolius was able to selectively inhibit cell proliferation of hormone independent breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231. To understand the mode of killing and mechanism of action for P. amaryllifolius, the ethanol extract was evaluated for their alteration of cell cycle progression, PS externalization, DNA fragmentation and expression of anti/pro-apoptotic related protein. Results Cell cycle progression analysis, Annexin V and Tunel assays suggested that IC50 of P. amaryllifolius ethanol extract induced G0/G1 cell cycle arrest, PS externalization and DNA fragmentation. On the other hand, ELISA for cytochrome c, caspase-3/7, 8 and 9 indicated that apoptosis was contributed by mitochondrial cytochrome c release via induction of caspase 3/7, 9, and p53 was associated with the suppression of XIAP in P. amaryllifolius treated MDA-MB-231 cells. Conclusion Our findings suggest that P. amaryllifolius ethanol extract induced apoptosis on hormone independent breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231.</p

Bioactive constituents of melicope bonwickii and m. lunu-ankeda (rutaceae).

The used of natural products from plant source with therapeutic properties is ancient as human civilization. Currently about 25% of modern drugs prescribed worldwide come from plants and 121 such active compounds are being used. Of the 252 drugs considered as basic and essential by World Health Organization (WHO), 11% are exclusively of plants origin and a significant number are synthetic drugs obtained from natural precursors. Deatiled phytochemical study of Melicope bonwickii (F. Muell) T. Hartley revealed the presence of four furoquinoline alkaloids in which one is a rare new chlorine-containing compound, 7(2',-hydroxy-3'-chloroprenyloxy)-4-methoxyfuroquinoline, three known alkaloids 7-(2',3'-epoxyprenyloxy)-4-methoxyfuroquinoline, evellerine and kokusaginine together with a known dipeptide, aurantiamide acetate. From leaves of Melicope lunu-ankeda (Geartn) T. Hartley, two phenylpropanoid derivatives,p-)-geranylcoumaric acid and sesamin, a quinolone alkaloid and a flavanoid were isolated and identified. The ectracts and the isolated compounds were evaluated for their antioxidant, cytotoxity and antimicrobial activities. The new furoquinoline alkaloid and 7-(2',3'-epoxyprenyloxy)-4-methoxyfuroquinoline exhibited significant cytotoxic activity against cervical cancer (Hela) cell line with IC50 values were found to be 6.0 and 11.4 µg/ml, respectively