Effect of Thevetia peruviana on murine-induced obesity

Background: Obesity is considered a multifactorial disease that has importantly increased the development of chronic degenerative diseases. Drugs available for treating obesity have the inconvenience of producing side effects of importance. In Mexican traditional medicine, the seeds of Thevetia peruviana have been widely employed for weight reduction.Materials and Methods: The effect produced by different extracts of T. peruviana on MonoSodium Glutamate (MSG)-induced obesity in mice was evaluated. A chemical analysis oriented toward the identification of the chemical compounds contained in the active extract was carried out.Results: Oral administration of the hexanic extract of T. peruviana (for 7 weeks) was capable of diminishing weight gain by up to 24.1% in the mice without observing the development of resistance to insulin. Median lethal dose of the hexanic and Ethyl Acetate (EtOAc) extracts was >2 g/kg. By utilizing bio-assay guided fractionation, eight secondary metabolites were purified and characterized.Conclusion: The hexanic extract obtained from Thevetia peruviana seeds was capable of reducing weight gain in mice with induced obesity. In addition, this extract showed good response to the glucose tolerance test, was able to avoid the development of insulin resistance, and also substantially increased serum adiponectin levels. Eight low-polarity compounds were identified in the active fraction. This species could be considered for ongoing investigation as a potential option to reduce obesityKeywords: Obesity, Thevetia peruviana, medicinal plants, body weight, adiponectin, monosodium glutamate, sterol

Efecto de Bursera grandiflora sobre el peso corporal y lipemia en ratones obesos

El sobrepeso y la obesidad están claramente vinculados con la ingesta calórica que lleva a la instalación crónica de inflamación sistémica de bajo grado. La terapia farmacológica es altamente recomendable para este padecimiento. Dentro de la familia Burseraceae existen especies utilizadas para el tratamiento de la obesidad, de las cuales, Bursera grandiflora es referida también por su efecto anti-inflamatorio. Evaluar el efecto de B. grandiflora en un modelo de obesidad, su potencial toxicológico, e identificación del compuesto mayoritario. Se utilizaron ratones C57Bl/6 alimentados durante 8 semanas con dieta hipercalórica. Posteriormente, durante 7 semanas se administró diariamente un extracto hidroalcohólico de B. grandiflora o agua (control). Al final se cuantificaron colesterol y triglicéridos. Además, se realizaron pruebas de toxicidad en ratones administrando el extracto de B. grandiflora en forma aguda y subcrónica. Finalmente, se identificó el compuesto mayoritario. Los animales tratados con B. grandiflora registraron el mayor consumo de alimento y, paradójicamente, sin mostrar un crecimiento ponderal y con una disminución de los triglicéridos. Las evaluaciones de toxicología revelaron que la administración del extracto no produjo muertes en los animales de experimentación, ni cambios orgánicos o de comportamiento. El compuesto mayoritario identificado en el extracto activo fue escopoletina

Inhibición de la actividad de acetilcolinesterasa por el extracto hidroalcohólico y sus fracciones de Bouvardia ternifolia (Cav.) Shcltdl (Rubiaceae)

El extracto hidroalcohólico (BtHA) y fracciones provenientes de Bouvardia ternifolia fueron evaluadas como inhibidores de la enzima acetilcolinesterasa  utilizando el método enzimático propuesto por Ellman. BtHA  inhibe a la enzima de manera competitiva (IC50 = 0.6 g/ml); la fracción de acetato de etilo  (BtF-AcOEt) provoca una inhibición mixta (IC50 = 0.96 g/ml). La fracción insoluble en metanol (Bt-Faq-1) mostró una inhibición tipo mixta (CI50 = 0.96  g/ml). Finalmente la fracción soluble en metanol, Bt-Faq-2, inhibe a la enzima presentando una inhibición mixta que corresponde a un sistema C5 (  = 0.740  and  = 0.842). Mediante HPLC se detectó rutina, quercetina, canferol y ácido ursólico la concentración de estos compuestos fue diferente en cada fracción

Extracts and Fractions from Edible Roots of Sechium edule

Sechium edule is traditionally used in Mexico as a therapeutic resource against renal diseases and to control high blood pressure. The purpose of this work is to evaluate the antihypertensive effect of the hydroalcoholic extract obtained from the roots of this plant, including its fractions and subfractions, on different hypertension models induced with angiotensin II (AG II). The hydroalcoholic extract was tested on an in vitro study of isolated aorta rings denuded of endothelial cells, using AG II as the agonist; this assay proved the vasorelaxant effect of this extract. Vagotomized rats were administered different doses of AG II as well as the Hydroalcoholic extract, which reduced blood pressure in 30 mmHg approximately; subsequently this extract was separated into two fractions (acetone and methanol) which were evaluated in the acute hypertension mouse model induced with AG II, where the acetone fraction was identified as the most effective one and was subsequently subfractioned using an open chromatographic column packed with silica gel. The subfractions were also evaluated in the acute hypertension model. Finally, the extract, fraction, and active subfraction were analyzed by MS-PDA-HPLC, identifying cinnamic derivative compounds like cinnamic acid methyl ester

USE OF ANTIFUNGAL SAPONIN SC-2 OF SOLANUM CHRYSOTRICHUM FOR THE TREATMENT OF VULVOVAGINAL CANDIDIASIS: IN VITRO STUDIES AND CLINICAL EXPERIENCES

Saponin SC-2 from Solanum chrysotrichum showed antifungal activity, demonstrated in vitro, which inhibited the growth of dermatophytes, and in vivo, to be effective in the treatment against tinea pedis and pityriasis capitis. Fungistatic and fungicidal activity of saponin SC-2 on Candida albicans and other Candida species, fluconazole and ketoconazole resistaent strains was demostrated. SC-2-associated ultrastructural alterations in several Candida species were observed. An exploratory clinical, randomized, double-blind, and controlled ketoconazole study of ketoconazole was conducted with the aim of assessing the effectiveness and tolerability of an herbal medicinal product containing SC-2, on women with Vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC). The results exhibited a percentage of therapeutic clinical effectiveness similar to that of ketoconazole (X2, p ≥0.30), but obtained a smaller percentage of mycological effectiveness, and 100% tolerability. In conclusion, saponin SC-2 possesses fungicidale and fungistatic activity on Candida albicans and other multi resistant Candida species, causes morphological changes and fungal death, and it is an alternative therapy for the treatment of VVC

Microbiological and Pharmacological Evaluation of the Micropropagated Rubus liebmannii Medicinal Plant

Rubus liebmannii is an endemic species from Mexico used in traditional medicine primarily to treat dysentery and cough. The in vitro activity against Giardia lamblia and Entamoeba histolytica that produces the ethanolic extract of the aerial parts of the plant led us to expand the pharmacological and phytochemical research of this species. Gastrointestinal disorders including amebiasis remain one of the health problems that need to be addressed and it is of interest to find alternatives that improve their treatment. Also, it is important to emphasize that R. liebmannii grows wild in the country and is not found in abundance; therefore, alternatives that avoid overexploitation of the natural resource are mandatory. Ongoing with the evaluation of the potentialities that R. liebmannii possesses for treating infectious gastrointestinal diseases, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the biological effects and the chemical composition of the micropropagated plant