Antiulcer activity of Moroccan Artemisia campestris L. subsp. glutinosa against ethanol-induced gastric ulcer in Mice.

Artemisia campestris L. subsp. glutinosa is a plant growing in Morocco and widely used in traditional medicine as a beneficial remedy for the digestive system. The present study was carried out to evaluate the antiulcer activity of aqueous extract (AEAc) and ethanolic extract of this plant (EEAc) using an experimental model not previously tested against ethanol-induced gastric ulcer and acute toxicity in mice. The gastric lesion was assessed by ulcer area, ulcer index, prevention index, histopathological examination, and malondialdehyde (MDA) determination. Administered of AEAc and EEAc at a dose of 100, 200, 400 mg/kg before ethanol ingestion significantly inhibited gastric ulcers. AEAc and EEAc induced a significant decrease in the ulcer area compared to the control group. The preventive index of different doses of both extracts is almost similar to that of Omeprazole. These results were confirmed by a decrease in mucosal thickness in the group treated with the plant in the histological study and the decrease in MDA level in the group treated with the plant compared to the control ulcer group. The acute toxicity study revealed no abnormal sign or death to the mice treated with 4g/kg and 8 g/kg of both extracts. These findings confirm the traditional use of Artemisia campestris L. subsp. glutinosa as a gastro-protective agent

Biological effects and pharmacological activities of saffron of Crocus sativus

The medicinal uses of saffron (Crocus sativus Linnaeus) have a long history beginning in Asian countries since the Late Bronze Age. Recent studies have validated its potential to lower the risk of several diseases. Saffron has been suggested to be effective in the treatment of a wide range of disorders including coronary artery diseases, hypertension, stomach disorders, dysmenorrhea and learning and memory impairments. In addition, different studies have indicated that saffron has anti-inflammatory, anti-atherosclerotic, antidiabetic, antigenotoxic and cytotoxic activities. The anticonvulsant and anti-Alzheimer properties of saffron extract were shown in human and animal studies. The efficacy of Crocus sativus in the treatment of mild to moderate depression was also reported in clinical trial. Many of these medicinal properties of saffron can be attributed to a number of its compounds such as crocetin, crocins and other substances having strong antioxidant and radical scavenger properties against a variety of radical oxygen species and pro-inflammatory cytokines

Protective effect of Crocus sativus stamens extract on gentamicin-induced nephrotoxicity and oxidative damage in rat kidney

Crocus sativus is a medicinal plant supposedly possessing various biological activities. Currently, it is evaluated only by the medicinal properties of its stigma and many parts of this plant are unused. This work contributes to the valorization of C.sativus stamens by exploring the property of methanolic extract to prevent gentamicin-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. Twenty Wistar rats (weight 250 ± 30g) were assigned into four equal groups (n = 5), and among the assigned groups,  group 1 was given only distilled water (Control), group 2 received intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of gentamicin (GEN) 80 mg/kg/d, group 3 received the combination of gentamicin (80 mg/kg/d, i.p.) and oral administration of a lower dose of C. sativus methanolic extract (250 mg/kg/d), while the group 4 received the combination of gentamicin (80 mg/kg/d, i.p.) and oral administration of a higher dose of C. sativus methanolic extract (500 mg/kg/d). The injection of gentamicin for the nephrotoxicity induction and post-treatment with methanolic extract was carried out once a day for 15 days. For nephrotoxicity evaluation, biochemical and histopathological analyses were performed. The estimation of serum and urinary creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, sodium levels was carried out with the help of Architect Ci 4100 Analyzer. Oxidative stress was assessed by the determination of renal malondialdehyde (MDA) and catalase (CAT) levels. The results of the study suggested that gentamicin injection induced a significant (p < 0.01) elevation in serum renal biochemical parameters and oxidative stress indices. The methanolic extract of C. sativus significantly (p < 0.05) reduced serum creatinine, urea, and sodium levels, with an improvement in the histopathological results of gentamicin-induced alterations. Furthermore, pretreatment with plant extracts improved hepatic antioxidant status, by the elevation of the CAT and reducing the lipid peroxidation level (MDA) in tissues. The present study suggests that the methanolic extract of C. sativus stamens has an interesting nephroprotective effect on the renal lesions induced by GEN in modulating renal parameters and oxidative stress on Wistar rats

Evaluation of toxicity, nephroprotective and hepatoprotective activities of Argan oil on CCl4-induced nephrotoxicity and hepatotoxicity in Wistar rats

In traditional therapy, Argania spinosa L. seeds oil used as a nephroprotective and hepatoprotective agent. The present work aims to investigate the acute toxicity of unroasted Argan oil, and studied the nephroprotective and the hepatoprotective activity of both oils Roasted (Roil) and unroasted Argan oil (UnRoil) on CCl4-induced liver and kidney damages in Wistar rats. Animals were divided into five equal groups; Control and CCl4 groups are received only distilled water (10 mL/Kg/day). Control positive group received 50 mg/Kg/day of Silymarin. Roil and UnRoil groups treated with 2 mL/Kg/day of Roil and UnRoil. One week after each pretreatment, the rats are injected intraperitoneally with 1 mL/kg/week of CCl4. The treatment has lasted for 15 days. The body weight, urinary volume, water, and food intake were measured at the end of the treatment. Then, the animals are sacrificed; the blood and the liver samples were collected for determining the liver weight ratio and biochemical parameters. UnRoil did not show any sign of toxicity up to 5 mL/Kg. In Roil and UnRoil groups the water intake, ALT, AST, total and direct bilirubin, triglycerides, LDL, plasmatic creatinine, urea, uric acid, and MDA levels are reduced significantly as compared with the CCl4 group. However, body weight,liver weight ratio, food intake, urine urea, urinary creatinine, hepatic glycogen, and GSH levels showed a significant increase compared to the CCl4 group. Roil and UnRoil showed important nephroprotective and hepatoprotective effects against CCl4. Although, the roasting process does not influence the ability of Argan seed oils towards these activities.Keywords

Valorization of Moroccan Crocus sativus L. By-products: Foliar Spraying of Aqueous Tepal Extract Stimulates Growth and Confers Antioxidant Properties in Eggplant Seedling under Greenhouse Conditions

The valorization of Crocus sativus L. by-products has become important given its interesting content of bioactive molecules. In the present study, aqueous tepal extract (ATE) studied eggplant seedling’s growth and physiology under a plastic tunnel. ATE was foliage sprayed 3 times every 15 days, with various concentrations (1 mg/mL, 2 mg/mL, 3 mg/mL) in addition to a treatment containing 2 mg/mL of tepals and 0.6 mg/mL of stigmas (T+S). The concentration of 2 mg/L ATE significantly (p≤0.05) increased the plant’s height, the chlorophyll content, and decreased antioxidant activity and MDA (malondialdehyde). However, the concentration 3 mg/mL inhibited the plant growth; increased the content of ascorbic acid and polyphenol; and resulted in lipid peroxidation and antioxidant activities increases, indicating oxidative stress (p≤0.05). On the other hand, T+S significantly influenced some parameters analyzed. Our findings demonstrate that ATE can act as a biostimulant at 2 mg/mL to enhance eggplant growth in plastic tunnel production and used in plant stress situations

Antioxidant properties and hepatoprotective effect of Croccus sativus stamens against carbon tetrachloride‑induced liver injury in rats

Background: Carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) is one of the commonly used models for the induction of liver injury and screening of the hepatoprotective activity of different drugs. The aim of this study was to investigate the hepatoprotective activity and possible underlying mechanisms of methanolic and hydroethanolic extracts of Croccus sativus stamens using a model of carbon tetrachloride-induced liver injury in rats. Methods: Methanolic and hydroethanolic extracts was daily orally administered to rats at the doses of 250 mg/kg, prior to double intraperitoneal injection of 1% CCl4 on 7 days and 14 days. Their activities were compared with silymarin (250 mg/kg) for 14 days. Parameters of hepatic and renal function, lipid profile, and oxidative stress were evaluated in rat serum and tissues. Results: The results indicated that CCl4 injection in rats increased plasma aspartate aminotransferase (AST), Alanin aminotransferase (ALT), and Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP) activities, which were normalized by methanolic, and hydroethanolic pretreatment. In addition, administration of both extracts with CCl4 significantly inhibited alterations of kidney indices in the serum levels of creatinine and urea. Moreover, CCl4 administration increased the lipid peroxidation level (MDA) in tissues that is signifanctly reduced by the Methanolic and hydroethanolic extract of the plant. Methanolic and hydroethanolic treatment improved hepatic antioxidant status, by the elevation of the CAT and GSH level in CCl4‑administered rats. Conclusion: These findings demonstrated the potential effect of Croccus sativus stamens as a protector against liver injury. Mediated possibly by their antioxidant properties. Which are comparable to those of the standard hepatoprotective compound silymarin

Novel family of bis-pyrazole coordination complexes as potent antibacterial and antifungal agents

A new pyrazole ligand, N,N-bis(2(1′,5,5′-trimethyl-1H,1′H-[3,3′-bipyrazol]-1-yl)ethyl)propan-1-amine (L) was synthesized and characterized by 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, FT-IR and HRMS. The coordination ability of the ligand has been employed for the construction of a new family of coordination complexes, namely: [Cu2LCl4] (1), [ML(CH3OH)(H2O)](ClO4)2 (MII = Ni (2), Co (3)) and [FeL(NCS)2] (4). The series of complexes were characterized using single-crystal X-ray diffraction, HRMS, FT-IR and UV-visible spectroscopy. Moreover, the iron(II) analogue was investigated by 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy and SQUID magnetometry. Single-crystal X-ray structures of the prepared complexes are debated within the framework of the cooperative effect of the hydrogen bonding network and counter anions on the supramolecular formations observed. Furthermore, within the context of biological activity surveys, these compounds were reviewed against different types of bacteria to validate their efficiency, including both Gram-positive as well as Gram-negative bacteria. Enhanced behaviour towards Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. albedinis fungi, were detected for 1 and 4

Coordination Complexes Built from a Ditopic Triazole-Pyrazole Ligand with Antibacterial and Antifungal Performances

Four mononuclear complexes (H3O){[NiL3](ClO4)3} (1), [CoL3](ClO4)2·2H2O (2), [CdL2Cl2] (3) and [CuL3](NO3)2 (4) have been prepared employing a newly synthesized 1,2,4-triazole ligand: 3-(3,5-dimethyl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-1H-1,2,4-triazole (L). The structures of the complexes, which crystallized in P63/m (1), P-1 (2), P1 (3), and P21/c (4), are reviewed within the context of the cooperative effect of the hydrogen bonding network and counter anions on the supramolecular formations. Moreover, within the framework of biological activity examination, these compounds showed favorable antibacterial performances compared to those of various species of bacteria, including both Gram-positive and Gram-negative strains. Significant antifungal inhibitory activity towards Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. albedinis fungi was recorded for 3 and 4 over the ligand L

Antioxidant Activity, Metal Chelating Ability and DNA Protective Effect of the Hydroethanolic Extracts of Crocus sativus Stigmas, Tepals and Leaves

The present study investigated the antioxidant activity, metal chelating ability and genoprotective effect of the hydroethanolic extracts of Crocus sativus stigmas (STG), tepals (TPL) and leaves (LV). We evaluated the antioxidant and metal (Fe2+ and Cu2+) chelating activities of the stigmas, tepals and leaves of C. sativus. Similarly, we examined the genotoxic and DNA protective effect of these parts on rat leukocytes by comet assay. The results showed that TPL contains the best polyphenol content (64.66 µg GA eq/mg extract). The highest radical scavenging activity is shown by the TPL (DPPH radical scavenging activity: IC50 = 80.73 µg/mL). The same extracts gave a better ferric reducing power at a dose of 50 µg/mL, and better protective activity against β-carotene degradation (39.31% of oxidized β-carotene at a 100 µg/mL dose). In addition, they showed a good chelating ability of Fe2+ (48.7% at a 500 µg/mL dose) and Cu2+ (85.02% at a dose of 500 µg/mL). Thus, the antioxidant activity and metal chelating ability in the C. sativus plant is important, and it varies according to the part and dose used. In addition, pretreatment with STG, TPL and LV significantly (p < 0.001) protected rat leukocytes against the elevation of percent DNA in the tail, tail length and tail moment in streptozotocin- and alloxan-induced DNA damage. These results suggest that C. sativus by-products contain natural antioxidant, metal chelating and DNA protective compounds, which are capable of reducing the risk of cancer and other diseases associated with daily exposure to genotoxic xenobiotics