Anticancer Effects of Some Medicinal Thai Plants

Ethanolic extracts from thirty Thai edible plants collected from Sa Keao province, Thailand, were screened for in vitro antiproliferative effect on HCT-116 human colon cancer cell line using cell titer 96 aqueous one solution cell proliferation assay. It was found that leaf extract of Crateva adansnii, fruit and leaf extracts of Ardisia elliptica, shoot extract of Colocasia esculenta, leaf extract of Cratoxylum fomosum, and leaf extract of Millettia leucantha exhibited antiproliferative activities. The fruit extract of Ardisia elliptica showed the highest antiproliferative activity. Ethanolic extract of the stems from C. fenestratum and its dichloromethane and aqueous fractions showed antiproliferative activity to human colorectal cancer cells (HCT-116) determined by cell growth assay. Berberine, one of the major alkaloid in the stems of C. fenestratum, also promoted antiproliferative effect. Extracts from the leaves of three Azadirachta species in Thailand, A. indica, A. indica var. siamensis, and A. excelsa, were reported to promote in vitro antioxidant effects determined by various methods. Ten Russula mushroom collected from northeastern part of Thailand were tested for in vitro antioxidant activities using photochemiluminescence assay for both lipid-soluble and water-soluble antioxidant capacities. R. medullata extract exhibited the highest antioxidant effects in both lipid-soluble and water-soluble models

BIOANALYTICAL METHOD VALIDATION FOR DETERMINATION OF ROSMARINIC ACID IN SIMULATED BIOLOGICAL MEDIA USING HPLC

Objective: This study aims to develop and validate a simple, rapid and accurate HPLC method for the determination of rosmarinic acid (RA), an active marker of Thunbergia laurifolia (TL) tea, in Hank's Balanced Salt Solution (HBSS) using HPLC. Methods: The separation was performed using a Xterra® C18 reversed-phase column (150  3.9 mm, 5 µm). The mobile phase consisted of 0.5% (v/v) glacial acetic acid (A) and acetonitrile (B). The flow rate was 1 ml/min and detection was carried out at 330 nm with UV-visible spectrophotometer. The method was validated according to the US FDA guidance on bioanalytical method validation in 2018. Results: The method was successfully validated in the range of 50-500 ng/ml of RA. Intra-and inter-day precision ranged from 1.6 to 2.1% and 1.4 to 4.5%, respectively. Intra-and inter-day relative errors (% bias) were less than 7.6 and 3.6%, respectively. In addition, it was found that the stability of RA in HBSS could be dependent on the pH and temperature. Conclusion: The developed method met the validation requirements and could be further applied to the permeability study of RA using an in vitro Caco-2 cell monolayer model

Thunbergia laurifolia

Leaves of Thunbergia laurifolia (TL) have been reported to have antioxidation, anti-inflammatory, detoxifying, and hepatoprotective effects. However, studies relating to antifibrotic activity have not been reported. Currently, there is no standard treatment for hepatic fibrosis. This study aimed to investigate the antifibrotic activity of TL in human hepatic stellate LX-2 cells. Results from cell viability and cell death assays showed that the extract at high concentrations was toxic to LX-2 cells. TL extract reversed the transformation of LX-2 cells to myofibroblast-like characteristics in response to stimulation by transforming growth factor-beta 1. This action may be associated with the effect of TL in suppressing α-SMA and collagen-I production observed by immunofluorescence study and western blot analysis. Additionally, TL extract significantly decreased MMP-9 activity which is consistent with the reduction of MMP-9, MMP-2, and TIMP-1 gene expression. The effect of TL in suppressing fibrosis may be associated with its ability to inhibit the activation of p38 MAPK and Erk1/2 kinases as examined by western blot analysis. Our study provides convincing evidence that TL possesses antifibrotic activity which may be through the suppression of TGF-β1-mediated production of MMPs, collagen-1, and α-SMA in hepatic stellate cells

Micropropagation and conservation of selected endangered anticancer medicinal plants from the Western Ghats of India

Globally, cancer is a constant battle which severely affects the human population. The major limitations of the anticancer drugs are the deleterious side effects on the quality of life. Plants play a vital role in curing many diseases with minimal or no side effects. Phytocompounds derived from various medicinal plants serve as the best source of drugs to treat cancer. The global demand for phytomedicines is mostly reached by the medicinal herbs from the tropical nations of the world even though many plant species are threatened with extinction. India is one of the mega diverse countries of the world due to its ecological habitats, latitudinal variation, and diverse climatic range. Western Ghats of India is one of the most important depositories of endemic herbs. It is found along the stretch of south western part of India and constitutes rain forest with more than 4000 diverse medicinal plant species. In recent times, many of these therapeutically valued herbs have become endangered and are being included under the red-listed plant category in this region. Due to a sharp rise in the demand for plant-based products, this rich collection is diminishing at an alarming rate that eventually triggered dangerous to biodiversity. Thus, conservation of the endangered medicinal plants has become a matter of importance. The conservation by using only in situ approaches may not be sufficient enough to safeguard such a huge bio-resource of endangered medicinal plants. Hence, the use of biotechnological methods would be vital to complement the ex vitro protection programs and help to reestablish endangered plant species. In this backdrop, the key tools of biotechnology that could assist plant conservation were developed in terms of in vitro regeneration, seed banking, DNA storage, pollen storage, germplasm storage, gene bank (field gene banking), tissue bank, and cryopreservation. In this chapter, an attempt has been made to critically review major endangered medicinal plants that possess anticancer compounds and their conservation aspects by integrating various biotechnological tool

HPLC quantitative analysis of protocatechuic acid contents in 11 Phellinus mushroom species collected in Thailand

Phellinus mushrooms have been traditionally used for various medicinal purposes. Protocatechuic acid, which was previously reported to be a component in some Phellinus mushrooms, has some pharmacological effects. This study aimed to validate a HPLC method for the quantitative analysis of the protocatechuic acid contents in the extracts from different Phellinus mushroom species collected in Thailand. HPLC was carried out using a C18 column and the gradient mobile phases of 0.1% formic acid in water and 0.1% formic acid in acetonitrile. Method validation was performed to assure the linearity, accuracy, precision, limit of detection and limit of quantitation of the analytical method. The linearity range of protocatechuic acid was 1 - 10 µg/ml. The average recovery was 104.16%. The method was shown to be precise with the RSD of repeatability and intermediate precision at less than 3%. The protocatechuic contents in 11 Phellinus mushrooms were in the range of less than 0.0099 - 0.4121 %w/w of the extract. The developed HPLC method was reliable and suitable for the quantitative analysis of protocatechuic acid content in Phellinus mushrooms

Antioxidant Activity and Antibacterial Effects on Clinical Isolated Streptococcus suis and Staphylococcus intermedius of Extracts from Several Parts of Cladogynos orientalis and Their Phytochemical Screenings

The in vitro antioxidant and antibacterial assays against clinically isolated Streptococcus suis and Staphylococcus intermedius of the extracts prepared by decoction and ethanolic reflux of different parts of Chettaphangki (Cladogynos orientalis Zipp. ex Span), including the leaves, roots, and stems, using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging assay and disc diffusion method were conducted. Quantitative analysis of total phenolic and total flavonoid contents in the extracts using spectrophotometric methods was also performed. Finally, phytochemical screening by thin layer chromatography (TLC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was conducted. Leaf ethanolic reflux extract (100 g) contained the highest total phenolic and total flavonoid contents of 7.21 ± 0.28 μg gallic acid equivalent (GAE) and 11.51 ± 2.02 μg rutin equivalent (RE), respectively. Chettaphangki extracts promoted low antioxidant activity with EC50 values in the range of 0.27–0.48 mg/mL. Extracts and fractions from the roots and stems of this plant promoted low to intermediate antibacterial activity against S. intermedius with the inhibition zones between 7 and 14 mm. The chromatographic data suggested that the leaf extracts of C. orientalis contained rutin while the root and stem extracts contained scopoletin and chettaphanin I. Rutin promoted strong antioxidant activity while chettaphanin I showed low antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus intermedius

A Prospective Randomized, Controlled, Double-Blind Trial of the Efficacy Using Centella Cream for Scar Improvement

Objective. This study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of Centella asiatica extract in cream, a preparation for the prevention of scar development of the split-thickness skin graft (STSG) donor site. Methods. A prospective randomized, double-blind control study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of Centella cream in 30 patients who underwent a STSG operation. Both Centella cream and placebo were applied equally to the donor site at least 2 weeks after epithelialization was completed. A scar assessment using the Vancouver Scar Scale (VSS) was taken at 4, 8, and 12 weeks. Results. Of the original 30 patients, 23 patients completed evaluation. There were significant differences in pigmentation parameter of VSS and comparative total VSS scores between 4 and 12 weeks in Centella cream group. Conclusion. The effect of Centella cream on scar development of a STSG operation may be attainable in terms of better pigmentation. By means of objective measurements and longer follow-up times, Centella cream may prove to be an alternative product for hypertrophic scar amelioration

Comparative Phytochemical Profiling and In Vitro Antioxidant Activity of Extracts from Raw Materials, Tissue-Cultured Plants, and Callus of Oroxylum indicum (L.) Vent.

Extracts from raw materials from different plant parts, tissue-cultured plants, and callus cultures of Oroxylum indicum were analyzed for in vitro antioxidant activities determined by DPPH radical scavenging assay and evaluated for phytochemical profiles by TLC and LC-MS methods. The results were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA) to evaluate the similarity. Stalk, pedicel, flower, seed, and whole fruit and callus extracts promoted strong antioxidant activity with high total phenolic and total flavonoid contents. The main phytochemicals found in extracts were baicalin, baicalein, and chrysin. Baicalein and baicalin promoted strong antioxidant effects and existed in most extracts while chrysin, which promoted very low antioxidant activity, was a major flavonoid in the leaves and tissue-cultured plants. From PCA analysis by total phenolic and total flavonoid contents, four main clusters including callus and tissue-cultured plant groups from different growth stages, flower group, and whole fruit and leaf group could be organized. When the results were analyzed by PCA using antioxidant activity with total phenolic or total flavonoid contents, all O. indicum samples could be grouped together except the extracts from the root of tissue-cultured plants which separated from the rest due to their low phytochemical contents and weak antioxidant activities

Ameliorative Effects of Acanthopanax trifoliatus on Cognitive and Emotional Deficits in Olfactory Bulbectomized Mice: An Animal Model of Depression and Cognitive Deficits

Acanthopanax trifoliatus is a plant that has been traditionally used in Thailand as a vegetable and a tonic. This study investigated effects of the aqueous extract of its leaves (ATL) on cognitive and emotional deficits using an olfactory bulbectomized mouse (OBX) model. OBX mice were treated daily with ATL (250 and 500 mg/kg, p.o.) 3 days after OBX. Antidementia drug tacrine (2.5 mg/kg/day) and antidepressant drug imipramine (10 mg/kg/day) were given i.p. as reference drugs. OBX significantly impaired cognitive behavior in a novel object recognition test and a modified Y-maze test and induced depression-like behavior in a tail suspension test. ATL and tacrine treatment attenuated OBX-induced cognitive deficits, whereas ATL and imipramine improved OBX-induced depression-like behavior. Neurochemical studies conducted after completing behavioral experiments demonstrated that OBX downregulated the expression levels of cholinergic marker genes encoding choline acetyltransferase and muscarinic M1 receptor in a manner reversed by ATL and tacrine. Moreover, ATL and tacrine administration inhibited the ex vivo activity of acetylcholinesterase in the brain. These findings suggest that ATL is beneficial for the treatment of cognitive and emotional deficits related to dementia with depressive symptoms and that the antidementia effect of ATL is mediated by normalizing the function of central cholinergic systems