INHIBITORY EFFECTS OF ANCHUSA AZUREA EXTRACTS ON XANTHINE OXIDASE ACTIVITY AND ITS HYPOURICEMIC EFFECTS ON MICE

Objective: The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of the polyphenols and flavonoids from Anchusa azurea on XO activities in vitro and on serum and liver uric acid levels in normal and potassium oxonate-induced hyper uricemic mice. In addition, the renal function of the mice after flavonoid administration was estimated by the determination of blood urea and creatinine analysis.Methods: In the present study, Anchusa azurea were extracted with solvent of varying polarity allowed its separation into four subfractions: crude extract (Cr) chloroform extract (ChE), ethyl acetate extract (AcE), and aqueous extracts (AqE). Total polyphenol and flavonoids contents of Anchusa azurea extracts were determined. The inhibitory activity of the extracts on the XO was evaluated and the type of inhibition was determined. Hyperuricemia is induced by intraperitoneally injection of potassium oxonate, the uric acid, urea and creatinine were measured in serum and supernatant of the liver. The effect of the extracts on renal function was evaluated. The rate of urea and creatinine levels can be indicators for the assessment of renal function.Results: AcE were the richest in polyphenols and ChE was the richest fraction in flavonoids. The inhibitory activity of the extracts on the XO was evaluated, the results obtained showed that the inhibition is dose-dependent and ChE and AcE have the best inhibitory effect (IC50= 0.334±0.006 and 0.263±0.002 mg/ml, respectively), and both showed a noncompetitive type of inhibition. For antihyperuricemic effect, AqE and CrE caused a decrease in serum uric acid (a decrease of 66%) followed by ChE with a percentage of 29.22 %. The AcE keeps almost the same value of uric acid of "PO" group. For the supernatant, only CrE caused a significant decrease of liver uric acid (18.5±4.83 mg/l). This decrease can be explained by the significant inhibition of the XO by inhibition of the synthesis pathways of uric acid. Comparing the urea level of "OP" group (0.48 g/l), only extracts CrE-AA, AqE-AA (0.41g/l, 0.39 g/l) decreased the level of urea significantly (P ≤ 0.05) to the normal values of urea (0.34 g/l), we can conclude that the rate of urea and creatinine after treatment with plant extracts are normal and that the results of this study indicate the absence of renal damage in miceConclusion: Anchusa azurea fractions have a strong inhibitory effect on xanthine oxidase and also have a significant lowering effect on serum and liver creatinine and urea levels in hyper uricemic mice.Â

A longitudinal study of gene expression in first-episode schizophrenia; exploring relapse mechanisms by co-expression analysis in peripheral blood

Little is known about the pathophysiological mechanisms of relapse in first-episode schizophrenia, which limits the study of potential biomarkers. To explore relapse mechanisms and identify potential biomarkers for relapse prediction, we analyzed gene expression in peripheral blood in a cohort of first-episode schizophrenia patients with less than 5 years of evolution who had been evaluated over a 3-year follow-up period. A total of 91 participants of the 2EPs project formed the sample for baseline gene expression analysis. Of these, 67 provided biological samples at follow-up (36 after 3 years and 31 at relapse). Gene expression was assessed using the Clariom S Human Array. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis was applied to identify modules of co-expressed genes and to analyze their preservation after 3 years of follow-up or at relapse. Among the 25 modules identified, one module was semi-conserved at relapse (DarkTurquoise) and was enriched with risk genes for schizophrenia, showing a dysregulation of the TCF4 gene network in the module. Two modules were semi-conserved both at relapse and after 3 years of follow-up (DarkRed and DarkGrey) and were found to be biologically associated with protein modification and protein location processes. Higher expression of DarkRed genes was associated with higher risk of suffering a relapse and early appearance of relapse (p = 0.045). Our findings suggest that a dysregulation of the TCF4 network could be an important step in the biological process that leads to relapse and suggest that genes related to the ubiquitin proteosome system could be potential biomarkers of relapse. © 2021, The Author(s)

Kinetics of Inhibition of Xanthine Oxidase by Lycium arabicum and its Protective Effect against Oxonate- Induced Hyperuricemia and Renal Dysfunction in Mice

Purpose: To evaluate the in-vitro inhibition of xanthine oxidase (purified from bovine milk) by extracts of Lycium arabicum, as well as it is in vivo hypouricemic and renal protective effects.Methods: Four extracts of Lycium arabicum, methanol (CrE), chloroform (ChE), ethyl acetate (EaE) and aqueous (AqE) extracts, were screened for their total phenolics and potential inhibitory effects on purified bovine milk xanthine oxidase (XO) activity by measuring the formation of uric acid or superoxide radical. The mode of inhibition was investigated and compared with the standard drugs, allopurinol, quercitin and catechin. To evaluate their hypouricemic effect, the extracts were administered to potassium oxonate-induced hyperuricemic mice at a dose of 50 mg/kg body weight.Results: The results showed that EaE had the highest content of phenolic compounds and was the most potent inhibitor of uric acid formation (IC50 = 0.017 ± 0.001 mg/mL) and formation of superoxide (IC50 = 0.035 ± 0.001 mg/ml). Lineweaver-Burk analysis showed that CrE and EaE inhibited XO competitively, whereas the inhibitory activities exerted by ChE and AqE were of a mixed type. Intraperetoneal injection of L. arabicum extracts (50 mg/kg) elicited hypouricemic actions in hyperuricemic mice. Hyperuricemic mice presented a serum uric acid concentration of 4.71 ± 0.29 mg/L but this was reduced to 1.78 ± 0.11 mg/L by EaE, which was the most potent hyporuricemic extract.Conclusion: L. arabicum fractions have a strong inhibitory effect on xanthine oxidase and and also have a significantly lowering effect on serum and liver creatinine and urea levels in hyperuricemic mice.Keywords: Lycium arabicum, Uric acid, Creatinine, Superoxide, Phenolic compounds, Flavonoids, Hyperuricemi

A longitudinal study of gene expression in first-episode schizophrenia; exploring relapse mechanisms by co-expression analysis in peripheral blood

Little is known about the pathophysiological mechanisms of relapse in first-episode schizophrenia, which limits the study of potential biomarkers. To explore relapse mechanisms and identify potential biomarkers for relapse prediction, we analyzed gene expression in peripheral blood in a cohort of first-episode schizophrenia patients with less than 5 years of evolution who had been evaluated over a 3-year follow-up period. A total of 91 participants of the 2EPs project formed the sample for baseline gene expression analysis. Of these, 67 provided biological samples at follow-up (36 after 3 years and 31 at relapse). Gene expression was assessed using the Clariom S Human Array. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis was applied to identify modules of co-expressed genes and to analyze their preservation after 3 years of follow-up or at relapse. Among the 25 modules identified, one module was semi-conserved at relapse (DarkTurquoise) and was enriched with risk genes for schizophrenia, showing a dysregulation of the TCF4 gene network in the module. Two modules were semi-conserved both at relapse and after 3 years of follow-up (DarkRed and DarkGrey) and were found to be biologically associated with protein modification and protein location processes. Higher expression of DarkRed genes was associated with higher risk of suffering a relapse and early appearance of relapse (p = 0.045). Our findings suggest that a dysregulation of the TCF4 network could be an important step in the biological process that leads to relapse and suggest that genes related to the ubiquitin proteosome system could be potential biomarkers of relapse.This study was supported by the Carlos III Healthcare Institute, the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF/FEDER) (PI08/0208, PI11/00325, PI14/00612); Centro de Investigacion Biomedica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM); CERCA Program; Catalan Government, the Secretariat of Universities and Research of the Department of Enterprise and Knowledge (2017SGR1562 and 2017SGR1355); and Institut de Neurociencies, Universitat de Barcelona. The authors thank the Language Advisory Service at the University of Barcelona for manuscript revision. The authors also thank all subjects and their families for the time and effort spent on this study as well as Ana Meseguer for sample collection assistance