Effect Of Herbal Compound Research Articles

Evidence-Based Immunotherapeutic Effects of Herbal Compounds on Humoral Immunity: Ancient and New Approaches.

The human immune system represents a dynamic multiscale system with high complexity in biology. Humoral immunity, as the main branch of adaptive immunity, is characterized by differentiated stages of the B lymphocytes, producing the final product of antibodies that has a diversity of the tuning mechanisms within genetic and epigenetic levels in confrontation with environmental exposures. Disorders because of disturbed humoral immunity are linked with dysregulation of feedback-regulated signaling and the dynamic of immune components that determine the overall response. Food products, mainly herbal components have a significant role in tailoring the immune system micro-ecosystem which can diversify the adaptive nature of humoral immunity. Herein, we review the current evidence-based approaches for the impact of medicinal herbs on humoral immunity signaling and antibody production with a focus on immunotherapeutic applications.

Optimization of spectrophotometric method for determination nattokinase activity in dietary supplements

Nattokinase is an enzyme with a strong fibrinolytic activity that can be used for preventing thrombolytic diseases. The fibrinolytic activity of the Nattokinase in dietary supplements is determined by spectrophotometric method. In this study, the conditions of the assay were examined and finally optimized as pH: 8.5, reaction temperature: 40oC, and reaction time: 60 minutes. The proposed method was validated and successfully applied to determine the Nattokinase activity in 10 dietary supplements. The results showed that the proportion of measured activity compared to label product activity were within in the range 79.1 - 98.0%. The effect of herbal compounds and excipients on Nattokinase activity were also surveyed. From the evaluated results and application to commercial samples, this method will be a valuable contribution to quality control of dietary supplement products containing Nattokinase.  

Therapeutic effects of herbal compounds in cerebral ischemia with special reference to suppression of microglia activation implicated in neurodegeneration.

Cerebral ischemia affects many especially with the ageing population. The ensuing ischemic reactions include oxidative stress, inflammation, and excitotoxicity among others. In the search for effective therapeutic strategies for cerebral ischemia, activated microglia which are the key player in neuroinflammation are now recognized as a potential therapeutic target. Microglia possess both neurotoxic and neuroprotective roles. They are protective by continuously surveilling the microenvironment, phagocytosing dead cells, secreting trophic factors and sculpting the neuronal connections by removing axons and pruning excess synapses. On the other hand, hyperactivated microglia may impair cerebral oxidative metabolism, and produce excessive proinflammatory mediators that may exacerbate the brain damage. In view of this, suppression of microglial activation has been considered a therapeutic strategy to mitigate microglia-based neuroinflammation in cerebral ischemia. However, balancing the neuroprotective and neurotoxic roles of activated microglia remains a challenging issue. Many traditional Chinese herbal agents have been used in clinic for treatment of cerebral ischemia. Here, we provide an overview of five common Chinese herbs targeting specifically microglia-mediated neuroinflammation in cerebral ischemia. It is hoped that a common parallel may be drawn from their beneficial effects especially in the latter pathological conditions for their better and effective use in the future.

Efficacy of a Persian Medicine Herbal Compound (Alcea digitata Alef and Malva sylvestris L.) on Prevention of Radiation Induced Acute Mucositis in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer: A Pilot Study

Background: Mucositis is the most common complication of radiotherapy in patients with head and neck (H and N) cancers. Objectives: This study surveyed the efficacy of a herbal compound containing Alcea digitata Alef and Malva sylvestris L. in prevention of radiation-induced mucositis in patients with head and neck cancer. Methods: In the present study, a total of 23 patients were examined and assigned to 2 groups. The herbal drug and the placebo (provided from Avicel) were administered for 7 weeks, from the beginning of radiotherapy to 2 weeks after the completion of the treatment. During weekly visits, mouth pain score (MPS) was assessed, using visual analog scale (VAS) and severity of mucositis was checked by investigators. Results: Patients in control group showed more severe mucositis from second week, compared with drug group (p < 0.0001). The effect of herbal compound, time and the time-drug’s interaction on mucositis, and MPS were significant (p < 0.0001); hence, the severity of mucositis and the mean of MPS in control group was significantly more severe in comparison with drug group (p < 0.0001) in weekly cut. The effect of time was significant only in control group (p < 0.0001); and in drug group, there was no significant difference in severity of mucositis and MPS during the study (p = 0.2366). Conclusions: Therefore, not only the severity of mucositis and the average of MPS were significantly lower in drug group compared with control group, but also they were invariant during the study and showed no uptrend.

Effects of Herbal Compound (IMOD) on Behavior and Expression of Alzheimer's Disease Related Genes in Streptozotocin-Rat Model of Sporadic Alzheimer's Disease.

Purpose: Sporadic Alzheimer’s disease (AD) accounts for over 95% of cases. Possible mechanisms of AD such as inflammation and oxidative stresses in the brain motivate researchers to follow many therapies which would be effective, especially in the early stages of the disease. IMOD, the herbal extract of R. Canina, T. Vulgare and U. Dioica plant species enriched with selenium, has anti-inflammatory, immunoregulatory and protective effects against oxidative stress.Methods: In this study three AD-related genes, DAXX, NFκβ and VEGF, were chosen as candidate to investigate the neuroprotective effect of the extract by comparing their expression levels in the hippocampus of rat model of sporadic AD, using qPCR in the herbal-treated and control groups. The therapeutic effects on learning and memory levels were evaluated by Morris Water Maze (MWM) test.Results: Gene expression results were indicative of significant up-regulation of Vegf in rat’s hippocampus after treatment with the herbal extract comparing to model group (P-value= 0.001). The MWM results showed significant changes in path length and time for finding the hidden platform in all groups during test and the same change in the treated comparing to the control group in memory level.Conclusion: It could be concluded that the herbal extract may have significant effect on gene expression but not on behavioral level.

Effects of herbal compound 861 on collagen synthesis and degradation in rat mesangial cells exposed to high glucose

To investigate the effects of Herbal Compound 861 (Cpd 861) on collagen synthesis and degradation in rat mesangial cells exposed to high glucose. The third to fifth passage of rat mesangial cells were exposed to high glucose and Cpd 861 at a concentration of 0.25-4.00 g/L for 24, 48 and 72 h, respectively. Benazepril (10(-7)-10(-3) mmol/L) was selected as positive control. The methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium colorimetric assay was used to evaluate the effect of Cpd 861 on cell proliferation. After incubation with Cpd 861 at a concentration of 2.00 g/L for 48 h, the protein secretions of collagen type IV, matrix metallopeptidase 9 (MMP-9), tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1), transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-β1), and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. And rat mesangial cells were harvested to determine MMP-9, TIMP-1, TGF-β1 and HGF mRNA expression by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Cpd 861 inhibited cell proliferation induced by high glucose in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Compared with high glucose, collagen type IV production was decreased significantly by Cpd 861 (P<0.01). Cpd 861 increased the protein secretions and mRNA expressions of MMP-9 and HGF, whereas the protein secretions and mRNA expressions of TIMP-1 and TGF-β1 were reduced markedly (P<0.05). The ratio of MMP-9 to TIMP-1 was enhanced by Cpd 861 significantly. There was no significant difference in all above-mentioned effects between Cpd 861 (2.00 g/L) and benazepril (10(-5) mmol/L). The anti-glomerulosclerosis mechanisms of Cpd 861 were partly attributed to its effects of inhibiting mesangial cell proliferation, decreasing collagen synthesis and enhancing collagen degradation.

Inhibitory effects of Herbal compound 861 on expression of c-fos and c-jun genes in hepatic stellate cells

Objective To investigate the effects of herbal compound 861 on the expression of c-fos and c-jun genes in hepatic stellate cells.Methods Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) were cultured in medium containing different concentrations of compound 861 (1.00,0.50,0.25 g/L respectively) and harvested at different incubation periods (8,24,48,72 h).Total RNA of HSCs was isolated and the expression levels of c-fos and c-jun genes were detected by using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction.Results C-fos gene expression levels of HSCs in high (1.00 g/L),middle (0.50 g/L) and low (0.25 g/L) concentrations of compound 861-treated groups were significantly lower than those in control group (0.63 ±0.13,0.50 ± 0.12,0.43 ± 0.06,0.32 ± 0.04) after exposure to compound 861 at 8 h (0.13 ± 0.04,0.20±0.05,0.36 ±0.09),24 h (0.10 ±0.03,0.16 ±0.04,0.30 ±0.05),48 h (0.08 ±0.02,0.12 ± 0.03,0.26 ± 0.04) and 72 h (0.06 ± 0.01,0.09 ± 0.02,0.21 ± 0.03).C-jun gene expression levels of HSCs in high,middle and low concentrations of compound 861-treated groups were also significandy lower than those in control group (0.93±0.13,0.80 ± 0.12,0.63 ±0.10,0.32 ± 0.04) after exposure to compound 861 at 8 h (0.20 ±0.04,0.36 ±0.06,0.53 ±0.10),24 h (0.17 ±0.04,0.32 ±0.07,0.47 ±0.10),48 h (0.13 ±0.03,0.30 ±0.06,0.40 ±0.08) and 72 h (0.10 ±0.02,0.23 ±0.03,0.32 ± 0.04).The expression levels of c-fos and c-jun genes in HSCs were decreased gradually as the dosage of compound 861 increased,and there were significant differences in the expression levels of cfos and c-jun genes among three compound 861-treated groups.Conclusion Compound 861 may strongly down-regulate the expression of c-fos and c-jun genes in HSCs. Key words: Compound 861 ; Hepatic stellate cell; c-fos; c-jun ; Gene expression

Computational and in vitro studies on the inhibitory effects of herbal compounds on human cytochrome P450 1A2

Human CYP1A2 is an important enzyme for drug metabolism and procarcinogen activation. This study aimed to explore the binding mode of ligands with CYP1A2 and to screen potential inhibitors from a library of herbal compounds using computational and in vitro approaches.The heme prosthetic group and six residues (Thr124, Phe125, Phe226, Phe260, Gly316, and Ala317) in the active site of CYP1A2 were identified as important residues for ligand binding using the LIGPLOT program. Ala317 in helix I immediately above heme was highly conserved in most human CYPs with known crystal structures.In molecular docking, 19 of the 56 herbal compounds examined were identified as potential inhibitors of CYP1A2. Up to 21 of the 56 herbal compounds were hit by the pharmacophore model of CYP1A2 inhibitors developed and validated in this study.In the in vitro inhibition study, 8 herbal compounds were identified as moderate to potent inhibitors of CYP1A2. Five of the 8 herbal compounds predicted to be potential inhibitors were confirmed as CYP1A2 inhibitors in the in vitro study.A combination of computational and in vitro approaches, represent a useful tool to identify potential inhibitors for CYP1A2 from herbal compounds.

CAR-mediated Up-regulation of CYP3A4 Expression in LS174T Cells by Chinese Herbal Compounds

The constitutive androstane receptor (CAR) is an orphan nuclear receptor which has been shown to participate in the activation of human CYP3A4, which metabolizes more than 50% of clinically used drugs. We investigated the effects of an array of compounds isolated from herbal medicines such as Rheum palmatum (Da Huang), Peucedanum praeruptorum Dunn (Qian Hu), Cortex Mori Radicis (Sang Bai Pi), Radix Asteris (Zi Wan), Salvia miltiorrhiza (Dan Shen), Polygonum cuspidatum Sieb. et Zucc (Hu Zhang), and Ginkgo biloba (Yin Xing) on the CAR-mediated transactivation of CYP3A4. The effect of herbal compounds on CYP3A4 expression was measured using a CYP3A4 luciferase reporter gene assay in transiently transfected human intestinal LS174T cells. The gene expression, protein expression, and catalytic activity of CYP3A4 in LS174T cells transfected with CAR were determined by using real-time PCR, Western blot analysis, and LC-MS/MS-based substrate assay. The study found that in CAR-transfected cells, praeruptorin A, C, and D significantly induced CYP3A4 luciferase activity, mRNA expression, and functional activity through the CAR-mediated pathway; conversely, induction was not found in untransfected cells. Our findings suggest that these herbal compounds can significantly up-regulate the CYP3A4 gene via the CAR-mediated pathway, which has important implications in herb-drug interactions.