A new apotirucallane-type protolimonoid from the leaves of Paramignya trimera.

This study presents a phytochemical analysis of the leaves of Paramignya trimera, revealing the isolation of a new apotirucallane-type protolimonoid, identified as 25-O-methyl-1,2-dihydroprotoxylocarpin D (1), along with two known compounds (2 and 3). The known compounds were identified as (20S,21R,23R)-21,23-epoxy-7α,24,25-trihydroxy-21-O-methyl-3-oxoapotirucalla-14-ene (2) and 7α,24,25-trihydroxy-3-oxoapotirucalla-14-en-21,23-olide (3). The three apotirucallane-type protolimonoids (1-3) did not exhibit cytotoxicity against MCF-7 cells at a concentration of 100 µM. Interestingly, when MCF-7 cells were treated with compound 1 at various concentrations, a notable stimulatory response was observed, leading to a significant increase in cell viability, up to 127%.

Ferulic acid grafted onto chitooligosaccharides attenuates LPS-stimulated in murine macrophages by modulating the NF-κB and MAPK pathways.

Although chitooligosaccharides (COS) improve the drawbacks of chitosan, their biological activities in medical applications have not been highly appreciated. The main approach is to synthesise the COS derivatives in order to improve the biological properties of the COS. In this study, ferulic acid (FA) grafted onto COS (FA-COS) were synthesised and their mechanism of anti-inflammatory activity was investigated in the murine macrophage cells. The synthesis conditions of FA-COS were optimised and confirmed that the FA was successfully conjugated onto COS with the grafting effect of 15-34%. FA-COS exhibited anti-inflammatory activities via suppressing of nitric oxide formation, reducing iNOS expression at transcription and translation levels, down-regulation of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-1 ß genes; NF-κB and MAPKs signalling pathways. These results show anti-inflammatory molecular mechanism of FA-COS that exhibit enormous potential for prevention of inflammatory diseases.

Development of nitroxide radicals-containing polymer for scavenging reactive oxygen species from cigarette smoke.

We developed a nitroxide radicals-containing polymer (NRP), which is composed of poly(4-methylstyrene) possessing nitroxide radicals as a side chain via amine linkage, to scavenge reactive oxygen species (ROS) from cigarette smoke. In this study, the NRP was coated onto cigarette filters and its ROS-scavenging activity from streaming cigarette smoke was evaluated. The intensity of electron spin resonance signals of the NRP in the filter decreased after exposure to cigarette smoke, indicating consumption of nitroxide radicals. To evaluate the ROS-scavenging activity of the NRP-coated filter, the amount of peroxy radicals in an extract of cigarette smoke was measured using UV-visible spectrophotometry and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). The absorbance of DPPH at 517 nm decreased with exposure to cigarette smoke. When NRP-coated filters were used, the decrease in the absorbance of DPPH was prevented. In contrast, both poly[4-(cyclohexylamino)methylstyrene]- and poly(acrylic acid)-coated filters, which have no nitroxide radical, did not show any effect, indicating that the nitroxide radicals in the NRP scavenge the ROS in cigarette smoke. As a result, the extract of cigarette smoke passed through the NRP-coated filter has a lower cellular toxicity than smoke passed through poly[4-(cyclohexylamino)methylstyrene]- and poly(acrylic acid)-coated filters. Accordingly, NRP is a promising material for ROS scavenging from cigarette smoke.