ABSTRACT
Hypoestes triflora is frequently used in Rwandese native medicine to treat hepatic diseases. Premedication with a water extract of the leaves prevented the prolongation of the barbiturate sleeping time associated with carbon tetrachloride-induced liver damage in mice. The compound responsible for this protective activity was benzoic acid. Mice previously treated with benzoic acid also showed a significant diminution of the increased GOT and GPT levels seen after carbon tetrachloride administration.
Subject(s)
Liver Diseases/prevention & control , Plants, Medicinal , Alanine Transaminase/blood , Animals , Aspartate Aminotransferases/blood , Benzoates/isolation & purification , Benzoic Acid , Carbon Tetrachloride Poisoning , Female , Liver/drug effects , Liver/enzymology , Mice , Pentobarbital/pharmacology , Rwanda , Sleep/drug effectsABSTRACT
3,5-Dihydroxy-6,7,8-trimethoxyflavone, 3-O-methylquercetin, and helichrysetin were isolated from the flowers of the Rwandese medicinal plant, Helichrysum odoratissimum. Because of inconsistencies of the mp of the latter chalcone, a synthesis of helichrysetin was developed. 3-O-Methylquercetin was shown to be an active principle as it displayed antimicrobial activity.
Subject(s)
Anti-Infective Agents/isolation & purification , Chalcone/biosynthesis , Chalcone/isolation & purification , Flavonoids/isolation & purification , Plants, Medicinal/analysis , Propiophenones/biosynthesis , Propiophenones/isolation & purification , Anti-Infective Agents/chemical synthesis , Anti-Infective Agents/pharmacology , Chalcone/analogs & derivatives , Chalcone/chemical synthesis , Microbial Sensitivity TestsABSTRACT
A method is proposed for the isolation (and purification) of enzymes, with retention of their activity, from solutions or gels of preparative PAGE runs. It is based on the inclusion of Sephadex G-25 as a supporting medium for a collector buffer in otherwise normal disc-PAGE gels. The collector buffer has a lower pH and higher concentration than the stacking gel buffer. This makes the proteins concentrate in a very narrow, slowly moving band in the Sephadex on electrophoresis, and makes their recovery easy. The method is illustrated by the isolation of aldehyde oxidase from potato extracts (which was unsuccessful by classical methods), and of one isoenzyme from commercial lipoxygenase after preparative PAGE. Recovery of chicken egg albumin after PAGE was over 90%.
Subject(s)
Aldehyde Oxidoreductases/isolation & purification , Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel , Solanum tuberosum/enzymology , Albumins/isolation & purification , Aldehyde Oxidase , Buffers , Egg Proteins/isolation & purification , Isoenzymes/isolation & purification , Lipoxygenase/isolation & purificationABSTRACT
A series of 50 medicinal plants of Rwanda (121 plant samples) has been screened for wheat rootlets inhibition activity. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the active principle of Tetradenia riparia, i.e. 8(14),15-sandaracopimaradiene-7 alpha, 18-diol (7.81 micrograms/ml), and of the active principle of Diplolophium africanum, i.e. scoparone (62.5 micrograms/ml), in this test was determined.
Subject(s)
Growth Inhibitors/isolation & purification , Plants, Medicinal/analysis , Triticum/drug effects , Chloroform , Growth Inhibitors/pharmacology , Medicine, Traditional , Phytotherapy , Plant Extracts/pharmacology , Rwanda , Triticum/growth & developmentABSTRACT
Tetradenia riparia is one of the most popular medicinal plants in Rwanda. Previously, several new substances have been isolated from the leaves of this plant, including a new diterpene diol, i.e. 8(14),15-sandaracopimaradiene-7 alpha,18-diol. This new diterpene diol exhibits significant antimicrobial activity against several bacteria and fungi. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the substance for microorganisms which were inhibited ranged from 6.25 to 100 micrograms/ml.
Subject(s)
Anti-Infective Agents/pharmacology , Diterpenes/pharmacology , Plants, Medicinal/analysis , Anti-Bacterial Agents , Bacteria/drug effects , Culture Media , Diterpenes/analysis , Fungi/drug effects , Microbial Sensitivity Tests , RwandaABSTRACT
Branched-chain fatty acids of the milk fat of goats were analyzed by high resolution gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Iso-and anteiso-acids predominated, but a range of other monomethyl-branched components, mostly with methyl-substitution on carbons 4 and 6, was present. Analysis of the milk fat of cows revealed the presence of iso-and anteiso-fatty acid; other monomethyl-substituted fatty acids, as found in the milk fat of the goat, were virtually absent. Only a trace amount of 6-methylhexadecanoate was detected. The difference between goats and cows in the effectiveness with which these animals metabolize propionyl-CoA and methylmalonyl-CoA is discussed.
