Effect of Sideritis leptoclada against HT-144 human malignant melanoma.

Sideritis leptoclada O. Schwarz et P.H. Davis extracts were evaluated for its singlet oxygen production capacity using spectrophotometric method. The extracts producing singlet oxygen were then evaluated for cytotoxicity against malignant melanoma cancer (HT-144) and fibroblast (3T3) cell lines using the 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazole-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The photocytotoxicity against the HT-144 human melanoma cell line in the presence of illumination (∼≥400 nm) was also evaluated. In the standard MTT assay, the ethanol extract of S. leptoclada (100 µg/ml) showed 83.49±3.33% inhibition of HT-144 cancer cells, whereas in the illuminated MTT assay, it showed 77.46±1.97% inhibition of HT-144 cancer cells. The effects of ethanol extract on reactive oxygen species production, apoptosis, and tumor necrosis factor-α secretion were also evaluated on HT-144 cell lines. The extract triggered an increase in intracellular reactive oxygen species production and tumor necrosis factor-α secretion compared with the respective controls. Thus, the ethanol extract may cause apoptosis. The LC-MS/MS analyses of S. leptoclada ethanolic extract showed that it has quinic acid (137213±11.25 µg/g extract), malic acid (1468±0.16 µg/g extract), chlorogenic acid (881.7±0.06 µg/g extract), and apigetrin (223.2±0.13 µg/g extract) as major constituents. The ethanolic extract of S. leptoclada should be further investigated as a potential treatment for malignant melanoma cancer.

Adequate iodine levels in healthy pregnant women. A cross-sectional survey of dietary intake in Turkey.

OBJECTIVES: To assess current iodine levels and related factors among healthy pregnant women.  METHODS: In this cross-sectional, hospital-based study, healthy pregnant women (n=135) were scanned for thyroid volume, provided urine samples for urinary iodine concentration and completed a questionnaire including sociodemographic characteristics and dietary habits targeted for iodine consumption at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine,Mugla Sitki Koçman University, Mugla, Turkey, between August 2014 and February 2015. Sociodemographic data were analyzed by simple descriptive statistics. RESULTS: Median urinary iodine concentration was 222.0 µg/L, indicating adequate iodine intake during pregnancy. According to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria, 28.1% of subjects had iodine deficiency, 34.1% had adequate iodine intake, 34.8% had more than adequate iodine intake, and 3.0% had excessive iodine intake during pregnancy. Education level, higher monthly income, current employment, consuming iodized salt, and adding salt to food during, or after cooking were associated with higher urinary iodine concentration.   CONCLUSION: Iodine status of healthy pregnant women was adequate, although the percentage of women with more than adequate iodine intake was higher than the reported literature.

Antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities of five wild mushroom species with total bioactive contents.

CONTEXT: Recently, mushrooms are interesting natural products to be investigated due to exhibiting various bioactivities. OBJECTIVE: This study determines the antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities of various extracts of five wild mushroom species. In addition, the total bioactive contents, namely, ascorbic acid, ß-carotene, and lycopene along with phenolic and flavonoid contents were also determined spectrophotometrically. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Antioxidant activity was tested by using five complementary tests; namely, ß-carotene-linoleic acid, DPPH(•) scavenging, ABTS(•+) scavenging, cupric-reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC), and metal chelating assays. The in vitro anticholinesterase activity was tested against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) enzymes using the Ellman method. The spectrophotometric methods were used to determine the total phenolic, flavonoid, ascorbic acid, ß-carotene, and lycopene contents. RESULTS: The current study has shown that ethyl acetate extracts of Ganoderma lucidum (Curtis) P. Karst (IC50: 1.55 ± 0.05 µg/mL) and Funalia trogii (Berk.) Bondartsev & Singer (IC50: 4.31 ± 0.18 µg/mL) exhibited good lipid peroxidation inhibitory activity. The DPPH, ABTS, and CUPRAC assays supported this activity. The ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of Funalia trogii and Ganoderma lucidum indicated good anticholinesterase activity. Ganoderma lucidum had rich phenolic and flavonoid contents, indicating 98.67 ± 0.32 mg PEs/g extract and 160.38 ± 1.25 mg QEs/g extract, respectively. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The results demonstrate that some of the mushroom species tested herein could be used in food and pharmaceutical industries as natural antioxidants.

Minerals and metals in mushroom species in Anatolia.

Mineral and metal contents of 24 wild mushroom species collected from Anatolia were analysed by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. Eight minerals (Na, Mg, Ca, Mn, Fe, Zn, P and K) and six metals (Cr, Ni, Ag, Co, Cu and Pb) were studied. The mineral content of mushroom samples ranged 77.1-1061.2 mg/kg for Na, 268.1-1927.9 mg/kg for Mg, 19.3-352.9 mg/kg for Ca, 1.23-75.36 mg/kg for Mn, 27.8-816.1 mg/kg for Fe, 1.61-122.13 mg/kg for Zn, 176.7-5726.4 mg/kg for P and 1133.3-9866.7 mg/kg for K. The metal content ranged 0.03-10.58 mg/kg for Cr, 0.24-48.65 mg/kg for Ni, 0.02-0.63 mg/kg for Ag, 0.02-5.13 mg/kg for Co, 1.10-9.04 mg/kg for Cu and 0.07-8.46 mg/kg for Pb.