Natural Product Research最新文献

Bioactive components used to treat human ailments are abundant in medicinal plants. Mentha arvensis and Aegle marmelos have therapeutic properties due to the presence of many phytonutrients. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to evaluate the properties of the antioxidant and anticancer bioactive components found in the ethanolic extracts of Mentha arvensis and Aegle marmelos leaves. The major constituents identified in the leaf extracts were octadecanoic acid, heptadecanoic acid, 15-methyl-9,12,15-octadecatrienoic acid, ethyl ester, hexadecanoic acid, neophytadiene, pentadecane, hexadecane, and 1-octadecanol. Some of these components have antibacterial, antioxidant, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory properties. Among the identified compounds, octadecanoic acid and n-hexadecanoic acid are pivotal for their anticancer and antioxidant effects. The GC-MS characterisation indicated the existence of abundant bioactive compounds, confirming their potential therapeutic activities. This study showed that the leaves of Mentha arvensis and Aegle marmelos could be used as novel sources of antioxidants and anticancer medicines.

Conotoxins, peptides derived from the venom of marine cone snails, have emerged as promising analgesics for managing pain associated with neck and spinal surgery. These toxins target specific neurotransmitter receptors and ion channels in the nervous system, offering an alternative to traditional opioids with potentially fewer side effects. By interacting with receptors such as nicotinic acetylcholine and voltage-gated sodium and calcium channels, conotoxins disrupt pain signal transmission and induce muscle relaxation, providing effective pain relief. Research into conotoxins is ongoing, with the goal of developing novel, safer analgesics that mitigate the risks of opioid addiction. This exploration not only holds promise for surgical pain management but also advances our understanding of venom pharmacology and its therapeutic applications.

Pancreatic lipase (PL) is the main enzyme in the digestive system that breaks down triglyceride and promotes its absorption. In this paper, we found that lignans 2, 3 and 21, curcuminoids 24-26 exhibited significant inhibitory potential against PL. The structure-activity relationship (SAR) indicated that benzo-1, 3-dioxole group in the construction of lignans is essential to inhibitory effects against PL, while double bonds at C-7/C-2 position and 4-hydroxyphenyl moiety in the structure of curcuminoids are beneficial for PL inhibition. The kinetic studies and molecular docking were also conducted, the results showed that the three curcuminoids with the strongest inhibition effect above were all mixed inhibitors of PL. Furthermore, curcuminoids 24-26 displayed a preferential selectivity towards, in contrast to other serine hydrolases. The above results indicate that lignans and curcuminoids are natural functional components for PL inhibition, providing new ideas for finding and developing novel lead compounds for the treatment of obesity.

In the present research, ten species of Asparagus from North India have been analysed for secondary metabolites. The quantitative study of shatavarin IV, sarsasapogenin, caffeic acid, β-sitosterol, and lupeol in the cladodes and roots of Asparagus was conducted using a validated HPTLC method. The content of sarsasapogenin was found highest in the cladodes of A. racemosus (11.20 ± 0.025 mg/g DW) and roots of A. officinalis (5.95 ± 0.024 mg/g DW). Shatavarin IV was found highest in cladodes of A. densiflorus (6.72 ± 0.02 mg/g DW) and roots of A. adscendens (4.68 ± 0.015 mg/g DW). Caffeic acid was found most abundantly in A. officinalis (65.87 ± 0.021 mg/g DW), while β-sitosterol (9.36 ± 0.004 mg/g DW) and lupeol (5.91 ± 0.004 mg/g DW) were found highest in A. falcatus among the ten species. Overall findings showed that A. adscendens, A. densiflorus, A. falcatus and A. retrofractus have also rich quantity of examined secondary metabolites as compared to commercially important species (A. officinalis).

The metabolite profile of the ethanol extract from Eleutherine bulbosa was assessed using the 1D NMR approach amalgamated with 2D NMR. E. bulbosa, an indigenous plant found in Indonesia, possesses considerable promise as a raw material for medicinal products. We examined the antioxidant capacity of the E. bulbosa extract using DPPH and ABTS methods. The antioxidant evaluation demonstrated that the ethanol extract exhibits strong antioxidant properties. Furthermore, we have successfully identified thirteen metabolites in the ethanol extract without separation. These metabolites include eleutherol A, eleutherol B, eleutherol C, eleuthione B, eleuthione C, hongconin, karwinaphthol, isoeleuthoside C, quinic acid, chlorogenic acid, isoeleutherin, cyanidin-3-o-β-glucopyranoside, and kadsuric acid. Metabolite Cyanidin-3-o-β-glucopyranoside (4.89 mM ± 0.02) was the highest metabolite contained in this extract. This result showed that NMR methods could detect and measure metabolites in the E. bulbosa ethanol extract without requiring separation.

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first chemical study of Guarea glomerulata that led to the isolation and characterisation of nine distinct compounds from its methanolic leaves extract including one new trinortriterpenoid glomerulatin along with eight known compounds amongst which five compounds namely azadirone, oleanolic acid, sericoside, cleomiscosin D and griffonin reported for the first time from the genus Guarea. All the isolated compounds have been evaluated in vitro for their antiplasmodial potency against the chloroquine-sensitive strain P. falciparum 3D7. The results showed that glomerulatin and azadirone were the most active compounds with IC₅₀ values of 1.02 ± 0.2 μM and 1.48 ± 0.4 μM, respectively. This study enriches the chemistry of the genus Guarea and further supports the identification of Meliaceae plants as a good source of antiplasmodial candidates for the development of new potent drugs against malaria.