In the present study, silver (Ag) and Ag-zinc oxide (ZnO) composite nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesised and studied their wound-healing efficacy on rat model. Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy of AgNPs displayed an intense surface plasmon (SP) resonance absorption at 450 nm. After the addition of aqueous Zn acetate solution, SP resonance band has shown at 413.2 nm indicating a distinct blue shift of about 37 nm. X-ray diffraction analysis Ag-ZnO composite NPs displayed existence of two mixed sets of diffraction peaks, i.e. both Ag and ZnO, whereas AgNPs exhibited face-centred cubic structures of metallic Ag. Scanning electron microscope (EM) and transmission EM analyses of Ag-ZnO composite NPs revealed the morphology to be monodispersed hexagonal and quasi-hexagonal NPs with distribution of particle size of 20-40 nm. Furthermore, the authors investigated the wound-healing properties of Ag-ZnO composite NPs in an animal model and found that rapid healing within 10 days when compared with pure AgNPs and standard drug dermazin.

Thonangi et al.: Hepatoprotective activity of Polyalthia longifolia seedsThe present study is aimed to evaluate the antioxidant and hepatoprotective properties of selected methanolic fractions of Polyalthia longifolia (Sonn.) Thwaite seeds in ethanol-induced oxidative stress in rats. Initially, methanolic extract of Polyalthia longifolia seeds was fractionated using column chromatography. The preliminary antioxidant screening of these fractions identified two main bioactive fractions (F3 and F5), which were found to have significant radical scavenging and metal ion chelation properties compared with ascorbic acid. Based on the antioxidant profile, F3 and F5 were evaluated for hepatoprotective activity in ethanol-intoxicated rats. The Wistar rats were grouped (n=6) and treated with F3 and F5 (200 and 400 mg/kg), ethanol (5 g/kg, 20 % w/v) and silymarin (100 mg/kg) orally for 28 d. The outcomes of the study found that chronic administration of ethanol significantly (p<0.0001) altered the liver parameters and oxidative stress markers (malondialdehyde, superoxide dismutase and catalase). The co-administration of F5 prominently ameliorated the oxidative stress induced by ethanol compared to F3. Histopathological studies further supported the significant protective action of F5. The present study demonstrates that the Polyalthia longifolia seeds possess significant antioxidant properties by augmenting the magnitude of the antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase and catalase and further reducing malondialdehyde levels.

Diterpenes are secondary metabolites that have attracted much attention due to their potential biological activities including anti-cancer potential. The aim of the current study is to assess the anticancer potential of the six known clerodane diterpenes (1–6) isolated from Polyalthia longifolia seeds and their underlying molecular mechanisms. These compounds were evaluated for their cytotoxicity in vitro by using MTT assays. The “two-phase model” with NDEA and PB ad libitum was used for induction of HCC and sorafenib was used as the standard drug. Prophylactic studies were carried out for compounds 4/6 at both low (5 mg/kg b.w) and high (10 mg/kg b.w) doses. Based on the MTT assay results, the two best compounds, 4 and 6, were selected for in vivo studies. The results showed that treatment with compound 4/6 significantly restored the changes in biochemical parameters and liver morphology observed in (NDEA + PB)-induced HCC rats. Additionally, the docking studies showed that compound 4/6 interacted with several key proteins such as MDM2, TNF-α, FAK, thereby inhibiting these proteins and reversing the negative impacts of NDEA. In conclusion, our results suggested that compounds 4 and 6 are potential therapeutic agents for HCC, mostly due to their ability to control typical cancer pathways.