No abstract

The potential of the extract/fractions to scavenge different free radicals in different systems indicated that they may be useful therapeutic agents for treating radical-related pathologic damage.

Background Lawsonia inermis (Lythraceae) is an ethnomedicinal plant, traditionally known for curing several ailments such as skin diseases, bacterial infections, jaundice, renal lithiases and inflammation etc. The present work deals with assessment of in vitro antioxidant and in vivo hepatoprotective potential of butanolic fraction (But-LI) of Lawsonia inermis L. leaves.MethodsAntioxidant activity was evaluated using deoxyribose degradation, lipid peroxidation inhibition and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay. In vivo protective potential of But-LI was assessed at 3 doses [100, 200 & 400 mg/kg body weight (bw)] against 2-acetylaminofluorene (2-AAF) induced hepatic damage in male Wistar rats.ResultsBut-LI effectively scavenged hydroxyl radicals in deoxyribose degradation assay (IC50 149.12 μg/ml). Fraction also inhibited lipid peroxidation and demonstrated appreciable reducing potential in FRAP assay. Treatment of animals with 2-AAF resulted in increased hepatic parameters such as SGOT (2.22 fold), SGPT (1.72 fold), ALP (5.68 fold) and lipid peroxidation (2.94 fold). Different concentration of But-LI demonstrated pronounced protective effects via decreasing levels of SGOT, SGPT, ALP and lipid peroxidation altered by 2-AAF treatment. But-LI administration also restored the normal liver architecture as evident from histopathological studies.ConclusionsThe present experimental findings revealed that phytoconstituents of Lawsonia inermis L. possess potential to effectively protect rats from the 2-AAF induced hepatic damage in vivo possibly by inhibition of reactive oxygen species and lipid peroxidation.

Brassinosteroids (BRs) are a large group of polyhydroxy steroids, which regulate numerous aspects of plant growth and development, including stem elongation, leaf bending, tracheary element differentiation, stress protection and photomorphogenesis. Recent studies indicate antigenotoxic and anticancerous activities of these compounds. The role of natural BRs in H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) -induced DNA damage in human lymphocytes is still unknown. The present study reports the presence of Castasterone from leaves of Centella asiatica, an important medicinal herb commonly used as a memory enhancer and immunomodulator. CA50 fraction isolated from Centella asiatica was characterized as Castasterone by electrospray ionization mass spectral data with standard Castasterone. An attempt has been made to study antigenotoxic activity of the isolated Castasterone against H2O2 -induced DNA damage in human blood lymphocytes using Single cell gel electrophoresis assay (Comet Assay). Castasterone at 10–9 M concentration proved to be effective in diminishing the DNA damage by 89.42 %

Two fractions ET-1 and TW isolated from Terminalia arjuna were evaluated for their antimutagenic potential against 4-nitro-o-phenylenediamine (NPD) in TA98, sodium azide in TA100 and 2-aminofluorene, in both TA98 and TA100 tester strains of Salmonella typhimurium using bacterial reverse mutation assay. Both the fractions inhibited the mutagenicity of 2AF significantly in both the strains. ET-1 fraction inhibited the mutagenicity of base pair substitution mutagen sodium azide by 77.41% at 1×10 3 μg/0.1ml. It did not inhibit the mutagenicity of NPD. TW fraction showed insignificant inhibitory activity against the mutagenicity of NPD and sodium azide in TA100 and TA98 tester strains respectively. 1 H-NMR, 13 C-NMR and IR-spectroscopic data of the fractions revealed ET-1 fraction as a diglycoside of triterpene and TW fraction as tannin in nature.