Anti-Inflammatory Principles from Tamarix aphylla L.: A Bioassay-Guided Fractionation Study

Abstract

Natural products have served as primary remedies since ancient times due to their cultural acceptance and outstanding biodiversity. To investigate whether Tamarix aphylla L. modulates an inflammatory process, we carried out bioassay-guided isolation where the extracts and isolated compounds were tested for their modulatory effects on several inflammatory indicators, such as nitric oxide (NO), reactive oxygen species (ROS), proinflammatory cytokine; tumour necrosis factor (TNF-α), as well as the proliferation of the lymphocyte T-cells. The aqueous ethanolic extract of the plant inhibited the intracellular ROS production, NO generation, and T-cell proliferation. The aqueous ethanolic crude extract was partitioned by liquid-liquid fractionation using n-hexane (n-C6H6), dichloromethane (DCM), ethyl acetate (EtOAc), n-butanol (n-BuOH), and water (H2O). The DCM and n-BuOH extracts showed the highest activity against most inflammatory indicators and were further purified to obtain compounds 1–4. The structures of 3,5-dihydroxy-4’,7-dimethoxyflavone (1) and 3,5-dihydroxy-4-methoxybenzoic acid methyl ester (2) from the DCM extracts; and kaempferol (3), and 3-hydroxy-4-methoxy-(E)-cinnamic acid (4) from the n-BuOH extract were elucidated by different spectroscopic tools, including MS, NMR, UV, and IR. Compound 2 inhibited the production of ROS and TNF-α, whereas compound 3 showed inhibitory activity against all the tested mediators. A better understanding of the potential aspect of Tamarix aphylla L. derivatives as anti-inflammatory agents could open the door for the development of advanced anti-inflammatory entities.

Pharmacological Efficacy of Tamarix aphylla: A Comprehensive Review

“…Anti-inflammatory medications, both nonsteroidal and steroidal, are the most prescribed treatments. In most documented cases, the long-term use of these medicines is hampered by their side-effects, necessitating the therapeutic use of less toxic solutions with fewer unpleasant responses [ 62 , 63 ]. Consequently, there is a requirement for effective, safe, and cost-effective alternative therapies.…”

“…Furthermore, all mediators examined demonstrated inhibitory action in the presence of kaempferol. Therefore, T. aphylla constituents might be used as anti-inflammatory medications [ 63 ].…”

Tamarix articulata Extracts Exhibit Antioxidant Activity and Offer Protection against Hydrogen Peroxide-Mediated Toxicity to Human Skin Fibroblasts

“…Our group's previous study revealed that owing to the presence of an abundant quantity of polyphenolic compounds in all four parts of TA extract and related species, they exhibited promising antioxidant activity by DPPH assay [ 25 , 30 ]. To support and validate the antioxidant potential of TA extracts, we evaluated the total antioxidant capacity (TAC) of all four TA extracts via phosphomolybdate assay.…”

UPLC–Q–TOF–MS/MS Analysis of Phenolic Compounds from the Fruit of Cephalostachyum fuchsianum Gamble and Their Antioxidant and Cytoprotective Activities

“…Analysis of UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS Generally, we found that the phenolic compounds detected in the present study were also found in bamboo fruits of Melocanna baccifera [61], including cinnamic acid and syringic acid. Cinnamic acid is a phenolic compound naturally occurring in various vegetables, seeds, and also enriched in daily diets [62]. In addition, syringic acid is a phenolic compound that acts as a free radical scavenging antioxidant in pharmacology [63] and is rich in many edible mushrooms and vegetables and food and beverage plants [64].…”