Search results for " triterpenes"
showing 10 items of 23 documents
Chemical constituents and antiproliferative activity of Euphorbia bivonae
2011
Euphorbia is a genus of plants belonging to the family Euphorbiaceae, consisting of about 2160 species. This family occurs mainly in the Indo-Malayan region and tropical America. Euphorbia also has many species in non-tropical areas such as the Mediterranean area, the Middle East, South Africa, and southern USA. Phytochemical studies of species from the genus Euphorbia report the presence of skin-irritating and tumor-promoting diterpenoids, several macrocyclic diterpenoids with antibacterial, anticancer, PGE2-inhibitory, antifeedant, anti-HIV, and analgesic activities. Some of the Euphorbiaceae species are used in folk medicine for the treatment of skin diseases, gonorrhea, migraines, intes…
Spectral and microscopic study of self-assembly of novel cationic spermine amides of betulinic acid
2016
Supramolecular characteristics of two spermine amides of betulinic acid (1 and 2) were studied by measuring and evaluating their UV-VIS-NIR spectra in aqueous acetonitrile and DOSY-NMR spectra in tetradeuteromethanol, accompanied by atomic force microscopy (AFM) images, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrographs, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) micrographs. Fibrous supramolecular self-assembly of 1 and 2 was observed by AFM images, as well as by the SEM and TEM micrographs. Bathochromic shifts of the absorbance maximum at 870nm to 1015-970nm in the UV-VIS-NIR spectra were observed with increasing water content in the acetonitrile/water systems, indicating formation of fibrous…
Betulinic acid protects against cerebral ischemia–reperfusion injury in mice by reducing oxidative and nitrosative stress
2011
Increased production of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species following cerebral ischemia-reperfusion is a major cause for neuronal injury. In hypercholesterolemic apolipoprotein E knockout (ApoE-KO) mice, 2h of middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion followed by 22h of reperfusion led to an enhanced expression of NADPH oxidase subunits (NOX2, NOX4 and p22phox) and isoforms of nitric oxide synthase (neuronal nNOS and inducible iNOS) in the ischemic hemisphere compared with the non-ischemic contralateral hemisphere. This was associated with elevated levels of 3-nitrotyrosine, an indicator of peroxynitrite-mediated oxidative protein modification. Pre-treatment with betulinic acid (50mg/kg/day f…
Betulinic Acid Protects from Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in the Mouse Retina
2021
Ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) events are involved in the pathophysiology of numerous ocular diseases. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that betulinic acid protects from I/R injury in the mouse retina. Ocular ischemia was induced in mice by increasing intraocular pressure (IOP) to 110 mm Hg for 45 min, while the fellow eye served as a control. One group of mice received betulinic acid (50 mg/kg/day p.o. once daily) and the other group received the vehicle solution only. Eight days after the I/R event, the animals were killed and the retinal wholemounts and optic nerve cross-sections were prepared and stained with cresyl blue or toluidine blue, respectively, to count cells in…
Betulin binds to gamma-aminobutyric acid receptors and exerts anticonvulsant action in mice.
2007
The lupane type pentacyclic triterpenes: lupeol, betulin, and betulinic acid are widely distributed natural compounds. Recently, pharmaceutical compositions from plant extracts (family Marcgraviaceae) containing betulinic acid, have been patented as anxiolytic remedies. To extend our knowledge of the CNS effects of the triterpenes, we suggest here that the chemically related lupeol, betulin and betulinic acid may interact with the brain neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors in vitro and in vivo. Using radioligand receptor-binding assay, we showed that only betulin bound to the GABA(A)-receptor sites in mice brain in vitro and antagonised the GABA(A)-receptor antagonist b…
Reciprocal regulation of endothelial nitric-oxide synthase and NADPH oxidase by betulinic acid in human endothelial cells.
2007
Nitric oxide (NO) produced by endothelial NO synthase (eNOS) is a protective principle in the vasculature. Many cardiovascular diseases are associated with reduced NO bioactivity and eNOS uncoupling due to oxidative stress. Compounds that reverse eNOS uncoupling and increase eNOS expression are of therapeutic interest. Zizyphi Spinosi semen (ZSS) is one of the most widely used traditional Chinese herbs with protective effects on the cardiovascular system. In human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) and HUVEC-derived EA.hy 926 cells, an extract of ZSS increased eNOS promoter activity, eNOS mRNA and protein expression, and NO production in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. Maj…
Cytotoxic Compounds from the Fruits of Uapaca togoensis towards Multifactorial Drug-Resistant Cancer Cells
2014
Cancer cells may rapidly acquire multidrug resistance, mainly due to the presence of adenosine triphosphate-binding cassette transporters, epidermal growth factor receptor, or mutations in the p53 tumor suppressor gene. This work was designed to assess the cytotoxicity of the methanol crude extracts and compounds from the fruits of Uapaca togoensis, namely, β-amyryl acetate (1), 11-oxo-α-amyryl acetate (2), lupeol (3), pomolic acid (4), futokadsurin B (5), arborinin (6), and 3-O-β-D-glucopyranosyl sitosterol (7) against nine drug sensitive and multidrug-resistant cancer cell lines. The resazurin reduction assay was used to evaluate the cytotoxicity of the fruits of U. togoensis and compound…
A review of natural and modified betulinic, ursolic and echinocystic acid derivatives as potential antitumor and anti-HIV agents.
2003
The aim of this review is to update current knowledge on the betulinic, ursolic and echinocystic acids and their natural and semisynthetic analogs, focussing on their cytotoxic and anti-HIV activities. Then, the last results of the authors' team on unusual semisynthetic derivatives of these triterpenoids will be presented in order to establish structure/activity relationships.
New ursolic and betulinic derivatives as potential cytotoxic agents.
2003
Fifteen new ursolic and betulinic triterpenoids, bearing various functionalities at C-3 and C-28 were synthesized as potential cytotoxic agents. All compounds were obtained by a hemisynthetic route via ursolic and betulinic acids. Preliminary screening of these compounds on human HT 29 colon cancer cells revealed inhibitory activity for three of them. Beta-D-Glucopyranosyl-3beta-hydroxyurs-12(13)-en-28-oate 1c, 3beta-3-(3-pyridyl)-prop-2-enoyloxyurs-12(13)-en-28-oic acid 1i and the potassium salt of 3beta-cinnamoyloxylup-20(29)-en-28-oic acid 2d demonstrated cytotoxic activity in the micromolar range: 8.0, 45.0 and 8.0 microM, respectively.
Phytochemical Studies on Ptilostemon greuteri Raimondo & Domina (Compositae)
2012
Ptilostemon greuteri Raimondo & Domina is described as a new species and its growth is limited to the area of the province of Trapani. Essential oils of aerial parts of P. greuteri were analized by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The analysis of acetonic extract of aerial parts led to identification of triterpenes components: α-amyrin, β-amyrin, α-amyrin acetate, β-amyrin acetate, lupeol, lupeol acetate and taraxasterol. CC and preparative TLC of acetonic extracts has yielded lignan lactone and a sesquiterpene lactone that have been isolated previously from other Ptilostemon species.