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Toxins Nov 2020Berberine is a plant metabolite belonging to the group of isoquinoline alkaloids with strong biological and pharmacological activity. Currently, berberine is receiving... (Review)
Review
Berberine is a plant metabolite belonging to the group of isoquinoline alkaloids with strong biological and pharmacological activity. Currently, berberine is receiving considerable interest due to its anticancer activity based on many biochemical pathways, especially its proapoptotic and anti-inflammatory activity. Therefore, the growing number of papers on berberine demands summarizing the knowledge and research trends. The efficacy of berberine in breast and colon cancers seems to be the most promising aspect. Many papers focus on novel therapeutic strategies based on new formulations or search for new active derivatives. The activity of berberine is very important as regards sensitization and support of anticancer therapy in combination with well-known but in some cases inefficient therapeutics. Currently, the compound is being assessed in many important clinical trials and is one of the most promising and intensively examined natural agents.
Topics: Animals; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Antineoplastic Agents; Berberine; Cardiovascular Diseases; Drug Resistance; Humans; Mental Disorders; Metabolic Diseases; Neurodegenerative Diseases; Protective Agents
PubMed: 33198257
DOI: 10.3390/toxins12110713 -
Food Chemistry Aug 2019Maca (Lepidium meyenii Walpers) has emerged as a popular functional plant food due to various claimed health effects. This review details the major (i.e., starch,... (Review)
Review
Maca (Lepidium meyenii Walpers) has emerged as a popular functional plant food due to various claimed health effects. This review details the major (i.e., starch, dietary fiber, and protein) and minor constituents (i.e., minerals, non-starch polysaccharides, polyphenols (flavonolignans), macaenes, macamides, glucosinolates, and alkaloids) of maca (root and aerial parts). Diverse health effects of maca are also summarized. Various bioactivities of maca include enhanced reproductive health, antifatigue, antioxidation, neuroprotection, antimicrobial activity, anticancer, hepatoprotection, immunomodulation, and improving skin health and digestive system's function. Plant genetics, botanical parts, processing, extraction, and experimental protocols represent the major factors affecting the chemical composition, physicochemical attributes, and health effects of maca-based products. However, clinical studies to support the claimed health effects of maca and related mechanisms appear to be lacking. Product innovation and diversification in food and non-food utilization of different parts of maca to maximize the value perceptions are suggested.
Topics: Animals; Antioxidants; Humans; Lepidium; Plant Components, Aerial; Plant Extracts; Plant Proteins; Plant Roots; Protective Agents; Reproduction
PubMed: 30902313
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2019.02.071 -
Nutrients May 2020Vitamin C has been known for decades. It is common in everyday use as an element of the diet, supplementation, and a preservative. For years, research has been conducted... (Review)
Review
Vitamin C has been known for decades. It is common in everyday use as an element of the diet, supplementation, and a preservative. For years, research has been conducted to precisely determine the mechanism of action of ascorbate in the cell. Available results indicate its multi-directional cellular effects. Vitamin C, which belongs to antioxidants scavenging free radicals, also has a 'second face'-as a pro-oxidative factor. However, whether is the latter nature a defect harmful to the cell, or whether a virtue that is a source of benefit? In this review, we discuss the effects of vitamin C treatment in cancer prevention and the role of ascorbate in maintaining redox balance in the central nervous system (CNS). Finally, we discuss the effect of vitamin C supplementation on biomarkers of oxidative DNA damage and review the evidence that vitamin C has radioprotective properties.
Topics: Animals; Antineoplastic Agents; Antioxidants; Ascorbic Acid; Biomarkers; Central Nervous System; DNA Damage; Free Radicals; Humans; Neoplasms; Oxidants; Oxidation-Reduction; Oxidative Stress; Radiation-Protective Agents
PubMed: 32455696
DOI: 10.3390/nu12051501 -
Annals of Medicine Dec 2022Chronic liver disease (CLD), manifested as hepatic injury, is a major cause of global morbidity and mortality. CLD progresses to fibrosis, cirrhosis,... (Review)
Review
Chronic liver disease (CLD), manifested as hepatic injury, is a major cause of global morbidity and mortality. CLD progresses to fibrosis, cirrhosis, and-ultimately-hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) if left untreated. The different phenotypes of CLD based on their respective clinical features and causative agents include alcoholic liver disease (ALD), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), and drug-induced liver injury (DILI). The preferred treatment modality for CLD includes lifestyle modification and diet, along with limited pharmacological agents for symptomatic treatment. Moreover, oxidative stress (OS) is an important pathological mechanism underlying all CLD phenotypes; hence, the use of antioxidants to manage the disease is justified. Based on available clinical evidence, silymarin can be utilized as a hepatoprotective agent, given its potent antioxidant, antifibrotic, and anti-inflammatory properties. The role of silymarin in suppressing OS has been well established, and therefore silymarin is recommended for use in ALD and NAFLD in the guidelines approved by the Russian Medical Scientific Society of Therapists and the Gastroenterology Scientific Society of Russia. However, to discuss the positioning of the original silymarin in clinical guidelines and treatment protocols as a hepatoprotective agent for managing CLD concomitantly with other therapies, an expert panel of international and Russian medical professionals was convened on 11 November 2020. The panel reviewed approaches for the prevention and treatment of OS, existing guidelines for patient management for CLD, and available evidence on the effectiveness of silymarin in reducing OS, fibrosis, and hepatic inflammation and presented in the form of a narrative review. Key messagesAn expert panel of international and Russian medical professionals reviewed existing guidelines for ALD, NAFLD, MAFLD, and DILI to establish consensus recommendations that oxidative stress is the common pathophysiological mechanism underlying these conditions.The panel also discussed the positioning of original silymarin in clinical guidelines and treatment protocols as a hepatoprotective agent for managing CLD concomitantly with other therapies.The panel reviewed the effectiveness of 140 mg original silymarin three times a day in reducing oxidative stress in chronic liver diseases such as ALD, NAFLD, MAFLD, and DILI.
Topics: Antioxidants; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular; Humans; Liver Cirrhosis; Liver Neoplasms; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; Protective Agents; Silymarin
PubMed: 35635048
DOI: 10.1080/07853890.2022.2069854 -
Advances in Therapy Apr 2020Silymarin, an extract from milk thistle seeds, has been used for centuries to treat hepatic conditions. Preclinical data indicate that silymarin can reduce oxidative...
Silymarin, an extract from milk thistle seeds, has been used for centuries to treat hepatic conditions. Preclinical data indicate that silymarin can reduce oxidative stress and consequent cytotoxicity, thereby protecting intact liver cells or cells not yet irreversibly damaged. Eurosil 85 is a proprietary formulation developed to maximize the oral bioavailability of silymarin. Most of the clinical research on silymarin has used this formulation. Silymarin acts as a free radical scavenger and modulates enzymes associated with the development of cellular damage, fibrosis and cirrhosis. These hepatoprotective effects were observed in clinical studies in patients with alcoholic or non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, including patients with cirrhosis. In a pooled analysis of trials in patients with cirrhosis, silymarin treatment was associated with a significant reduction in liver-related deaths. Moreover, in patients with diabetes and alcoholic cirrhosis, silymarin was also able to improve glycemic parameters. Patients with drug-induced liver injuries were also successfully treated with silymarin. Silymarin is generally very well tolerated, with a low incidence of adverse events and no treatment-related serious adverse events or deaths reported in clinical trials. For maximum benefit, treatment with silymarin should be initiated as early as possible in patients with fatty liver disease and other distinct liver disease manifestations such as acute liver failure, when the regenerative potential of the liver is still high and when removal of oxidative stress, the cause of cytotoxicity, can achieve the best results.
Topics: Blood Glucose; Diabetes Mellitus; Hepatocytes; Humans; Liver Cirrhosis; Liver Diseases; Liver Diseases, Alcoholic; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; Protective Agents; Silymarin
PubMed: 32065376
DOI: 10.1007/s12325-020-01251-y -
Cell Death & Disease Dec 2020Peroxiredoxin 4 (Prdx4), a member of the Prdx family, is a vital ER-resident antioxidant in cells. As revealed in our previous study, Prdx4 expression was detected in...
Peroxiredoxin 4 (Prdx4), a member of the Prdx family, is a vital ER-resident antioxidant in cells. As revealed in our previous study, Prdx4 expression was detected in ovarian granulosa cells and was closely related to ovarian function. This research aimed to explore the effect and underlying molecular mechanism of the protective role of Prdx4 against D-gal-induced ovarian ageing in mice. The D-gal-induced ovarian ageing model has been extensively used to study the mechanisms of premature ovarian failure (POF). In this study, adult Prdx4 and wild-type mice were intraperitoneally injected with D-gal (150 mg/kg/day) daily for 6 weeks. Ovarian function, granulosa cell apoptosis, oxidative damage and ER stress in the ovaries were evaluated in the two groups. Ovarian weight was significantly lower, the HPO axis was more strongly disrupted, and the numbers of atretic follicles and apoptotic granulosa cells were obviously higher in Prdx4 mice. In addition, Prdx4 mice showed increased expression of oxidative damage-related factors and the ovarian senescence-related protein P16. Moreover, the levels of the proapoptotic factors CHOP and activated caspase-12 protein, which are involved in the ER stress pathway, and the level of the apoptosis-related BAX protein were elevated in the ovaries of Prdx4 mice. Thus, D-gal-induced ovarian ageing is accelerated in Prdx4 mice due to granulosa cell apoptosis via oxidative damage and ER stress-related pathways, suggesting that Prdx4 is a protective agent against POF.
Topics: Aging; Animals; Antioxidants; Apoptosis; Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress; Female; Galactose; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Models, Animal; Ovary; Oxidative Stress; Peroxiredoxins; Protective Agents; Reproduction
PubMed: 33311472
DOI: 10.1038/s41419-020-03253-8 -
Cells Feb 2020Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), members of the nuclear hormone receptor family, attract wide attention as promising therapeutic targets for the... (Review)
Review
Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), members of the nuclear hormone receptor family, attract wide attention as promising therapeutic targets for the treatment of multiple diseases, and their target selective ligands were also intensively developed for pharmacological agents such as the approved drugs fibrates and thiazolidinediones (TZDs). Despite their potent pharmacological activities, PPARs are reported to be involved in agent- and pollutant-induced multiple organ toxicity or protective effects against toxicity. A better understanding of the protective and the detrimental role of PPARs will help to preserve efficacy of the PPAR modulators but diminish adverse effects. The present review summarizes and critiques current findings related to PPAR-mediated types of toxicity and protective effects against toxicity for a systematic understanding of PPARs in toxicology and applied pharmacology.
Topics: Animals; Humans; Models, Biological; Organ Specificity; Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors; Pharmaceutical Preparations; Protective Agents
PubMed: 32028670
DOI: 10.3390/cells9020352 -
Mini Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry 2021Major approach in controlling as well as eradicating the cancerous growth is through radiotherapy, but this treatment leads to toxicity in the normal cells, leading to... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Major approach in controlling as well as eradicating the cancerous growth is through radiotherapy, but this treatment leads to toxicity in the normal cells, leading to secondary malignancies, teratogenesis, and necrosis. More than 15,000 malignancies occur due to exposure to harmful radiations during computed tomography scans. Natural products are non-toxic; there have been reports that herbal products, when given along with radiation, have shown increased tumor control property. The discussed agents in this review have potential antioxidant, immunomodulatory, free radical scavenging, metal chelating, and anti-inflammatory properties.
OBJECTIVE
To reduce the chances of toxicity, reduction in radiation dose or reducing the frequency of the therapy is made which usually leads to a therapeutically poor outcome. The most feasible method is to protect the normal cells by administration of radioprotective agents either before or after the exposure. These agents have been tested on animals and human cell models for evaluating their safety window and toxicity profile at the cellular level. The study aims to compile the effective natural radioprotective agents available, which can be further exploited by using certain QSAR studies to increase their potency.
METHOD
Structured literature search from EMBASE, PubMed, Bentham Science, Scopus, and ScienceDirect was carried out and appropriate peer-reviewed review articles, as well as certain research articles, were included and compiled in this review paper.
CONCLUSION
As various studies have indicated the harmful effects of ionizing radiations on normal cells, to reduce these effects, radioprotective agents are used before or after exposure to radiations. Compounds derived from natural sources are proved to have few side effects and they possess radioprotective property due to the presence of alkaloids, resins, volatile oils, tannins in their molecular structure. Various plants having such radioprotective constitutes have been identified for their radioprotective action and compiled in the present study.
Topics: Animals; Antioxidants; Neoplasms; Radiation, Ionizing; Radiation-Protective Agents
PubMed: 33494677
DOI: 10.2174/1389557521666210120112814 -
Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy =... Oct 2020In recent years, many studies have shown that hydrogen has therapeutic and preventive effects on various diseases. Its selective antioxidant properties were well... (Review)
Review
In recent years, many studies have shown that hydrogen has therapeutic and preventive effects on various diseases. Its selective antioxidant properties were well noticed. Most of the ionizing radiation-induced damage is caused by hydroxyl radicals (OH) from radiolysis of HO. Since hydrogen can mitigate such damage through multiple mechanisms, it presents noteworthy potential as a novel radio-protective agent. This review analyses possible mechanisms for hydrogen's radioprotective properties and effective delivery methods. We also look into details of vitro and vivo studies for hydrogen's radioprotective effects, and clinical practices. We conclude that hydrogen has good potential in radio-protection, with evidence that warrants greater research efforts in this field.
Topics: Animals; Humans; Hydrogen; Radiation Injuries; Radiation, Ionizing; Radiation-Protective Agents
PubMed: 32763820
DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2020.110589 -
Physiological Reports Jul 2023The World Health Organization stated that 1.6 million deaths worldwide were caused by contact with chemicals and toxins in 2019. In the same year, the Centers for... (Review)
Review
The World Health Organization stated that 1.6 million deaths worldwide were caused by contact with chemicals and toxins in 2019. In the same year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that natural toxins caused 3960 deaths. Myrtus communis, also known as common Myrtle, is a flowering plant native to the Mediterranean region. Myrtle has been traditionally used to treat diarrhea, inflammation, bleeding, headache, pulmonary and skin diseases. This review was performed to assess Myrtle's protective and therapeutic efficacy against various chemical, natural, and radiational noxious. Multiple databases such as PubMed, Web of Sciences, and Scopus were investigated without publication time limitation. Recent studies have demonstrated its potential as a protective agent against both natural and chemical toxins. One of Myrtle's most significant protective properties is its high antioxidant content. Studies have shown that the antioxidant properties of Myrtle can protect against harmful substances such as heavy metals, pesticides, and other environmental toxins. Additionally, Myrtle has anti-inflammatory properties that can help reduce the damage caused by long-term exposure to toxins. The anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties of Myrtle have also proven effective in alleviating gastrointestinal conditions such as gastric ulcers.
Topics: Antioxidants; Myrtus; Plant Extracts; Anti-Infective Agents; Anti-Inflammatory Agents
PubMed: 37464095
DOI: 10.14814/phy2.15770