BACKGROUND: Cissus quadrangularis is a valuable natural source of traditional medicines.
OBJECTIVE: An in vitro investigation was performed to determine whether the ethanolic extract from the whole portions of C. quadrangularis had anticancer and free radical scavenging activities against ovarian cancer cells-PA1. C. quadrangularis is a herb collected from rural areas in Andhra Pradesh, India.
METHODS: C. quadrangularis was air-dried and crushed, and the powder and ethanol (0.5 kg) were used in a Soxhlet device for continuous extraction. Phytochemical analysis of the extracts was performed using a standard procedure. The antioxidant activity of the ethanolic extract of C. quadrangularis was evaluated using DPPH. An in vitro anticancer study used an ethanolic extract against the PA1 cell line. Apoptosis of ovarian cancer cells was studied using DAPI and carboxy-H2DCFDA staining. From LC-MS analysis, quercetin-3-O-alpha-Lrhamnopyranoside and erucic acid were docked with the threonine tyrosine kinase (TTK) enzyme using auto docking.
RESULTS: The ethanolic extract of C. quadrangularis demonstrated significant dose-dependent antioxidant activity compared to ascorbic acid. The ethanolic extract of C. quadrangularis was found to have high anticancer activity against ovarian cancer cell lines (PA1), with an IC50 value of 482.057 ± 113.857 μg/ml. DAPI and carboxy-H2DCFDA staining confirmed that C. quadrangularis ethanolic extract induced apoptosis in ovarian cancer cells (p < .001). Molecular docking studies helped identify the binding affinities between the protein and ligand complexes, such as Quercetin-3-O-alpha-Lrhamnopyranoside binding sites of target proteins 5N7V (MET602, GLN672) and erucic acid 5N7V (GLY354). Quercetin-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranoside was reported to bind with 5N7V by hydrogen bonding at MET602 and GLN672 amino acids with 2.02, 2.99 Å bonding length distance and binding affinity of -7.9 kcal/mol. Erucic acid was reported to bind with 5N7V by hydrogen bonding at GLY354 amino acid with 3.18, 2.93 Å bonding length (Å) distance and binding affinity of -4.3 kcal/mol. The current analysis showed that the ethanolic extracts of C. quadrangularis L. exhibited antioxidant and anticancer properties against ovarian PA1 cells.
CONCLUSIONS: The experimental results confirmed that C. quadrangularis L. is a promising, safe chemotherapeutic plant for ovarian cancer PA1 cells. The docking results demonstrated that Quercetin-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranoside strongly binds threonine tyrosine kinase at the MET602 and GLN672 positions. This study showed that the C. quadrangularis ethanolic extract has Quercetin-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranoside, which can be used as an anticancer agent.

Cyanobacteria are rich in phytochemicals, which have beneficial impacts on the prevention of many diseases. This study aimed to comprehensively characterize phytochemicals and evaluate multifunctional bioactivities in the ethanolic extract of the cyanobacterium Leptolyngbya sp. KC45. Results found that the extract mainly contained chlorophylls, carotenoids, phenolics, and flavonoids. Through LC-ESI-QTOF-MS/MS analysis, 38 phenolic compounds with promising bioactivities were discovered, and a higher diversity of flavonoids was found among the phenolic compounds identified. The extract effectively absorbed the harmful UV rays and showed high antioxidant activity on DPPH, ABTS, and PFRAP. The extract yielded high-efficiency inhibitory effects on enzymes (tyrosinase, collagenase, ACE, and α-glucosidase) related to diseases. Interestingly, the extract showed a strong cytotoxic effect on cancer cells (skin A375, lung A549, and colon Caco-2), but had a much smaller effect on normal cells, indicating a satisfactory level of safety for the extract. More importantly, the combination of the DNA ladder assay and the TUNEL assay proved the appearance of DNA fragmentation in cancer cells after a 48 h treatment with the extract, confirming the apoptosis mechanisms. Our findings suggest that cyanobacterium extract could be potentially used as a functional ingredient for various industrial applications in foods, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and nutraceuticals.

The aim of this study was to investigate the performance of ethanolic extract from Morus alba L. leaves (MLEE) in preserving chilled pork under retail conditions. The four treatments were 5 mg/mL sodium benzoate solution (SB), 1 mg/mL MLEE solution (high-concentration MLEE; HM), 0.5 mg/mL MLEE solution (low-concentration MLEE; LM), and 0 mg/mL MLEE solution (C). The quality characteristics, pH, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances values, metmyoglobin, total volatile basic nitrogen, and number of microbes of MLEE-treated chilled pork stored at 4 °C for 9 days were consistent with those obtained by the SB treatment and lower than those obtained by the C treatment. Sensory analyses showed that treatment of pork with MLEE did not have a negative impact on its sensory characteristics. MLEE can extend the shelf life of chilled pork from 3 days to 6 days (9 days) in first-class (second-class) fresh meat. Results suggest that MLEE could be a candidate resource in the preservation of chilled pork.

The green cocoon shell of a novel variety of silkworm, Bombyx mori, is rich in two types of quercetin and kaempferol flavonoids. The aim of this study was to identify these flavonoids in the ethanolic extract (EE) from green cocoons and develop EE applications in healthy foods. The experimental results indicated that the amount of total amino acids in EE was 27.06%. The flavonoids in EE are presented in quercetin and kaempferol glycosides. The total amount of the two aglycones was 33.42 ± 0.08 mg/g. The IC50 values of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 1,2\'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonicacid) (ABTS), and hydroxyl radical scavenging abilities were 296.95 ± 13.24 μg/mL, 94.31 ± 9.13 μg/mL, and 9.21 ± 0.15 mg/mL, respectively. The IC50 values of the inhibitory activities of α-amylase and α-glucosidase were 37.57 ± 6.45 μg/mL and 212.69 ± 22.94 μg/mL, respectively. EE also reduced the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and oxidative stress in L02 cells induced by high glucose levels. It also effectively decreased the content of 8-hydroxyl deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), nuclear factor κB (NF-κB), and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) in cells with a good dose effect. These results clearly indicated that the flavonoid-rich EE with excellent antioxidant and glucosidase inhibition abilities significantly reduced the damage to cells caused by oxidative stress and inflammatory reactions. It is suggested that EE might serve as useful functional foods for the treatment of related diseases induced by oxidative stress such as diabetes mellitus.

BACKGROUND: Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is one of the major complications of diabetes. Sericin and flavonoids are two bioactive substances which have been demonstrated to have some therapeutical effect on diabetic nephropathy. The aim of this paper is to investigate the effect of ethanolic extract (EE) rich in quercetin and kaempferol and their glucosides from the green cocoon of silkworm Bombyx mori on DN in type 2 diabetic (T2D) mice induced by high-fat and streptozotocin (STZ).
METHODS: Ethanolic extract from the green cocoon shell of silkworm Bombyx mori was used as material. Diabetic mice were orally treated with three doses (150, 250 and 350 mg/kg) of the extract for 7 weeks, then the levels of oxidases and related inflammatory factors were measured in kidneys.
RESULTS: Compared with the negative control, EE administration resulted in an evident reduction in blood glucose levels and an improvement of the body weight in diabetic mice. Oral EE could inhibit the expressions of renal tumour necrosis factor TNF-α, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), fibronectin (FN) and P38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK) in T2D mice. Moreover, the levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-px) were significantly elevated in T2D mice treated with EE.
CONCLUSIONS: The activities of anti-fibrosis and anti-inflammation contributed to the renal protective effects by reducing oxidative stress, which might be mediated by the inhibition of the TNF-α-p38 MAP kinase signalling pathway. It is suggested that the ethanolic extract from silkworm green cocoon might be potential as an herbal medicine for DN.

Penthorum chinense Pursh (PCP), a medicinal and edible plant, is traditionally used for liver protection and treatment of liver diseases. In this study, we compared the differences of composition and activity of flowers, stems and leaves of PCP to select a bioactive part. The stems of PCP with stronger antioxidant activity (6.25-100 μg/mL) and lower cytotoxicity (25-200 μg/mL) than the flowers and leaves were a better bioactive part. Then the chemical composition and hepatoprotective effects of an aqueous extract and an 70% ethanolic extract made with stems of PCP were investigated. We found that the 70% ethanolic extract enriched more polyphenols and flavonoids and possessed significantly stronger hepatoprotective activity than the aqueous extract in the dose range of 25-200 μg/mL, which indicated that 70% ethanol is the better solvent of PCP in extraction technology. Moreover, ethyl acetate extract of stems of PCP (PSE) was used to evaluate the hepatoprotective ability of PCP against oxidative damage using an in vitro model of a normal rat\'s liver cell (BRL-3A). Besides, 12 phenolic compounds were identified from PSE by ultra-performance liquid chromatography followed by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS). Obtained results strongly support the traditional use of PCP and prove stems of PCP to be an important source of bioactive compounds associated with hepatoprotective activity.

Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni leaves have a long history of use as an abundant source of sweetener. The aqueous extract of stevia leaves and the predominant constitutes steviol glycosides have been intensively investigated. However, rare studies provided toxicological evaluation of bioactive components in the polar extract regarding their safety on human health. This study aimed to evaluate the toxicity of ethanolic extract of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni leaves through a battery of in vitro and in vivo tests. Negative results were unanimously obtained from bacterial reverse mutation assay, mouse bone marrow micronucleus assay and mouse sperm malformation assay. Oral administration at dietary levels of 1.04%, 2.08% and 3.12% for 90 days did not induce significant behavioral, hematological, clinical, or histopathological changes in rats. Significant reduction of cholesterol, total protein and albumin was observed in female animals only at high dose level. The results demonstrated that Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni leaves ethanolic extract, which is rich in isochlorogenic acids, does not possess adverse effects through oral administration in this study. Our data provided supportive evidence for the safety of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni leaves that may potentially be used in functional foods as well as nutritional supplements beyond sweetner.