Psychoactive Plant Database - Neuroactive Phytochemical Collection

1. Front Pharmacol. 2024 Oct 23;15:1461447. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2024.1461447. 
eCollection 2024.

Plukenetia volubilis leaves as source of anti-Helicobacter pylori agents.

Tan A(#)(1), Scortecci KC(#)(1)(2)(3), Cabral De Medeiros NM(4), Kukula-Koch 
W(5), Butler TJ(6), Smith SM(6), Boylan F(1)(7).

Author information:
(1)School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Trinity College Dublin, 
Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, Dublin, Ireland.
(2)Laboratório de Transformação de Plantas e Análise em Microscopia (LTPAM), 
Departamento de Biologia Celular e Genética, Federal University of Rio Grande do 
Norte (UFRN), Natal, Brazil.
(3)Programa de Pós-Graduação em Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular, Centro de 
Biociências, UFRN, Natal, Brazil.
(4)Laboratório de Biotecnologia Vegetal (LBV), Departamento de Biologia, Centro 
de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde, Universidade Estadual da Paraiba (UEPB) 
Campina Grande, Paraiba, Brazil.
(5)Department of Pharmacognosy With Medicinal Plants Garden, Medical University 
of Lublin, Lublin, Poland.
(6)Department of Clinical Medicine, School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, 
Trinity Centre, Tallaght University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
(7)Trinity Natural Products Research Centre, NatPro Centre, Trinity College 
Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
(#)Contributed equally

INTRODUCTION: Helicobacter pylori infection is a major issue worldwide, with 
widespread prevalence, combined with its link to gastritis, peptic ulcers, 
gastric cancer, and mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma. 
Meanwhile, effectiveness of current treatment protocols is limited by increasing 
antibiotic resistance and patient compliance issues due to long regimens and 
side effects. Plukenetia volubilis, or sacha inchi, is a valuable source of 
bioactive molecules. However, studies on its antimicrobial activity, especially 
against H. pylori, are lacking.
METHODS: In this study, the anti-H. pylori activity of P. volubilis leaves water 
extract was explored using in vitro and in silico approaches. High-Performance 
Liquid Chromatography coupled to Electrospray Ionisation and Quadrupole 
Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry (HPLC-ESI- QTOF-MS-MS) analysis of the water 
extract from the leaves was used to characterise the chemical composition of the 
plant and allowed identification of some flavonoids, such as astragalin, and 
some phenolic compounds. Then, high-speed counter current chromatography (HSCCC) 
was used to fractionate the ethyl acetate partition obtained from the water 
extract from the leaves.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The presence of flavonoids derived from kaempferol was 
confirmed and astragalin was isolated for the first time in P. volubilis. The P. 
volubilis water infusion, ethyl acetate extract and the isolated astragalin 
exhibited anti-bacterial activity against H. pylori J99 and two clinical 
isolates (e.g., minimum inhibitory concentrations of 0.53, 0.51 and 0.49 μg/mL, 
respectively, for clarithromycin-resistant clinical isolate SSR366). Then, using 
molecular docking for potential protein targets for H. pylori, it was verified 
that astragalin could interact with these proteins by in silico analysis.
CONCLUSION: These findings highlight that P. volubilis and astragalin produce a 
bacteriostatic activity against H. pylori and may have potential to be used in 
treatment against H. pylori, after further research.

Copyright © 2024 Tan, Scortecci, Cabral De Medeiros, Kukula-Koch, Butler, Smith 
and Boylan.

DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2024.1461447
PMCID: PMC11537943
PMID: 39508036

Conflict of interest statement: The authors declare that the research was 
conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could 
be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The author(s) declared that 
they were an editorial board member of Frontiers, at the time of submission. 
This had no impact on the peer review process and the final decision.


2. J Adv Res. 2024 Nov 4:S2090-1232(24)00491-0. doi: 10.1016/j.jare.2024.10.037. 
Online ahead of print.

Kaempferol alleviates myocardial ischemia injury by reducing oxidative stress 
via the HDAC3-mediated Nrf2 signaling pathway.

Yue Z(1), Zhang Y(1), Zhang W(2), Zheng N(3), Wen J(1), Ren L(3), Rong X(1), Bai 
L(1), Wang R(1), Zhao S(1), Liu E(1), Wang W(4).

Author information:
(1)Institute of Cardiovascular Science, Translational Medicine Institute, Xi'an 
Jiaotong University Health Science Center, Xi'an 710061, China; Laboratory 
Animal Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710061, China.
(2)Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an 
Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710061, China.
(3)Department of Pharmacology, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, 
Xi'an 710061, China.
(4)Institute of Cardiovascular Science, Translational Medicine Institute, Xi'an 
Jiaotong University Health Science Center, Xi'an 710061, China; Laboratory 
Animal Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710061, China. Electronic 
address: szb2013072@xjtu.edu.cn.

INTRODUCTION: Kaempferol (KAE) is a flavonoid found in various plants. Recent 
studies showed that high dietary intake of KAE was associated with a lower risk 
of myocardial infarction; however, the cardioprotective mechanism of KAE remains 
unknown.
OBJECTIVES: To determine the effect of KAE on cardiac injury in isoproterenol 
(ISO)-induced rats and cobalt chloride (CoCl2)-treated cardiomyocytes, and the 
underlying mechanisms.
METHODS: Male rats were pretreated with different doses of KAE for 14 days, and 
then injected with ISO to induce myocardial ischemia injury. We also established 
a model of myocardial cell injury using rat H9c2 cardiomyocytes stimulated with 
CoCl2.
RESULTS: We found that KAE pretreatment significantly alleviated myocardial 
injury and improved cardiac function in ISO-injected rats. In addition, KAE 
reduced oxidative stress in rats with myocardial ischemia by decreasing 
malondialdehyde concentration and increasing superoxide dismutase activity, and 
protection of the myocardial mitochondrial structure. KAE also attenuated 
CoCl2-induced injuryof H9c2 cardiomyocytes via suppression ofoxidative stress. 
With regard to the mechanism, we found that KAE down-regulated HDAC3 expression 
and up-regulated Nrf2 expression in ISO-induced rats and CoCl2-stimulated 
cardiomyocytes. Incubation of cardiomyocytes with HDAC3-selective inhibitor 
RGFP966 augmented the protective effect of KAE and reduced oxidative stress. By 
contrast, HDAC3 overexpression by adenovirus attenuated the effect of KAE on 
oxidative stress compared with KAE treatment group. HDAC3 also regulated Nrf2 
expression in the cardiomyocytes with RGFP966 or an adenovirus overexpressing 
HDAC3; but Nrf2 inhibition reduced the effect of KAE on ROS generation in 
CoCl2-induced cardiomyocytes. Immunoprecipitation assay showed that HDAC3 
interacted with Nrf2 in cardiomyocytes. Further studies found that KAE increased 
the acetylation level of Nrf2, while HDAC3 overexpression decreased the 
acetylation of Nrf2 compared with KAE treatment group.
CONCLUSION: Our data show that KAE ameliorates cardiac injury by reducing 
oxidative stress via the HDAC3-mediated Nrf2 signaling pathway in 
cardiomyocytes.

Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.

DOI: 10.1016/j.jare.2024.10.037
PMID: 39505146

Conflict of interest statement: Declaration of competing interest The authors 
declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal 
relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this 
paper.


3. Int Immunopharmacol. 2024 Nov 4;143(Pt 3):113565. doi: 
10.1016/j.intimp.2024.113565. Online ahead of print.

Ehretia laevis mitigates paracetamol- induced hepatotoxicity by attenuating 
oxidative stress and inflammation in rats.

Singh H(1), Singh T(2), Singh V(3), Singh B(4), Kaur S(5), Ahmad SF(6), 
Al-Mazroua HA(7), Singh B(8).

Author information:
(1)Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar 
143005, India; Khalsa College of Pharmacy, Amritsar 143005, India. Electronic 
address: hasanpharma.rsh@gndu.ac.in.
(2)Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, University of Illinois at 
Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA. Electronic address: 
tanveersingh1988@gmail.com.
(3)Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technology, Maharaja Ranjit Singh 
Punjab Technical University, Bathinda, Punjab, India. Electronic address: 
varinderjassal17@gmail.com.
(4)Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar 
143005, India. Electronic address: brahmkailay@gmail.com.
(5)Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar 
143005, India. Electronic address: sarabjit.pharma@gndu.ac.in.
(6)Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, King Saud 
University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: fashaikh@ksu.edu.sa.
(7)Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, King Saud 
University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: 
halmazroua@ksu.edu.sa.
(8)Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar 
143005, India. Electronic address: balbir.pharma@gndu.ac.in.

Hepatotoxicity is caused due to intake of drug or any chemical above the 
therapeutic range or as overdose. Current therapies for the management of 
hepatotoxicity are associated with several side effects. The present study was 
envisaged to explore the hepatoprotective potential of Ehretia laevis (E. 
laevis) in paracetamol (PCM) induced hepatotoxicity. All the plant extracts and 
fractions were evaluated for antioxidant and antiproliferative potential using 
various in vitro assays. Hepatotoxicity was induced in rats using a standardized 
single oral dose of PCM (3 g/kg). The aqueous fraction of E. laevis (AFEL) 
exhibited significant antioxidant and antiproliferative activity as compared to 
methanol extract of E. laevis (MEEL) in vitro. Moreover, treatment with AFEL 
(25, 50 and 100 mg/kg) decreased serum hepatic markers, attenuate the oxidative 
stress, inflammation and histopathological changes. LC-MS analysis of AFEL 
showed the presence of rutin, quercetin and kaempferol. Rutin was found to be in 
higher concentration, therefore it was docked on TNF-α. Its overall binding mode 
supports its capability to make complex with TNF-α. The finding of the study 
suggested significant antioxidant, antiproliferative, and hepatoprotective 
potential of E. laevis in paracetamol induced hepatotoxicity which could be 
attributed to the presence of various polyphenols.

Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

DOI: 10.1016/j.intimp.2024.113565
PMID: 39504859

Conflict of interest statement: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors 
declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal 
relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this 
paper.


4. Biomed Res Int. 2024 Oct 29;2024:2023620. doi: 10.1155/2024/2023620.
eCollection  2024.

A Comprehensive Review on Potential In Silico Screened Herbal Bioactive 
Compounds and Host Targets in the Cardiovascular Disease Therapy.

Zarenezhad E(1), Hadi AT(2), Nournia E(3), Rostamnia S(4), Ghasemian A(1).

Author information:
(1)Noncommunicable Diseases Research Center, Fasa University of Medical 
Sciences, Fasa, Iran.
(2)Womens Obstetrics & Gynecology Hospital, Ministry of Health, Al Samawah, 
Iraq.
(3)Cardiology Department, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamedan, Iran.
(4)Organic and Nano Group, Department of Chemistry, Iran University of Science 
and Technology, PO Box 16846-13114, Tehran, Iran.

Herbal medicines (HMs) have deciphered indispensable therapeutic effects against 
cardiovascular disease (CVD) (the predominant cause of death worldwide). The 
conventional CVD therapy approaches have not been efficient and need alternative 
medicines. The objective of this study was a review of herbal bioactive compound 
efficacy for CVD therapy based on computational and in silico studies. HM 
bioactive compounds with potential anti-CVD traits include campesterol, 
naringenin, quercetin, stigmasterol, tanshinaldehyde, Bryophyllin A, Bryophyllin 
B, beta-sitosterol, punicalagin, butein, eriodyctiol, butin, luteolin, and 
kaempferol discovered using computational studies. Some of the bioactive 
compounds have exhibited therapeutic effects, as followed by in vitro 
(tanshinaldehyde, punicalagin, butein, eriodyctiol, and butin), in vivo 
(gallogen, luteolin, chebulic acid, butein, eriodyctiol, and butin), and 
clinical trials (quercetin, campesterol, and naringenin). The main mechanisms of 
action of bioactive compounds for CVD healing include cell signaling and 
inhibition of inflammation and oxidative stress, decrease of lipid accumulation, 
and regulation of metabolism and immune cells. Further experimental studies are 
required to verify the anti-CVD effects of herbal bioactive compounds and their 
pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic features.

Copyright © 2024 Elham Zarenezhad et al.

DOI: 10.1155/2024/2023620
PMCID: PMC11537750
PMID: 39502274 [Indexed for MEDLINE]

Conflict of interest statement: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.


5. Physiol Plant. 2024 Nov-Dec;176(6):e14598. doi: 10.1111/ppl.14598.

Integrated Metabolomic and Transcriptomic Analysis Reveals Bioactive Compound 
Diversity in Organs of Saffron Flower.

Bagri J(1), Singh VK(2), Gupta K(2), Dkhar J(1)(3), Wani AA(4), Jain M(2), 
Singla-Pareek SL(5), Pareek A(1)(6).

Author information:
(1)Stress Physiology and Molecular Biology Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, 
Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India.
(2)School of Computational and Integrative Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru 
University, New Delhi, India.
(3)Plant Evolution and Development Laboratory, Agrotechnology Division, 
CSIR-Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology, Palampur, India.
(4)Department of Botany, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, 
India.
(5)Plant Stress Biology, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and 
Biotechnology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi, India.
(6)National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI), Mohali, Punjab, India.

Saffron stigma, derived from Crocus sativus L., has long been revered in global 
traditional medicine and continues to hold significant market value. However, 
despite the extensive focus on saffron stigma, the therapeutic potential of 
other floral components remains underexplored, primarily due to limited insights 
into their complex molecular architectures and chemical diversity. To address 
this gap, we performed a comprehensive metabolomic analysis of various floral 
organs utilizing advanced analytical platforms, including GC-MS and UPLC-MS/MS. 
This in-depth profiling revealed a diverse array of 248 metabolites, 
encompassing amino acids, sugar derivatives, fatty acids, flavonoids, vitamins, 
polyamines, organic acids, and a broad spectrum of secondary metabolites. 
Distinct correlation patterns among these metabolites were identified through 
PCA and PLS-DA, highlighting unique metabolomic signatures inherent to each 
floral organ. We further integrated these metabolomic findings with our 
transcriptomic data, enabling a detailed understanding of the molecular and 
metabolic variations across different floral organs. The pronounced abundance of 
differentially expressed genes and metabolites in the stamen (424), leaf (345), 
tepal (196), stigma (177), and corm (133) underscores the intricate regulatory 
networks governing source-to-sink partitioning and dynamic metabolic processes. 
Notably, our study identified several bioactive compounds, including crocin, 
picrocrocin, crocetin, safranal, cannabielsoin, quercetin, prenylnaringenin, 
isorhamnetin, pelargonidin, kaempferol, and gallic acid, all of which exhibit 
potential therapeutic properties. In conclusion, this comprehensive analysis 
significantly enhances our understanding of the molecular mechanisms driving the 
biosynthesis of apocarotenoids, cannabinoids, anthocyanins, and flavonoids in 
saffron, thereby providing valuable insights and paving the way for future 
research in this area.

© 2024 Scandinavian Plant Physiology Society.

DOI: 10.1111/ppl.14598
PMID: 39501843 [Indexed for MEDLINE]