Worldwide, there are plants known as psychoactive plants that naturally contain psychedelic active components. They have a high concentration of neuroprotective substances that can interact with the nervous system to produce psychedelic effects. Despite these plants' hazardous potential, recreational use of them is on the rise because of their psychoactive properties. Early neuroscience studies relied heavily on psychoactive plants and plant natural products (NPs), and both recreational and hazardous NPs have contributed significantly to the understanding of almost all neurotransmitter systems. Worldwide, there are many plants that contain psychoactive properties, and people have been using them for ages. Psychoactive plant compounds may significantly alter how people perceive the world.
1. Front Microbiol. 2024 Sep 16;15:1436476. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1436476. eCollection 2024. Maple compounds prevent biofilm formation in Listeria monocytogenes via sortase inhibition. Elbakush AM(1), Trunschke O(1), Shafeeq S(2), Römling U(2), Gomelsky M(1). Author information: (1)Department of Molecular Biology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, United States. (2)Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology (MTC), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. The Pss exopolysaccharide (EPS) enhances the ability of the foodborne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes to colonize and persist on surfaces of fresh fruits and vegetables. Eradicating listeria within EPS-rich biofilms is challenging due to their increased tolerance to disinfectants, desiccation, and other stressors. Recently, we discovered that extracts of maple wood, including maple sap, are a potent source of antibiofilm agents. Maple lignans, such as nortrachelogenin-8'-O-β-D-glucopyranoside and lariciresinol, were found to inhibit the formation of, and promote the dispersion of pre-formed L. monocytogenes EPS biofilms. However, the mechanism remained unknown. Here, we report that these lignans do not affect Pss EPS synthesis or degradation. Instead, they promote EPS detachment, likely by interfering with an unidentified lectin that keeps EPS attached to the cell surfaces. Furthermore, the maple lignans inhibit the activity of L. monocytogenes sortase A (SrtA) in vitro. SrtA is a transpeptidase that covalently anchors surface proteins, including the Pss-specific lectin, to the cell wall peptidoglycan. Consistent with this, deletion of the srtA gene results in Pss EPS detachment from listerial cells. We also identified several additional maple compounds, including epicatechin gallate, isoscopoletin, scopoletin, and abscisic acid, which inhibit L. monocytogenes SrtA activity in vitro and prevent biofilm formation. Molecular modelling indicates that, despite their structural diversity, these compounds preferentially bind to the SrtA active site. Since maple products are abundant and safe for consumption, our finding that they prevent biofilm formation in L. monocytogenes offers a viable source for protecting fresh produce from this foodborne pathogen. Copyright © 2024 Elbakush, Trunschke, Shafeeq, Römling and Gomelsky. DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1436476 PMCID: PMC11439720 PMID: 39351304 Conflict of interest statement: AE and MG are listed as inventors on patent applications filed by the University of Wyoming on the use of maple products for the prevention of biofilms via sortase inhibition. 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. Chem Biodivers. 2024 Sep;21(9):e202400896. doi: 10.1002/cbdv.202400896. Epub 2024 Aug 14. Hepatoprotective Lignan Glycosides from the Leaves and Stems of Symplocos cochinchinensis (Lour.) S. Moore. Giang LT(1)(2), Park S(3), Lee S(4), Seo Y(4), Van Kiem P(5), Tai BH(5), Hang NTM(5), Thao VM(5), Van Cuong P(5), Ban NK(5), Cuong NT(6), Nhiem NX(1)(5). Author information: (1)Graduate University of Science and Technology, VAST, 18 Hoang Quoc Viet, Cau Giay, Hanoi, Viet Nam. (2)Thai Nguyen University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 284 Luong Ngoc Quyen, Thai Nguyen, Viet Nam. (3)Metropolitan Seoul Center, Korea Basic Science Institute, Seoul, 03579, Republic of Korea. (4)New Drug Development Center, Daegu Gyeongbuk Medical Innovation Foundation (KMEDIhub), Daegu, 41061, Korea. (5)Institute of Marine Biochemistry, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), 18 Hoang Quoc Viet, Cau Giay, Hanoi, 10072, Viet Nam. (6)Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources, VAST, 18 Hoang Quoc Viet, Cau Giay, Hanoi, 10072, Viet Nam. This study investigates Symplocos cochinchinensis (Lour.) S. Moore leaves and stems, commonly known as Symplocos, a plant indigenous to Asia renowned for its traditional use in holistic medicine. A comprehensive phytochemical analysis of S. cochinchinensis led to the isolation of two new lignans, namely symplolignans A and B (1 and 2) along with eleven known lignan glucosides: nortrachelogenin 4-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (3), nortracheloside (4), matairesinol 4-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (5), lariciresinol 4'-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (6), balanophonin 4-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (7), dehydrodiconiferyl alcohol 4-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (8), dehydrodiconiferyl alcohol γ'-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (9), 3-(β-D-glucopyranosyloxymethyl)-2-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-5-(3-hydroxypropyl)-7-methoxy-(2R,3S)-dihydrobenzofura (10), and pinoresinol 4'-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (11). Their chemical structures were elucidated using 1D- and 2D-NMR, mass spectrometry, and their spectroscopic data were compared with those reported in literatures. Furthermore, all compounds were evaluated for their hepatoprotective effects using the Resazurin reduction assay in HepG2 hepatocellular carcinoma cells. Compounds 1, 5, 7, and 8 exhibited notable hepatoprotective efficacy, with cell viability ranging from 105.0±2.6 to 109.2±3.3 at a concentration of 10 μM. This research highlights the therapeutic potential of these compounds and enhanced to the understanding of lignans and neolignans in liver cell proliferation. © 2024 Wiley-VHCA AG, Zurich, Switzerland. DOI: 10.1002/cbdv.202400896 PMID: 39140809 [Indexed for MEDLINE] 3. Chem Biodivers. 2024 Jul 31:e202401432. doi: 10.1002/cbdv.202401432. Online ahead of print. Unrivalled Insight into Possible Biopharmaceutical Application of Justicia vahlii Roth. (Acanthaceae): Chemodiversity, In Vitro Bioactivities, and Computational Analysis. Basit A(1)(2)(3), Ahmad S(1), Ovatlarnporn C(2)(3), Arshad MA(4), Saleem MF(1), Khurshid U(1), Saleem H(5), Khan KUR(1), Khan S(6), Alkahtani HM(7), Zen AA(8). Author information: (1)Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur, Punjab, 63100, Pakistan. (2)Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, 90010, Songkhla, Thailand. (3)Drug Delivery System, Excellence Center, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, 90010, Songkhla, Thailand. (4)Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmaceutical and Allied Health Science, Lahore College for Women University, Lahore, 51000, Pakistan. (5)Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (IPS), University of Veterinary &Animal Sciences (UVAS), Lahore, 51000, Pakistan. (6)Cadson College of Pharmacy, Kharian, Punjab, 50090, Pakistan. (7)Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2457, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia. (8)Chemistry & Forensics Department, Clifton Campus, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, Ng11 8NS, UK. Justicia vahliiRoth. is an important wild medicinal food plant traditionally used for treating inflammation and various common ailments. This study investigated the chemical composition, antioxidant, enzyme inhibition and toxicity profiles of n-hexane (nHEJv) and chloroform (CEJv) extracts of J. vahlii. Moreover, the effect of the extracts was evaluated on CCl4 induced liver injury. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents were present in both extracts in significant amount. The UPLC-Q-TOF-MS and GC-MS profiling of CEJv tentatively identified several important phytocompounds. The CEJv extract was comparatively more active for antioxidant activity and α-amylase inhibition, whereas the nHEJv extract presented higher inhibition potential against urease, tyrosinase, and α-glucosidase enzymes. Similarly, the in-silicostudy of four major compounds, i. e., 1-acetoxypinoresinol, 3-hydroxysebacic acid, nortrachelogenin, and viscidulin-III have shown a good docking score against the clinically significant enzymes. The acute oral toxicity and brine shrimp lethality assaysrevealed the extracts as non-toxic. The CCl4 treated animals showed a geared depletion of various antioxidant enzymes which were significantly reversed with the treatment of the extracts. Overall, the study's findings revealed J. vahliiwith antioxidant mediated hepatoprotective and enzyme inhibition potential and warrant further research on isolation of the bioactive compounds. © 2024 Wiley-VHCA AG, Zurich, Switzerland. DOI: 10.1002/cbdv.202401432 PMID: 39083693 4. Inflammopharmacology. 2024 Feb;32(1):873-883. doi: 10.1007/s10787-023-01409-4. Epub 2024 Jan 16. The therapeutic effect of Loranthus parasiticus lignan derivatives on collagen-induced arthritis in rats through the SHBG/NFκB pathway. Bai J(1), Zhang C(2), Liu Y(2), Kuang N(2), Xu L(2), Xu Z(2), Wang H(3), Liu R(4). Author information: (1)Clinical Pharmacy, Changzhi Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changzhi, 046011, China. (2)Department of Immunology, Medical College of Nanchang University, Nanchang, 330031, China. (3)Obstetrics Department, Changzhi Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changzhi, 046011, China. (4)Department of Immunology, Medical College of Nanchang University, Nanchang, 330031, China. sirlrp@163.com. Lignan-rich beans, nuts, and various seeds are the main foods with antioxidative and hormone-modulating activities. Although the role of lignans in mediating hormone-dependent cancers and cardiovascular diseases is well characterized, the function of lignans in anti-arthritic activity and its underlying mechanisms remain unknown. Three new lignan derivatives, (-)-nortrachelogenin, trachelogenin, and matairesinol, were extracted from Loranthus parasiticus. After establishing the collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) model by intradermal injection of collagen, rats were treated with three new lignan derivatives ((-)-nortrachelogenin: 37%; trachelogenin: 27%; matairesinol: 25.7%) at a concentration of 50 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg, or methotrexate at 0.3 mg/kg. Mixed lignan derivatives significantly attenuated the immune responses in the joints of CIA rats, leading to lower levels of proinflammatory cytokines (IL-6 and TNF-α) and higher levels of free androgen in the serum compared to the CIA model. The results of molecular docking using AutoDock Vina showed that the lignan derivative (-)-nortrachelogenin was the most effective compound for binding to sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), thus inhibiting the activity of NFκB in LPS-stimulated macrophages. In this study, (-)-nortrachelogenin was identified as a novel natural lignan derivative with previously unrecognized anti-inflammatory activity. Its molecular mechanism appears related to the regulation of the NFκB/SHBG pathway. Our findings suggest that further application of sex hormone-like compounds in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and the potential clinical applications of (-)-nortrachelogenin are promising. © 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG. DOI: 10.1007/s10787-023-01409-4 PMID: 38227094 [Indexed for MEDLINE] 5. Molecules. 2023 Dec 15;28(24):8114. doi: 10.3390/molecules28248114. Analysis of Softwood Lignans by Comprehensive Two-Dimensional Liquid Chromatography. Falev DI(1), Voronov IS(1), Onuchina AA(1), Faleva AV(1), Ul'yanovskii NV(1), Kosyakov DS(1). Author information: (1)Laboratory of Natural Compounds Chemistry and Bioanalytics, Core Facility Center "Arktika", M.V. Lomonosov Northern (Arctic) Federal University, Northern Dvina Emb. 17, 163002 Arkhangelsk, Russia. Lignans constitute a large group of phenolic plant secondary metabolites possessing high bioactivity. Their accurate determination in plant extracts with a complex chemical composition is challenging and requires advanced separation techniques. In the present study, a new approach to the determination of lignans in coniferous knotwood extracts as the promising industrial-scale source of such compounds based on comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography separation and UV spectrophotometric detection is proposed. First and second-dimension column screening showed that the best results can be obtained using a combination of non-polar and polar hydroxy group embedded octadecyl stationary phases with moderate (~40%) "orthogonality". The optimization of LC × LC separation conditions allowed for the development of a new method for the quantification of the five lignans (secoisolariciresinol, matairesinol, pinoresinol, 7-hydroxymatairesinol, and nortrachelogenin) in knotwood extracts with limits of quantification in the range of 0.27-0.95 mg L-1 and a linear concentration range covering at least two orders of magnitude. Testing the developed method on coniferous (larch, fir, spruce, and pine) knotwood extracts demonstrated the high selectivity of the analysis and the advantages of LC × LC in the separation and accurate quantification of the compounds co-eluting in one-dimensional HPLC. DOI: 10.3390/molecules28248114 PMCID: PMC10745517 PMID: 38138599 [Indexed for MEDLINE] Conflict of interest statement: The authors declare no conflict of interest.