Benefits of Betanin in Rotenone-Induced Parkinson Mice

The present study aimed to investigate betanin’s neuroprotective effect in mice with rotenone-induced Parkinson-like motor dysfunction and neurodegeneration. Forty male ICR mice were divided into 4 groups: Sham-veh, Rot-veh, Rot-Bet100 and Rot-Bet200. Rotenone (Rot) at 2.5 mg/kg/48 h was subcutaneous injected, and betanin (Bet) at 100 and 200 mg/kg/48 h were given alternately with the Rot injections in Rot-Bet groups for 6 weeks. Motor dysfunctions were evaluated weekly using hanging wire and rotarod tests. Malondialdehyde (MDA), reduced glutathione (GSH), catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), neuronal degeneration in the motor cortex (MC), striatum (Str) and substantia nigra par compacta (SNc) were evaluated. The immunohistochemical densities of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) in Str and in SNc were also measured. We found that rotenone significantly decreased the time to fall in a hanging wire test after the 4th week and after the rotarod test at the 6th week (p<0.05). The percentage of neuronal degeneration in MC, Str and SNc (p<0.05) significantly increased, and the TH density in Str and in SNc (p<0.05) significantly decreased. Betanin at 100 and 200 mg/kg significantly prevented MC, Str and SNc neuronal degeneration (p<0.05) and prevented the decrease of TH density in Str and in SNc (p<0.05). These findings appeared concurrently with improved effects on the time to fall in hanging wire and rotarod tests (p<0.05). Treatment with betanin significantly prevented increased MDA levels and boosted GSH, CAT and SOD activities (p<0.05). Betanin exhibits neuroprotective effects against rotenone-induced Parkinson in mice regarding both motor dysfunction and neurodegeneration. Betanin’s neurohealth benefit relates to its powerful antioxidative property. Therefore, betanin use in neurodegenerative disease therapy is interesting to study.

Algal Terpenoids: A Potential Source of Antioxidants for Cancer Therapy

In cancer treatment, increase in drug resistance and decrease in new chemotherapeutic drugs have become a pressing problem. Hence, searching for novel anticancer agents with less toxicity and high sensitivity is expanding gradually. Many preclinical and clinical studies indicate that natural antioxidants can help combating carcinogenicity and reduce the adverse effects on cancer therapy, when used alone or as adjuvant in chemotherapy. Consequently, marine algae pave the way for exploring more potential antioxidant compounds which have pharmaceutical importance. Algal terpenoids comprise a large group of bioactive compounds that have excellent antioxidative property and can be used as source of antioxidant in cancer therapy. This chapter summarizes the potential role of terpenoids from algal sources in inhibiting cancer cells, blocking cell cycle, hindering angiogenesis and metastasis as well as in inducing apoptosis.

Protaetia brevitarsis seulensis Derived Protein Isolate with Enhanced Osteomodulatory and Antioxidative Property

The osteogenic differentiation of stem cells is profoundly affected by their microenvironmental conditions. The differentiation behavior of stem cells can be tuned by changing the niche environments. The proteins or peptides that are derived by living organisms facilitate the osteogenic differentiation of stem cells. Here, we have evaluated the osteoinductive and antioxidative potential of the Protaetia brevitarsis seulensis insect-derived protein for human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs). The amino acid contents in the isolated protein were determined by an amino acid analyzer. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to analyze the extract’s functional groups and surface morphology. The extracted protein exhibited 51.08% β-sheet conformation. No adverse effects were observed in extract-treated cells, indicating their biocompatibility. The protein isolate showed an excellent antioxidative property. Besides this, an enhancement in the hBMSCs’ mineralization has been observed in the presence of treated protein isolates. Notably, osteogenic marker genes and proteins were effectively expressed in the treated cells. These results indicated that the P. brevitarsis-derived protein isolate can be used as a potential antioxidative biomaterial for bone tissue engineering applications.

Murraya Koenigii (L.) Spreng-Curry Leaves/Mitho Nim- A Miracle Plant

Murraya koenigii is a leafy medicinal as well as a green leafy aromatic shrub that belong to the family Rutaceae of angiosperms. The various pharmacological activities of the plant have been seen such as activity on Antidiabetic, cholesterol-reducing property, antimicrobial activity antiulcer activity, Antioxidative property, anti-diarrhea activity, anti-cancer activity with mucother phagocytic activity.

Antioxidative Property and Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Geniposide-Mediated Therapeutic Effects in Diabetes Mellitus and Cardiovascular Disease

Geniposide, an iridoid glucoside, is a major component in the fruit of Gardenia jasminoides Ellis (Gardenia fruits). Geniposide has been experimentally proved to possess multiple pharmacological actions involving antioxidative stress, anti-inflammatory, antiapoptosis, antiangiogenesis, antiendoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS), etc. In vitro and in vivo studies have further identified the value of geniposide in a spectrum of preclinical models of diabetes mellitus (DM) and cardiovascular disorders. The antioxidative property of geniposide should be attributed to the result of either the inhibition of numerous pathological processes or the activation of various proteins associated with cell survival or a combination of both. In this review, we will summarize the available knowledge on the antioxidative property and protective effects of geniposide in DM and cardiovascular disease in the literature and discuss antioxidant mechanisms as well as its potential applications in clinic.