Browsing by Author "Batista, Maria T."
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- Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of cytisus multiflorusPublication . Saraiva, Susana C.; Pereira, Olívia R.; Liberal, Joana; Batista, Maria T.; Domingues, Maria R.M.; Cruz, Maria T.; Cardoso, Susana M.Cytisus multiflorus(white spanish broom) is a plant used in folk medicine in the Iberian Peninsula, where it is claimed to have various health benefits. However, the usage is totally based on the available ethnopharmacological information, as no scientific data regarding its biological effects has been delivered. In this sense, is the aim of this work to contribute to the scientific knowledge of the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of C. multiflorus. The extract was rich in phenolic compounds mainly chrysin-7-O-glycopyranoside and a dihydroxyflavone isomer of chrysin which accounted for 49.4±7.3 mg/g and 21.8±3.8 mg/g, respectively. The low EC50 values, determined by DPPH and reducing power assays, indicated that the C. multiflorus purified ethanolic extract has a high antioxidant capacity. Moreover, the extract did not cause cytotoxicity against RAW 264.7 macrophages for high concentrations and the treatment of this cell line with purified extract induced a significant decrease in the levels of NO. Overall, the gathered data suggests that C. multiflorus is in fact a good antioxidant and anti-inflammatory plant, as believed by the folk knowledge.
- Cytisus multiflorus and eriocephalus africanus as source of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compoundsPublication . Saraiva, Susana C.; Pereira, Olívia R.; Liberal, Joana; Catarino, Marcelo D.; Batista, Maria T.; Cruz, Maria T.; Cardoso, Susana M.Historically, extracts and preparations of plants are the basis of traditional medicine and the starting point for the discovery of new therapeutic agents. Cytisus multiflorus and Eriocephalus africanus are small shrubs native from Iberian Peninsula and South Africa, respectively, and distributed in Mediterranean region. Despite their common application in folk medicine and claimed health benefits, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, there is still a lack of scientific data supporting this. In this work, phenolic-enriched extracts of Cytisus multiflorus and Eriocephalus africanus were obtained and evaluated in chemical models for their phenolic content, antioxidant capacities and their role in inflammatory process. Overall, the results from the chemical tests indicated that Cytisus multiflorus extract was more promising regarding antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties reason why this extract was then further tested for these activities in biological models. The present communication will focus on the experimental data obtained so far by our group for the phenolic-enriched extracts of Cytisus multiflorus and Eriocephalus africanus, as a valid contribution to clarify the mechanisms of action of the claimed antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of the two plants.
- Is cytisus multiflorus an antiinflamatory plant?Publication . Saraiva, Susana C.; Pereira, Olívia R.; Liberal, Joana; Batista, Maria T.; Cruz, Maria T.; Cardoso, Susana M.Cytisus multiflorus is a leguminous shrub native from Iberian Peninsula that is distributed in the south-west Mediterranean region. This plant is used in folk medicine and it is claimed to have various health benefits, including anti-inflammatory properties[1]. Yet, the anti-inflammatory usage of C. multiflorus is totally based on the available ethnopharmacological information while no scientific data on this capacity and on molecular targets has been reported for the plant. Hence, the present work aims to clarify the possible anti-inflammatory mechanisms of C. multiflorus. A purified ethanolic extract was prepared and its high antioxidant capacity was confirmed though the DPPH radical scavenging [2] and reducing power [3] assays (EC50 values 13.4±1.0 and 11.4±2.1 μg/mL, respectively). Moreover, anti-inflammatory properties of the C. multiflorus extract were tested on a lipopolysaccharide-stimulated Raw 264.7 macrophages model. In order to accomplish that, nitric oxide (NO) production, scavenging activity and cytotoxicity of the extract were assessed. Furthermore, the effects on two proteins that are potential targets to prevent or treat chronic inflammation, namely cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducible NO synthase (iNOS), were estimated by Western Blot analysis. The obtained results showed that C. multiflorus extract was able to significantly inhibit the production of NO for non-toxic concentrations. The treatment of this cell line with 161 µg/mL and 325 µg/mL of the purified extract induced a decrease in the levels of NO of 24% and 32%, respectively. Furthermore, despite no changes on COX-2 levels were observed, iNOS expression was significantly diminished by the treatment with the highest concentration of the extract. Overall, the present results suggest that C. multiflorus actually exerts an anti-inflammatory action which is, at least partially, mediated through the inhibition of iNOS expression.
- Is Cytisus multiflorus an antiinflamatory plant?Publication . Saraiva, Susana C.; Pereira, Olívia R.; Liberal, Joana; Batista, Maria T.; Cruz, Maria T.; Cardoso, Susana M.Cytisus multiflorus is a leguminous shrub native from Iberian Peninsula that is distributed in the south-west Mediterranean region. This plant is used in folk medicine and it is claimed to have various health benefits, including anti-inflammatory properties[1]. Yet, the anti-inflammatory usage of C. multiflorus is totally based on the available ethnopharmacological information while no scientific data on this capacity and on molecular targets has been reported for the plant. Hence, the present work aims to clarify the possible anti-inflammatory mechanisms of C. multiflorus. A purified ethanolic extract was prepared and its high antioxidant capacity was confirmed though the DPPH radical scavenging [2] and reducing power [3] assays (EC50 values 13.4±1.0 and 11.4±2.1 μg/mL, respectively). Moreover, anti-inflammatory properties of the C. multiflorus extract were tested on a lipopolysaccharide-stimulated Raw 264.7 macrophages model. In order to accomplish that, nitric oxide (NO) production, scavenging activity and cytotoxicity of the extract were assessed. Furthermore, the effects on two proteins that are potential targets to prevent or treat chronic inflammation, namely cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducible NO synthase (iNOS), were estimated by Western Blot analysis. The obtained results showed that C. multiflorus extract was able to significantly inhibit the production of NO for non-toxic concentrations. The treatment of this cell line with 161 µg/mL and 325 µg/mL of the purified extract induced a decrease in the levels of NO of 24% and 32%, respectively. Furthermore, despite no changes on COX-2 levels were observed, iNOS expression was significantly diminished by the treatment with the highest concentration of the extract. Overall, the present results suggest that C. multiflorus actually exerts an anti-inflammatory action which is, at least partially, mediated through the inhibition of iNOS expression.
- NO radical scavenging and iNOS expression inhibition by cytisus multiflorusPublication . Saraiva, Susana C.; Pereira, Olívia R.; Liberal, Joana; Batista, Maria T.; Cruz, Maria T.; Cardoso, Susana M.Historically, extracts and preparations of plants are the basis of traditional medicine and the starting point for the discovery of new therapeutic agents. Cytisus multiflorus is used in folk medicine and it is claimed to have various health benefits, including anti-inflammatory properties. Still, no scientific data regarding this ability has been described for this plant. The present work aims to clarify the antioxidant capacity and the anti-inflammatory mechanisms of Cytisus multiflorus. A purified ethanolic extract was prepared and its antioxidant abilities were evaluated through the DPPH scavenging and reducing power assays. Anti-inflammatory properties were assessed by determining the amounts of nitric oxide (NO) on a chemical and on lipopolysaccharide-stimulated Raw 264.7 macrophages models. Furthermore, the effects on two proteins that are potential targets to prevent or treat chronic inflammation, namely cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducible NO synthase (iNOS), were also estimated in the cellular model by Western Blot analysis. The ethanolic extract showed high antioxidant capacity, with EC50 values of 13.4±1.0 and 11.4±2.1 μg/mL for DPPH and reducing power assays, respectively. It also efficiently scavenged the NO radical and inhibited the NO production, in the chemical and cellular models, respectively. Furthermore, despite no changes on intracellular COX-2 levels were observed, iNOS expression was significantly diminished by the treatment with non-toxic concentrations of Cytisus multiflorus ethanolic extract. The present results suggest that Cytisus multiflorus is a good antioxidant and that it actually exerts an anti-inflammatory action.
- NO radical scavenging and iNOS expression inhibition by Cytisus multiflorusPublication . Saraiva, Susana C.; Pereira, Olívia R.; Liberal, Joana; Batista, Maria T.; Cruz, Maria T.; Cardoso, Susana M.Historically, extracts and preparations of plants are the basis of traditional medicine and the starting point for the discovery of new therapeutic agents. Cytisus multiflorus is used in folk medicine and it is claimed to have various health benefits, including anti-inflammatory properties. Still, no scientific data regarding this ability has been described for this plant. The present work aims to clarify the antioxidant capacity and the anti-inflammatory mechanisms of Cytisus multiflorus. A purified ethanolic extract was prepared and its antioxidant abilities were evaluated through the DPPH scavenging and reducing power assays. Anti-inflammatory properties were assessed by determining the amounts of nitric oxide (NO) on a chemical and on lipopolysaccharide-stimulated Raw 264.7 macrophages models. Furthermore, the effects on two proteins that are potential targets to prevent or treat chronic inflammation, namely cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducible NO synthase (iNOS), were also estimated in the cellular model by Western Blot analysis. The ethanolic extract showed high antioxidant capacity, with EC50 values of 13.4±1.0 and 11.4±2.1 μg/mL for DPPH and reducing power assays, respectively. It also efficiently scavenged the NO radical and inhibited the NO production, in the chemical and cellular models, respectively. Furthermore, despite no changes on intracellular COX-2 levels were observed, iNOS expression was significantly diminished by the treatment with non-toxic concentrations of Cytisus multiflorus ethanolic extract. The present results suggest that Cytisus multiflorus is a good antioxidant and that it actually exerts an anti-inflammatory action.
- Pectic polysaccharides from the infusions of P. tridentatum, F. angustifolia and M. suaveolens: structural characterization and inflammatory influence evaluationPublication . Martins, Vitor Manuel Ramalheira; Francisco, Vera; Cruz, Maria T.; Batista, Maria T.; Coimbra, Manuel A.In Tras-os-Montes region (Portugal), the small shrub (Pterospartum tridentatum) , the narrow-leafed ash (Fraxinus angustifolia), and the apple mint (Mentha suaveolens) are vegetable species frequently used in the preparation of infusions for medicinal purposes. According to the popular tradition, the infusions prepared from P. tridentatum, F. angustifolia and M. suaveolens protect against diabetes, hypertension, high levels of cholesterol and uric acid.
- Pectic polysaccharides from the infusions of P. tridentatum, F. angustifolia and M. suaveolens: structural characterization and modulation of the inflammatory activityPublication . Martins, Vitor Manuel Ramalheira; Ferreira, Isabel V.; Cruz, Maria T.; Batista, Maria T.; Coimbra, Manuel A.In Trás-os-Montes region (Portugal), the small shrub (Pterospartum tridentatum), the narrow-leafed ash (Fraxinus angustifolia), and the apple mint (Mentha suaveolens) are vegetable species used in the preparation of infusions for medicinal purposes, such as protection against diabetes, hypertension, high levels of cholesterol and uric acid [1]. These infusions contain several types of polysaccharides, such as pectic polysaccharides and galactomannans (GM´s), often reported as immunomodulators [2, 3]. Pectic polysaccharides are structurally complex polymers, exhibiting different polymeric building blocks: homogalacturonans (HG), type I rhamnogalacturonans (RG-I), type II rhamnogalacturonans (RG-II) and xylogalacturonans (XG) [4]. The backbone of RG-I can be partly substituted with, among others, type-II arabinogalactans (AG-I ) that form ramified regions responsible for the modulation of the immune response [2]. For GM´s, factors like chain length, degree of branching and degree of acetylation seem to influence their immunomodulating activity [3].