As a part of ongoing search efforts for the discovery of anticancer lead entities from natural sources, bulbs and flowers of the amaryllidaceous plant Pancratium maritimum have been investigated. Fractionation of the extracts of the fresh flowers and bulbs of P. maritimum led to the isolation of four new alkaloids, namely pancrimatines A (1) and B (2), norismine (3), and pancrimatine C (4), together with the previously reported N-methyl-8,9-methylenedioxy-6-phenanthridone (5), trispheridine (6), and N-methyl-8,9-methylenedioxy-phenanthridine (7). The structures of these alkaloids were established on the basis of extensive 1D and 2D NMR and high-resolution mass spectral analyses as well as comparison with the literature. Compounds 2 and 7 showed antiproliferative and antimigratory activity against the highly metastatic human prostate cancer cell line PC-3 cells without cytotoxicity. The phenanthridine alkaloid class was identified as having potential for use to control prostate cancer proliferation and migration.

The use of herbal or natural medicines for the treatment of various disorders has a long and extensive history. Many of these herbal medicines are finding their way onto the world market as alternatives to prescribed drugs currently available to treat various disorders/ailments. Hyperlipidemia contributes significantly in the manifestation and development of atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease (CHD). Hyperlipidemia prevalence continued to increase annually, requiring the development of drugs capable of lowering blood lipids to reduce mortality and morbidity due to cardiovascular complications. Although synthetic lipid-lowering drugs are useful in treating hyperlipidemia, there are number of adverse effects. So, the current interest has stimulated the search for new lipid-lowering agents with minimal side effects from natural sources. The purpose of this review is to highlight the current antihyperlipidemic drugs and their targets, the natural hypolipidemic agents and their mechanisms of action as well as experimental models of assessments.

Fifteen compounds were isolated from Euphorbia peplus L.. Their structures were established by physical, chemical, and spectral data (UV, IR, MS, and 1D NMR), as well as comparison with authentic samples. The preliminary phytochemical screening of the alcoholic extract was done. GC-MS study of the fatty acid methyl esters of the n-hexane fraction was carried out. The antimicrobial, pharmacological, and cytotoxic activities of the different extracts were evaluated. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by using yeast-induced paw edema method at doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg of the extracts. The MeOH and EtOAc extracts give potent anti-inflammatory activity compared with indomethacin. All the extracts exhibited significant analgesic activity in the acetic acid-induced writhing method at dose 400 mg/kg. The tested extracts showed antipyretic activity at doses 200 and 400 mg/kg for each extract. They control the hyperthermia for 4 hr without decrease in activity.

Fifteen compounds were isolated from Euphorbia peplus L.. Their structures were established by physical, chemical, and spectral data (UV, IR, MS, and 1D NMR), as well as comparison with authentic samples. The preliminary phytochemical screening of the alcoholic extract was done. GC-MS study of the fatty acid methyl esters of the n-hexane fraction was carried out. The antimicrobial, pharmacological, and cytotoxic activities of the different extracts were evaluated. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by using yeast-induced paw edema method at doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg of the extracts. The MeOH and EtOAc extracts give potent anti-inflammatory activity compared with indomethacin. All the extracts exhibited significant analgesic activity in the acetic acid-induced writhing method at dose 400 mg/kg. The tested extracts showed antipyretic activity at doses 200 and 400 mg/kg for each extract. They control the hyperthermia for 4 hr without decrease in activity.

Fifteen compounds were isolated from Euphorbia peplus L.. Their structures were established by physical, chemical, and spectral data (UV, IR, MS, and 1D NMR), as well as comparison with authentic samples. The preliminary phytochemical screening of the alcoholic extract was done. GC-MS study of the fatty acid methyl esters of the n-hexane fraction was carried out. The antimicrobial, pharmacological, and cytotoxic activities of the different extracts were evaluated. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by using yeast-induced paw edema method at doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg of the extracts. The MeOH and EtOAc extracts give potent anti-inflammatory activity compared with indomethacin. All the extracts exhibited significant analgesic activity in the acetic acid-induced writhing method at dose 400 mg/kg. The tested extracts showed antipyretic activity at doses 200 and 400 mg/kg for each extract. They control the hyperthermia for 4 hr without decrease in activity.

A new triterpene ester (1) together with eight known compounds (2–9) were isolated from the leaves of Cadaba farinosa Forssk. Their chemical structures were established on the basis of physical, chemical, and spectroscopic methods (IR, 1D and 2D NMR, and mass spectral analyses) to be: lupeol-3-O-decanoate (1), lupeol (2), -sitosterol (3), ursolic acid (4), 12-aminododecanoic (5), dillenetin-3-O--D-glucopyranoside (6), stachydrine (7), 3-hydroxy-stachydrine (8), and quercetin-3-O--D-glucopyranoside (9). That is the first report for the isolation of compound 5 from a plant source. Compounds 5, 6, and 9 were evaluated for their antioxidant activity.

Fifteen compounds were isolated from Euphorbia peplus L.. Their structures were established by physical, chemical, and spectral data (UV, IR, MS, and 1D NMR), as well as comparison with authentic samples. The preliminary phytochemical screening of the alcoholic extract was done. GC-MS study of the fatty acid methyl esters of the n-hexane fraction was carried out. The antimicrobial, pharmacological, and cytotoxic activities of the different extracts were evaluated. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by using yeast-induced paw edema method at doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg of the extracts. The MeOH and EtOAc extracts give potent anti-inflammatory activity compared with indomethacin. All the extracts exhibited significant analgesic activity in the acetic acid-induced writhing method at dose 400 mg/kg. The tested extracts showed antipyretic activity at doses 200 and 400 mg/kg for each extract. They control the hyperthermia for 4 hr without decrease in activity.

Ceramide, a derivative of sphingolipid breakdown products, acts as second messenger for multiple extracellular stimuli including growth factors, chemical agents, and environmental stresses. They have been shown to be crtically involved in various biological processes, including differentiation, senescence, cell-cycle arrest, proliferation, and apoptosis. Ceramide molecules form distinct domains in the cell membrane, which may serve to re-organize cellular receptors and signaling molecules. Because of their promising biological activities and applications, here we focus on: biosynthesis, existence, importance, and structure elucidation, as well as representative examples concerning their structure and activity.

Many progestins have been developed for use in contraception, Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT), menopausal hormone therapy and treatment of gynecological diseases. Progestins are also highly efficacious in decreasing the occurrence of endometrial hyperplasia and carcinoma caused by unopposed estrogens. Click reaction was adapted for the condensation of the terminal ethynyl group of norethindroneenanthate (NET-EN)3 and levonorgestrel (LNG)5 with substituted phenyl azides 2a-c to prepare 1,4-disubstituted-1,2,3-triazole derivatives 4a-c and 6a-c. The assigned structures were confirmed by spectroscopic and element microanalytical data. Biological screening of the prepared compounds was undertaken to evaluate possible progestational activity on rat uterus in vivo and ex vivo on the isolated rat uterus. The histopathologic changes of the uterus associated with the new compounds and the reference drugs NET-EN and LNG encompass a variety of morphologic features that were interpreted. All the prepared compounds conserve their progestational activity, significantly much higher than vehicle. Compound 4c showed activity parameters higher than NET-EN, while 6b matched those displayed by LNG. Compound 4b displayed 200 fold the uterolytic effect of NET-EN. On the other hand, LNG derivatives showed uterolytic effect much weaker than the parent drug. Molecular modeling studies were performed using MOE software (V.10.2010) to further corroborate the biological assay results acquired for this new group of compounds and gain insight into their plausible mode of interaction(s) within the progesterone receptor.

A comprehensive review with 185 references for the analysis of commonly prescribed members of an important class of drugs, non-sedating antihistamines (NSAs), is presented. The review covers most of the methods described for the analysis of cetirizine (CTZ), ebastine (EBS), fexofenadine (FXD), ketotifen (KET) and loratadine (LOR) in pure forms, in different pharmaceutical dosage forms and in biological fluids. The review covers the period from 1991 till now.