A new xanthone glycoside, 8-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxy-1-O-[α-L-arabinofuranosyl-(1 → 6)-β-D-glucopyranosyl]-xanthone (1) in addition to two known xanthones named 8-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxy-1-O-β-Dglucopyranosyl-xanthone (2) and 1,8-dihydroxy-3,5-dimethoxyxanthone (methylbellidifolin) (3) were isolated from the methanol extract of aerial part of Centaurium spicatum, and tested for their cytotoxic activities against three different types of cell lines HeLa, THP-1and HL-60 cell lines. All compounds showed cytotoxicities to all cell lines, whereas showed a moderate activity against human monocytic cell line HL-60. Among three tested xanthones, the cytotoxic activity of compound 1 was stronger than those of other xanthones and the IC50 values for compound 1 were 3.22 (against THP-1), 8.67 (against HeLa) and 74.6 (against HL-60) μM, respectively.

A sensitive high-performance liquid chromatographic method with fluorescence detection was developed to determine memantine (MT) in rat plasma. The method consists of pre-column labeling of MT with 4-(4,5-diphenyl-1H-imidazol-2-yl)benzoyl chloride (DIB-Cl) and a clean-up step with solid-phase extraction. A good separation of DIB-MT was achieved within 12 min on an octadecylsilica (ODS) column (150x4.6 mm i.d.; 5 µm) with a mobile phase of acetonitrile–water (70:30, v/v). The calibration curve prepared with fluoxetine as an internal standard showed good linearity in the range of 10–400 ng/mL (r= 0.999). The limits of detection and quantitation at signal-to-noise ratios of 3 and 10 were 2.0 and 6.6 ng/mL, respectively. The method was shown to be reliable with precisions of 5% for intra-day and 9% for inter-day as relative standard deviation. The fluorescence property and reaction yield of authentic DIB-MT were also examined. The proposed method was successfully applied to study the pharmacokinetic interaction between MT and methazolamide.

A sensitive high-performance liquid chromatographic method with fluorescence detection was developed to determine memantine (MT) in rat plasma. The method consists of pre-column labeling of MT with 4-(4,5-diphenyl-1H-imidazol-2-yl)benzoyl chloride (DIB-Cl) and a clean-up step with solid-phase extraction. A good separation of DIB-MT was achieved within 12 min on an octadecylsilica (ODS) column (150x4.6 mm i.d.; 5 µm) with a mobile phase of acetonitrile–water (70:30, v/v). The calibration curve prepared with fluoxetine as an internal standard showed good linearity in the range of 10–400 ng/mL (r= 0.999). The limits of detection and quantitation at signal-to-noise ratios of 3 and 10 were 2.0 and 6.6 ng/mL, respectively. The method was shown to be reliable with precisions of 5% for intra-day and 9% for inter-day as relative standard deviation. The fluorescence property and reaction yield of authentic DIB-MT were also examined. The proposed method was successfully applied to study the pharmacokinetic interaction between MT and methazolamide.

BACKGROUND: Cell suspension cultures were established from the aerial parts of Emex spinosa cultivated on MS medium. METHODS: The changes in cells weight and phenolics content (anthraquinones and flavonoids) were followed between day zero and 12. The effect of methyl jasmonate on their production was studied. RESULTS: The linear increase in fresh weights was found to be parallel to both anthraquinones and flavonoids production. Cell suspension cultures treated with 100ml methyl jasmonate showed a significant increase in level of both anthraquinones and flavonoids. The enhancements of phenolics were: 7 fold in chrysophanol, 10 fold in physcion, 15 fold in aloe-emodin, 9 fold in aloe-emodin-8-O-glucoside, 6 fold in emodin-8-O-glucoside, 17 fold in kaempferol-3-O-rutinoside and 11 fold in quercetin-3-O-rutinoside (rutin). CONCLUSION: The present study indicated that the methyl jasmonate affected positively production of phenolic compounds in cell cultures of E. spinosa

BACKGROUND: Cell suspension cultures were established from the aerial parts of Emex spinosa cultivated on MS medium. METHODS: The changes in cells weight and phenolics content (anthraquinones and flavonoids) were followed between day zero and 12. The effect of methyl jasmonate on their production was studied. RESULTS: The linear increase in fresh weights was found to be parallel to both anthraquinones and flavonoids production. Cell suspension cultures treated with 100ml methyl jasmonate showed a significant increase in level of both anthraquinones and flavonoids. The enhancements of phenolics were: 7 fold in chrysophanol, 10 fold in physcion, 15 fold in aloe-emodin, 9 fold in aloe-emodin-8-O-glucoside, 6 fold in emodin-8-O-glucoside, 17 fold in kaempferol-3-O-rutinoside and 11 fold in quercetin-3-O-rutinoside (rutin). CONCLUSION: The present study indicated that the methyl jasmonate affected positively production of phenolic compounds in cell cultures of E. spinosa

The present work evaluated the effects of alcoholic extracts of salvia (Salvia officinalis), thyme (Thymus vulgaris), and 2 pure compounds (thymol and menthol) on the viability of Echinococcus granulosus protoscolices in vitro. Four different concentrations of each extract (2,500, 1,500, 1,000, and 500 µg/ml) and 3 different concentrations each of thymol and menthol (50, 10, and 1 µg/ml) were used. Concentration of 2,500 µg/ml of both extracts showed a significant protoscolicidal activity on the 6th day. Complete loss of viability of protoscolices occurred with 500 µg/ml concentration of both extracts at day 6 and day 7 post-treatment (PT), respectively. Pure compounds, i.e., menthol and thymol, showed potent effects with 50 µg/ml concentration at day 2 and day 5 PT, respectively. These effects were compared with those of albendazole sulfoxide (800 µg/ml), a commonly used treatment drug for hydatidosis. Krebs-Ringer solution and the hydatid cystic fluid at a ratio of 4:1 was a good preservative solution which kept the protoscolices viable for 15 days.

The present work evaluated the effects of alcoholic extracts of salvia (Salvia officinalis), thyme (Thymus vulgaris), and 2 pure compounds (thymol and menthol) on the viability of Echinococcus granulosus protoscolices in vitro. Four different concentrations of each extract (2,500, 1,500, 1,000, and 500 µg/ml) and 3 different concentrations each of thymol and menthol (50, 10, and 1 µg/ml) were used. Concentration of 2,500 µg/ml of both extracts showed a significant protoscolicidal activity on the 6th day. Complete loss of viability of protoscolices occurred with 500 µg/ml concentration of both extracts at day 6 and day 7 post-treatment (PT), respectively. Pure compounds, i.e., menthol and thymol, showed potent effects with 50 µg/ml concentration at day 2 and day 5 PT, respectively. These effects were compared with those of albendazole sulfoxide (800 µg/ml), a commonly used treatment drug for hydatidosis. Krebs-Ringer solution and the hydatid cystic fluid at a ratio of 4:1 was a good preservative solution which kept the protoscolices viable for 15 days.

This work reports the isolation and characterization of three saponins, including a new one (3), from an n-BuOH extract of the root of Ferula hermonis Boiss. Their structures (1–3) were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic evidence using 1D and 2D-NMR data, high resolution MS and chemical methods and identified as 3ß-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-galactopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-glucuronopyranosyl-oleanolic acid (Sandrosaponin X, 1), 3ß-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-galactopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-glucuronopyranosyl-oleanolic acid 28-O-ß-D-glucopyranoside (Sandrosaponin IX, 2) and 3ß-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-galactopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-glucuronopyranosyl-oleanolic acid-28-O-ß-D-glucopyranoside methyl ester (Sandrosaponin XI, 3). The chemotaxonomic significance of these compounds was summarized.

This work reports the isolation and characterization of three saponins, including a new one (3), from an n-BuOH extract of the root of Ferula hermonis Boiss. Their structures (1–3) were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic evidence using 1D and 2D-NMR data, high resolution MS and chemical methods and identified as 3ß-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-galactopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-glucuronopyranosyl-oleanolic acid (Sandrosaponin X, 1), 3ß-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-galactopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-glucuronopyranosyl-oleanolic acid 28-O-ß-D-glucopyranoside (Sandrosaponin IX, 2) and 3ß-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-galactopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-glucuronopyranosyl-oleanolic acid-28-O-ß-D-glucopyranoside methyl ester (Sandrosaponin XI, 3). The chemotaxonomic significance of these compounds was summarized.

Aim: To compare the efficacy of a novel vaginal delivery system for metronidazole (0.8% MTZ in situ gel) versus a conventional MTZ vaginal gel product in the treatment of bacterial vaginosis (BV). Material and Methods: All consecutive patients who presented to a tertiary care hospital with symptoms suggestive of BV were approached to participate in the study. Forty-two eligible participants were randomly assigned to either MTZ in situ gel or a conventional vaginal gel product twice daily for 5 days. All participants were re-examined after one and 4 weeks of the beginning of treatment to ensure cure of infection and any side-effects. Results: Demographic criteria of the participants were comparable in the two treatment groups. The cure rate after one week from the treatment was 85% in the in situ gel group and 71.4% in the conventional vaginal gel group (P = 0.294), while after 4 weeks, the cure rate showed significant difference in the in situ gel group as compared to the conventional vaginal gel group (16/20 [80%]) and (9/19 [47.4%]), respectively (P = 0.034). Conclusion: Pilot testing showed that in situ MTZ vaginal gel is more effective than the conventional vaginal gel for long-term cure of BV. These findings suggest a novel and efficient long-term treatment of BV.