Abeer Abdelhalim

GABA-A Receptor Modulation and Anticonvulsant, Anxiolytic, and Antidepressant Activities of Constituents from Artemisia indica Linn.

Artemisia indica, also known as “Mugwort,” has been widely used in traditional medicines. However, few studies have investigated the effects of nonvolatile components of Artemisia indica on central nervous systems function. Fractionation of Artemisia indica led to the isolation of carnosol, ursolic acid, and oleanolic acid which were evaluated for their effects on GABA-A receptors in electrophysiological studies in Xenopus oocytes and were subsequently investigated in mouse models of acute toxicity, convulsions (pentylenetetrazole induced seizures), depression (tail suspension and forced swim tests), and anxiety (elevated plus maze and light/dark box paradigms). Carnosol, ursolic acid, and oleanolic acid were found to be positive modulators of α1β2γ2L GABA-A receptors and the modulation was antagonized by flumazenil. Carnosol, ursolic acid, and oleanolic acid were found to be devoid of any signs of acute toxicity (50–200 mg/kg) but elicited anticonvulsant, antidepressant, and anxiolytic activities. Thus carnosol, ursolic acid, and oleanolic acid demonstrated CNS activity in mouse models of anticonvulsant, antidepressant, and anxiolysis. The anxiolytic activity of all three compounds was ameliorated by flumazenil suggesting a mode of action via the benzodiazepine binding site of GABA-A receptors.

The prophylactic and therapeutic effects of Momordica charantia methanol extract through controlling different hallmarks of the hepatocarcinogenesis

Inspite of the wide facilities for controlling cancer growth, there are little drugs to inhibit its metastasis or prevent its angiogenesis. Discovering such natural or synthetic multi-targeted agent that might strike different targets is considered as a vital goal for tumor controlling. In a previous study, the chemoprotective effect of methanol extract of Momordicacharantia (MEMC) on albino western rats bearing hepatocarcinogenesis was evaluated. The mechanism by which MEMC exert its anticancer properties was unknown. Therefore, we aimed in this study to investigate the possible role of MEMC as anti-proliferative, anti-angiogenic and anti-metastatic agent to exert its chemoprotective effect. The study was conducted on sixty albino western rats divided into six groups, 10 rats each. Diethylnitrosamine (DENA) was injected intraperitoneally (i.p.) at a dose of 200 mg/kg body weight once, 2 weeks later rats were received carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) subcutaneously (3 ml/kg/week) continued for 10 weeks. MEMC was orally produced to rats (40 mg/kg) alone, as well as before, at the same time and after DENA injection. Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), caspase-3,-8 (Casp-3,-8), histone deacetylase (HDAC) and matrixmetalloproteinases-2,-9 (MMP-2,-9) were evaluated. MEMC treatment significantly decreased Cox-2, VEGF, HDAC and MMP-2,-9 and increased Casp-3,-8 as compared to DENAgroup,which demonstrated that the anticancer effect of MEMC may be through the inhibition of angiogenesis, proliferation and metastasis and the activation of apoptosis. The improvement in before-treated group was more pronounced than that in after- and simultaneous-treated groups, indicating thatMEMC may act as a prophylactic agent more than being a therapeutic agent.

Medicinal plants used by traditional healers in Jordan, the Tafila region

Background: The reporting of the medicinal plants and their traditional uses is important in order to prevent this knowledge from being lost. The aims of this study were to collect information concerning the traditional use of medicinal plants in the region of Tafila; identify the most important medicinal plants; determine the relative importance of the species surveyed; and calculate the informant consensus factor (Fic) in relation to medicinal plant use. Materials and Methods: Data on the traditional medicinal uses of local plants were collected using qualitative tools. The informant consensus factor (Fic) for the category of aliments and the use value (UV) of the plant species were calculated. Results and Conclusions: The survey revealed that 41 plant species are still in use in Tafila for the treatments of various diseases. Problems of the digestive system had the highest Fic values, while Allium cepa L. and Matricaria aurea (Loefl.) Sch. Bip. scored the highest UV. Abbreviations used: Fic: Informants consensus factor, nur: number of use reports per each category, nt: number of taxa used, UV: use value of a species, U: number of uses per species, n: number of informants

Antidiabetic activity and histopathological analysis of carnosol isolated from Artemisia indica linn in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats

Diabetes mellitus is a major metabolic disorder affecting a huge population all over the world. The aim of the current study was to validate the folkloric use of Artemisia indica as an antidiabetic plant by using the isolated compound carnosol from the chloroform fraction of Artemisia indica in streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus in rats. The antidiabetic activity-guided isolation of the chloroform fraction of Artemisia indica linn (Asteraceae) led to the isolation and characterization of carnosol. Carnosol was tested for its possible antidiabetic potential in streptozotocin [50 mg/kg. intra peritoneal (i.p)]-induced diabetic Sprague Dawley rats. Blood glucose level, body weight, serum lipid profile and activities of liver enzymes and effects on histopathological parameters were determined. A daily oral dose of carnosol (1–100 mg/kg b.w) for 15 days caused a significant reduction in blood glucose level, which was comparable to the standard antidiabetic drug, glibenclamide (0.5 mg/kg, p.o). Carnosol also showed reduction in triglycerides, total cholesterol, and low density lipoproteins (LDL) as well as serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase, serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase, alkaline phosphatase and serum creatinine level in diabetic rats. Furthermore, in histopathological studies, carnosol reversed streptozotocin-induced changes in the pancreatic islets of Langerhans and caused regeneration and restored the integrity of pancreatic islets of Langerhans which may be responsible for its antihyperlgycemic effect. In conclusion, carnosol possesses hypoglycemic, antihyperlipidemic and useful protective effects on the liver and renal functions in diabetic rats, which suggests that the antidiabetic activity of Artemisia indica may be due in part to carnosol.