Baikal skullcap (Scutellaria baicalensis) is an important medicinal plant with proven bioactivity. Commercially available products in the United States containing extracts or derivatives from this plant species have beep shown to lack consistency of chemical composition and bioactivity. In the United States, these issues could be solved through domestic production of skullcap. The hypothesis of...

Huanglian-Jie-Du-Tang (HLJDT) is a famous traditional Chinese herbal formula that has been widely used clinically to treat cerebral ischemia. Recently, we found that berberine, a major alkaloid compound in HLJDT, reduced amyloid-β (Aβ) accumulation in an Alzheimer's disease (AD) mouse model. In this study, we compared the effects of HLJDT, four single component herbs of HLJDT (Rhizoma coptidis ...

Accumulating evidence suggests that platelet-type 12-lipoxygenase (p12-LOX) plays an important role in tumor development. However, how p12-LOX contributes to tumorigenesis is still not understood. The role of p12-LOX was therefore examined in tumor promotion using mouse epidermal JB6 P+ cells that are sensitive to 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate-induced transformation. The expression of p1...

1878-3317/$ e see front matter Copyright 2011, Ta doi:10.1016/j.jecm.2011.04.006 Background: Coumarin is a well-known plant-derived natural product, which is extensively used as a biologically active compound. Coumarins that possess hydroxyl groups in their benzenoid ring were shown to have potent antioxidant and radical-scavenging properties in various experimental models. Purposes: During our...

Prostate cancer is an important public health problem in the United States. Seven phytoestrogens found in common herbal products were screened for estrogen receptor binding and growth inhibition of androgen-insensitive (PC-3) and androgen-sensitive (LNCaP) human prostate tumor cells. In a competitive 3H-estradiol ligand binding assay using mouse uterine cytosol, 2.5 M quercetin, baicalein, geni...

Baicalein, wogonin, and their glycosides are major bioactive compounds found in the medicinal plant Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi. These flavones can induce apoptosis in a variety of cancer cell lines but have no effect on normal cells. Furthermore, they have many additional benefits for human health, such as anti-oxidant, antiviral, and liver-protective properties. Here, we report the isolati...

The transcription factor interferon regulatory factor-1 (IRF-1) is induced by many tumor-suppressive stimuli and canmediate antiproliferative and proapoptotic effects in cancer cells. Thus, identifying agents that enhance IRF-1 activity may be an effective approach to cancer therapy. A cell-based screening assay was developed to identify extracts and compounds that could enhance IRF-1 activity,...

This study focuses on the antiviral activity of selected flavonoids against the Chikungunya virus (CHIKV), a mosquito-transmitted virus that can cause incapacitating arthritis in infected individuals. Based on the results of screening on Vero cells, the tested compounds were evaluated further with various assays, including cytotoxicity assay, virus yield assay by quantitative reverse transcript...

Gegen-Qinlian-Tang (GQT), a popular Chinese medicine prescription, consists of Puerariae Radix, Scutellariae Radix, Coptidis Rhizoma, and Glycyrrhizae Radix. This study investigated the pharmacokinetics of GQT in rats and compared the bioavailability between two dosage forms, that is, traditional decoction (TD) and concentrated powder (CP). Rats were given TD and CP of GQT in a crossover design...

The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effect of 12/15-lipoxygenase (12/15-LOX) metabolites on retinal endothelial cell (REC) barrier function. FITC-dextran flux across the REC monolayers and electrical cell-substrate impedance sensing (ECIS) were used to evaluate the effect of 12- and 15-hydroxyeicosatetreanoic acids (HETE) on REC permeability and transcellular electrical resista...