The potential induction of a programmed cell death (PCD) in Trypanosoma b. brucei by 55 alkaloids of the quinoline, quinolizidine, isoquinoline, indole, terpene, tropane, steroid, and piperidine type was studied by measuring DNA fragmentation and changes in mitochondrial membrane potential. For comparison, the induction of apoptosis by the same alkaloids in human leukemia cells (Jurkat APO-S) w...

The benzophenanthridine alkaloids sanguinarine, chelerythrine and chelidonine were reported previously to provoke cell death in a variety of tumor cells suggesting their potential application as anticancer agents. Here we tested their effects on a primary human uveal melanoma cell line, OCM-1. Flow cytometric analysis of annexin V binding/PI exclusion and DNA fragmentation disclosed that all th...

The alkaloids chelerythrine, norchelerythrine, oxyavicine, canthine-6-one, 4,5-dihydrocanthin-6-one, and gamma-fagarine were isolated from Zanthoxylum dimorphophyllum bark, together with two coumarins, scoparone and dimoxylin. This latter is a novel compound whose structure was elucidated on the basis of its spectral data.

OBJECTIVE Ischemic postconditioning protects the reperfused heart from infarction, and this protection is dependent on the occupancy of adenosine receptors. We further explored the role of adenosine receptors in this salvage. METHODS In situ rabbit hearts underwent 30 min of regional ischemia and 3 h of reperfusion, and postconditioning was effected with four cycles of 30-s reperfusion/30-s c...

A relatively selective agonist of kappa opioid receptors (KOR), bremazocine (BRE), lowers intraocular pressure in rabbits, in part, by increasing natriuretic peptide levels in aqueous humor and by enhancing total outflow facility (TOF). Natriuretic peptide (NP) levels [atrial NP (ANP), brain NP (BNP), and C-type NP (CNP)] were measured in aqueous humor of rabbits either by radioimmunoassay or e...

OBJECTIVES Signaling in adenosine-mediated preconditioning is controversial. We examined roles of mitochondrial (mito) K(ATP) channels, protein kinase C (PKC) and nitric oxide (NO). METHODS Langendorff perfused C57/Bl6 mouse hearts were subjected to 20 min ischemia and 45 min reperfusion. Effects of adenosine-mediated preconditioning were assessed in the absence and presence of signaling inhi...

In order to understand the antifungal activity of some derivatives of sanguinarine (S) and chelerythrine (C) and their structure-activity relationships, sixteen derivatives of S and C were prepared and evaluated for in vitro antifungal activity against seven phytopathogenic fungi by the mycelial growth rate method. The results showed that S, C and their 6-alkoxy dihydro derivatives S₁-S₄, C₁-C₄...