Here, we have found that the natural isoquinoline alkaloid berberine induced apoptosis of SK-MEL-2 human melanoma cells, as assessed by an increase in sub-G1 phase (hipodiploidy) in flow cytometry analysis, which involved mitochondria and caspase activation, including caspases 3, 4, 7, 8, and 9. Berberine induced disruption of the mitochondrial transmembrane potential (ΔΨm), released cytochrome...

Objectives. To assess the efficacy and safety of berberine in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods. Randomized trials of berberine compared with lifestyle modification, placebo, and/or oral hypoglycaemics intervention on treating T2DM were included. Study population characteristics and outcome results were extracted independently by two reviewers. Meta-analyses were perform...

Although berberine has hypolipidemic effects with a high affinity to nuclear proteins, the underlying molecular mechanism for this effect remains unclear. Here, we determine whether berberine is an agonist of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARalpha), with a lipid-lowering effect. The cell-based reporter gene analysis showed that berberine selectively activates PPARalpha (EC5...

Berberine is an isoquinoline alkaloid found in Rhizoma coptidis, and elicits anti-inflammatory effects through diverse mechanisms. Based on previous reports that activating transcription factor-3 (ATF-3) acts as a negative regulator of LPS signaling, the authors investigated the possible involvement of ATF-3 in the anti-inflammatory effects of berberine. It was found berberine concentration-dep...

Berberine, one of the major constituents of Chinese herb Rhizoma coptidis, has been demonstrated to lower blood glucose, blood lipid, and body weight in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The anti-obesity effect of berberine has been attributed to its anti-adipogenic activity. However, the underlying molecular mechanism remains largely unknown. In the present study, we found that berberine...

BACKGROUND We investigated the mechanisms of anti-Candida action of isoquinoline alkaloid berberine, active constituent of medically important plants of Barberry species. METHODS The effects on membrane, morphological transition, synthesis of ergosterol and the consequent changes in membrane permeability have been studied. Polarization and lipid peroxidation level of the membrane following be...

Berberine is an isoquinoline alkaloid present in several plants, including Coptis sp. and Berberis sp. Berberine is a customary component in Chinese medicine, and is characterized by a diversity of pharmacological effects. An extensive search in electronic databases (PubMed, Scopus, Ovid, Wiley, ProQuest, ISI, and Science Direct) were used to identify the pharmacological and clinical studies on...

The mechanisms of action underlying the pharmacological properties of the natural alkaloid berberine still need investigation. Planarian regeneration is instrumental in deciphering developmental responses following drug exposure. Here we report the effects of berberine on regeneration in the planarian Dugesia japonica. Our findings demonstrate that this compound perturbs the regenerative patter...

Many phytochemicals have been recognized to have potential chemopreventive or chemotherapeutic efficacy in cancer treatment. In this study, we hypothesized that berberine would have anticancer activities in SCC-4 human tongue cancer cells. Results indicated that berberine reduced the viability of SCC-4 cells, which was initiated by the generation of reactive oxygen species, via an increase in c...

background: oligodendrocytes, the myelinating glial cells of central nervous system, are highly vulnerable to ischemic‑induced excitotoxic insult, a phenomenon in which calcium overload triggers cell death. berberine is an alkaloid extracted from medicinal herbs as coptidis rhizoma with several pharmacological effects like inhibition of neuronal apoptosis in cerebral ischemia. methods: we exami...