The present study evaluated mitochondrial respiratory chain and creatine kinase activities after administration of harmine (5, 10, and 15 mg/kg) and imipramine (10, 20, and 30 mg/kg) in rat brain. After acute treatment occurred an increase of creatine kinase in the prefrontal with imipramine (20 and 30 mg/kg) and harmine in all doses, in the striatum with imipramine (20 and 30 mg/kg) and harmin...

Harmaline and harmine occur naturally in plants and are distributed endogenously in human and animal tissues. The two β-carboline alkaloids possess potential for treating Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, depression and other central nervous system diseases. However, studies have showed that the two compounds have similar structures but with quite different bioavailability. The aim of t...

BACKGROUND Harmine is a beta-carboline alkaloid from the plant Peganum harmala. Previous studies found that harmine inhibited metastasis of B16F-10 melanoma cells. This study aims to elucidate the role of harmine in apoptosis of B16F-10 cells. METHODS B16F-10 melanoma cells were treated in the presence and absence of harmine in vitro. Morphological changes, cell cycle and expression of variou...

Harmine is a beta-carboline alkaloid found in medicinal plant PeganumHarmala, which has served as a folk anticancer medicine. However, clinical applications of harmine were limited by its low pharmacological effects and noticeable neurotoxicity. In this study, we modified harmine to increase the therapeutic efficacy and to decrease the systemic toxicity. Specifically, two tumor targeting harmin...

Harmine is a natural compound possessing insulin-sensitizing effect in db/db diabetic mice. However its effect on adipose tissue browning is unknown. Here we reveal that harmine antagonizes high fat diet-induced adiposity. Harmine-treated mice gained less weight on a high fat diet and displayed increased energy expenditure and adipose tissue thermogenesis. In vitro, harmine potently induced the...

Thyroid cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in endocrine system. In latest studies, harmine has been proved to inhibit the growth of several cancers in vitro and in vivo. In the current study, we evaluated the in vitro and in vivo anticancer efficiency of harmine against thyroid cancer cell line TPC-1. The in vitro cytotoxicity of harmine evaluated by XTT assay indicated that harmi...

INTRODUCTION Harmane, a potent tremor-producing β-carboline alkaloid, may play a role in the etiology of essential tremor (ET). Blood harmane concentrations are elevated in ET cases compared with controls yet the basis for this elevation remains unknown. Decreased metabolic conversion (harmane to harmine) is one possible explanation. Using a sample of >500 individuals, we hypothesized that defe...

BACKGROUND Harmine has antitumor and antinociceptive effects, and inhibits human DNA topoisomerase. However, no detailed data are available on the mechanisms of action of harmine in hepatocellular carcinoma. This study aimed to investigate the effects of harmine on proliferation and apoptosis, and the underlying mechanisms in the human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line HepG2. METHODS The pro...

We previously demonstrated that Peganum harmala L. extract and its main active constituents, harmine and harmaline inhibit the 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD)-mediated induction of the carcinogen-activating enzyme, Cyp1a1, in vitro. However, the effect of both alkaloids on Cyp1a1 in vivo has not been investigated. Therefore, the aim of this study is to examine the effect of harmine a...

BACKGROUND Compound Muniziqi granule (MNZQ) is a multi-component herbal preparation and a popular traditional Uighur medicine used in China for treating endocrine disorder-induced acne, chloasma, dysmenorrhea, menopausal syndrome, and melanoma. Harmine presented in MNZQ has been confirmed potential anticancer effect on the B16 cells among others. The purpose of this study is to explore the inhi...