Description: |
Pinoresinol is the precursor of other dietary lignans that are present in whole-grain cereals, legumes, fruits, and other vegetables, PIN can cause an upregulation of the CDK inhibitor p21(WAF1/Cip1) both at mRNA and protein levels; PIN can ameliorate CCl4-induced acute liver injury, and this protection is likely due to anti-oxidative activity and down-regulation of inflammatory mediators through inhibition of NF-kappaB and AP-1. (+)-Pinoresinol possesses fungicidal activities and therapeutic potential as an antifungal agent for the treatment of fungal infectious diseases in humans. |
Targets: |
TNF-α | COX | NF-kB | NOS | AP-1 | JNK | CDK | p21 |
In vitro: |
Molecules, 2010, 15(5):3507-16. | Antifungal effect of (+)-pinoresinol isolated from Sambucus williamsii.[Pubmed: 20657496] | METHODS AND RESULTS:
In this study, we investigated the antifungal activity and mechanism of action of (+)-pinoresinol, a biphenolic compound isolated from the herb Sambucus williamsii,used in traditional medicine. (+)-Pinoresinol displays potent antifungal properties without hemolytic effects on human erythrocytes. To understand the antifungal mechanism of (+)-pinoresinol, we conducted fluorescence experiments on the human pathogen Candida albicans. Fluorescence analysis using 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) indicated that the (+)-pinoresinol caused damage to the fungal plasma membrane. This result was confirmed by using rhodamine-labeled giant unilamellar vesicle (GUV) experiments.
CONCLUSIONS:
Therefore, the present study indicates that (+)-pinoresinol possesses fungicidal activities and therapeutic potential as an antifungal agent for the treatment of fungal infectious diseases in humans. |
|
In vivo: |
J. Pharmacol. Sci. 2010,112(1):105-12. | Hepatoprotective effect of pinoresinol on carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatic damage in mice.[Pubmed: 20093790] | Forsythiae Fructus is known to have diuretic, anti-bacterial, and anti-inflammatory activities. This study examined the hepatoprotective effects of pinoresinol, a lignan isolated from Forsythiae Fructus, against carbon tetrachloride (CCl(4))-induced liver injury.
METHODS AND RESULTS:
Mice were treated intraperitoneally with vehicle or pinoresinol (25, 50, 100, and 200 mg/kg) 30 min before and 2 h after CCl4 (20 microl/kg) injection. In the vehicle-treated CCl(4 )group, serum aminotransferase activities were significantly increased 24 h after CCl4 injection, and these increases were attenuated by pinoresinol at all doses. Hepatic glutathione contents were significantly decreased and lipid peroxidation was increased after CCl4 treatment. These changes were attenuated by 50 and 100 mg/kg of pinoresinol. The levels of protein and mRNA expression of inflammatory mediators, including tumor necrosis factor-alpha, inducible nitric oxide synthase, and cyclooxygenase-2, were significantly increased after CCl4 injection; and these increases were attenuated by pinoresinol. Nuclear translocation of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) and phosphorylation of c-Jun, one of the components of activating protein 1 (AP-1), were inhibited by pinoresinol.
CONCLUSIONS:
Our results suggest that pinoresinol ameliorates CCl4)-induced acute liver injury, and this protection is likely due to anti-oxidative activity and down-regulation of inflammatory mediators through inhibition of NF-kappaB and AP-1. |
|