@article{AbdelhafezFawzyFahimetal.2018, author = {Abdelhafez, Omnia Hesham and Fawzy, Michael Atef and Fahim, John Refaat and Desoukey, Samar Yehia and Krischke, Markus and Mueller, Martin J. and Abdelmohsen, Usama Ramadan}, title = {Hepatoprotective potential of Malvaviscus arboreus against carbon tetrachloride-induced liver injury in rats}, series = {PLoS ONE}, volume = {13}, journal = {PLoS ONE}, number = {8}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0202362}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-177243}, pages = {e0202362}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Malvaviscus arboreus Cav. is a medicinal plant belonging to family Malvaceae with both ethnomedical and culinary value; however, its phytochemical and biological profiles have been scarcely studied. Accordingly, this work was designed to explore the chemical composition and the hepatoprotective potential of M. arboreus against carbon tetrachloride (CCl\(_4\))-induced hepatotoxicity. The total extract of the aerial parts and its derived fractions (petroleum ether, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, and aqueous) were orally administered to rats for six consecutive days, followed by injection of CCl\(_4\) (1:1 v/v, in olive oil, 1.5 ml/kg, i.p.) on the next day. Results showed that the ethyl acetate and dichloromethane fractions significantly alleviated liver injury in rats as indicated by the reduced levels of alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), total bilirubin (TB), and malondialdehyde (MDA), along with enhancement of the total antioxidant capacities of their livers, with the maximum effects were recorded by the ethyl acetate fraction. Moreover, the protective actions of both fractions were comparable to those of silymarin (100 mg/kg), and have been also substantiated by histopathological evaluations. On the other hand, liquid chromatography-high resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC‒HR‒ESI‒MS) metabolomic profiling of the crude extract of M. arboreus aerial parts showed the presence of a variety of phytochemicals, mostly phenolics, whereas the detailed chemical analysis of the most active fraction (i.e. ethyl acetate) resulted in the isolation and identification of six compounds for the first time in the genus, comprising four phenolic acids; β-resorcylic, caffeic, protocatechuic, and 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acids, in addition to two flavonoids; trifolin and astragalin. Such phenolic principles, together with their probable synergistic antioxidant and liver-protecting properties, seem to contribute to the observed hepatoprotective potential of M. arboreus.}, language = {en} } @article{FathyFawzyHintzscheetal.2019, author = {Fathy, Moustafa and Fawzy, Michael Atef and Hintzsche, Henning and Nikaido, Toshio and Dandekar, Thomas and Othman, Eman M.}, title = {Eugenol exerts apoptotic effect and modulates the sensitivity of HeLa cells to cisplatin and radiation}, series = {Molecules}, volume = {24}, journal = {Molecules}, number = {21}, issn = {1420-3049}, doi = {10.3390/molecules24213979}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-193227}, pages = {3979}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Eugenol is a phytochemical present in different plant products, e.g., clove oil. Traditionally, it is used against a number of different disorders and it was suggested to have anticancer activity. In this study, the activity of eugenol was evaluated in a human cervical cancer (HeLa) cell line and cell proliferation was examined after treatment with various concentrations of eugenol and different treatment durations. Cytotoxicity was tested using lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) enzyme leakage. In order to assess eugenol's potential to act synergistically with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, cell survival was calculated after eugenol treatment in combination with cisplatin and X-rays. To elucidate its mechanism of action, caspase-3 activity was analyzed and the expression of various genes and proteins was checked by RT-PCR and western blot analyses. Eugenol clearly decreased the proliferation rate and increased LDH release in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. It showed synergistic effects with cisplatin and X-rays. Eugenol increased caspase-3 activity and the expression of Bax, cytochrome c (Cyt-c), caspase-3, and caspase-9 and decreased the expression of B-cell lymphoma (Bcl)-2, cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2), and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) indicating that eugenol mainly induced cell death by apoptosis. In conclusion, eugenol showed antiproliferative and cytotoxic effects via apoptosis and also synergism with cisplatin and ionizing radiation in the human cervical cancer cell line.}, language = {en} }