Marrubium vulgare L., Lamiaceae, is a traditional Algerian herbal remedy used for treating various ailments. This research sought to assess the in vivo gastroprotective activity of a hydroalcoholic extract from the plant’s aerial parts against ethanol/HCl-induced gastric ulcers in Wistar rats, and to identify the mechanism involved through in silico methods. The extract was first confirmed to be non-toxic in an acute toxicity study. In vivo testing involved pre-treating rats with M. vulgare extract (0.75, 1.5, and 3 g/kg) or omeprazole (0.10 g/kg) prior to ulcer induction. The extract’s phytochemical profile was characterized by UPLC-ESI–MS/MS, and the identified compounds were subjected to molecular docking against the H+/K+ ATPase receptor and absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity analysis. Results demonstrated that M. vulgare conferred significant, dose-dependent gastroprotection, achieving a statistically significant (p < 0.0001) ulcer area reduction of over 89
Pulsatilla pratensis (L.) Mill., Ranunculaceae, is a medicinal plant used in homeopathy to treat various conditions, including indigestion, cough, and colic. Hybridization, close taxonomic relationships within the genus, and overlapping external morphology make it difficult to authenticate dried and processed material, in which color fades and diagnostic structures become fragmented or lost. This study characterized an authenticated commercial lot of dried whole-plant and powdered P. pratensis by morphology, light microscopy, histochemistry, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, and powder microscopy. Macroscopically, the drug comprised a rhizomatous underground system, densely pubescent and deeply divided leaves, and small achenes with persistent plumose styles, characters consistent with Pulsatilla and useful to distinguish it from Anemone. Microscopically, roots and rhizomes showed radially arranged xylem strands, with a pith in the rhizome; stems, leaves, and sepals bore unicellular non-glandular trichomes. Basal and upper (cauline) leaves, both fully expanded, were amphistomatic with anomocytic stomata. Histochemistry revealed tissue-specific reactions for phenolic compounds, starch, lignin, and lipophilic substances, whereas mucilage was not detected. Powder microscopy confirmed diagnostic fragments, including trichomes, epidermal tissues, lignified vessel elements, starch grains, and spheroidal pollen grains with reticulate exine. Taken together, this combined profile supports routine screening and helps prevent substitution and adulteration of whole and powdered herbal drugs. Nevertheless, targeted chemical or molecular methods are still required for species-level discrimination, and pharmacological assays are needed to confirm biological activity.
Sida rhombifolia L., Malvaceae, is widely distributed in tropical and subtropical regions and is frequently used in traditional medicine, although it is commonly regarded as a weed. Its identification is often compromised by morphological similarity among species of Sida and the widespread use of the vernacular name “guanxuma,” which may lead to taxonomic confusion and difficulties in pharmacognostic studies. This study characterizes the vegetative organs of S. rhombifolia by light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and histochemical assays to support pharmacognostic identification. Diagnostic anatomical and micromorphological features were investigated to support species identification and differentiation within the genus. Histochemical assays were also performed to determine the distribution of primary and secondary metabolites in plant tissues. The species exhibited a set of consistent diagnostic characters, including anisocytic and anomocytic stomata, dorsiventral mesophyll with mucilaginous and crystalliferous idioblasts, and non-glandular and glandular trichomes. Vascular and mechanical tissues showed well-developed lignified fibers, while the root and stem presented characteristic arrangements of vascular bundles and storage tissues. Histochemical analyses revealed the presence of lipids, phenolic compounds, alkaloids, mucilage, pectins, lignin, starch, and proteins, with specific tissue localization associated with functions of protection, secretion, support, and storage. The integration of anatomical, micromorphological, and histochemical data provides a robust pharmacobotanical framework for the identification of S. rhombifolia, supporting its differentiation from related species and contributing to taxonomic clarification within the genus Sida. These findings also provide valuable parameters for quality control of plant raw material and future pharmacological investigations.
Intestinal epithelial inflammation is a central feature of inflammatory bowel disease, yet few studies have examined how dietary lignans directly modulate cytokine-driven epithelial responses. Pinoresinol is a plant-derived lignan reported to occur in Eucommia ulmoides Oliv., Eucommiaceae, a medicinal plant traditionally used in East Asian medicine. In this study, pinoresinol was evaluated through complementary in silico and in vitro analyses. SwissADME profiling indicated favorable drug-likeness and gastrointestinal absorption, while molecular docking provided exploratory predictions of potential interactions with JAK1 and JAK2. In IFN-γ/TNF-α-stimulated Caco-2 cells, pinoresinol reduced CXCL8 and CCL2 expression, decreased ICAM1, and showed a downward tendency in IL1B. Pinoresinol also increased IL10 and reduced the cytokine-induced elevation of OCLN expression. Cytotoxicity analysis supported the selection of 50 µM as a non-cytotoxic working concentration. These findings indicate that pinoresinol modulates selected inflammatory and barrier-associated gene-expression responses under cytokine-induced stress, whereas the predicted target interactions require further experimental validation.
Type 2 diabetes involves postprandial hyperglycemia, impaired insulin signaling, and inflammation. Phytochemical investigation of Castanea mollissima Blume, Fagaceae, leaves yielded eight known secondary metabolites, whose structures were established using 1D and 2D NMR data. All isolates were evaluated for α-glucosidase and protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) inhibition, while fucosterol, bergenin, 4-hydroxy-2-methoxyphenol-β-d-3″-O-[4′-hydroxy-3′-methoxy(benzoate)]-glucopyranoside, and vitexin were additionally tested for suppression of lipopolysaccharide-induced nitric oxide production in RAW264.7 macrophages. Compounds 1β,4β,7α-trihydroxyeudesmane, fucosterol, bergenin, and 4-hydroxy-2-methoxyphenol-β-d-3″-O-[4′-hydroxy-3′-methoxy(benzoate)]-glucopyranoside are reported for the first time from C. mollissima. Fucosterol was the most active constituent across the three assays, inhibiting nitric oxide (IC50 19.6 ± 0.4 μM), α-glucosidase (IC50 38.9 ± 2.9 μM), and PTP1B (IC50 7.1 ± 1.2 μM) production. Vitexin and rutin showed moderate α-glucosidase inhibition, whereas the remaining compounds were weak or inactive. Molecular docking against inducible nitric oxide synthase, cyclooxygenase-2, interleukin-8, oligo-1,6-glucosidase, and PTP1B provided hypothesis-generating information on possible ligand-target interactions. These findings expand the known secondary-metabolite profile of C. mollissima and support further investigation of fucosterol.
