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Current treatments for gynecological cancers include surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. However, these treatments often have significant side effects. Phytochemicals, natural compounds derived from plants, offer promising anticancer properties. Coumarins, a class of benzopyrone compounds found in various plants like tonka beans, exhibit notable antitumor effects. These compounds induce cell apoptosis, target PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathways, inhibit carbonic anhydrase, and disrupt microtubules. Additionally, they inhibit tumor multidrug resistance and angiogenesis and regulate reactive oxygen species. Specific coumarin derivatives, such as auraptene, praeruptorin, osthole, and scopoletin, show anti-invasive, anti-migratory, and antiproliferative activities by arresting the cell cycle and inducing apoptosis. They also inhibit metalloproteinases-2 and -9, reducing tumor cell migration, invasion, and metastasis. These compounds can sensitize tumor cells to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Synthetic coumarin derivatives also demonstrate potent antitumor and anticancer activities with minimal side effects. Given their diverse mechanisms of action and minimal side effects, coumarin-class phytochemicals hold significant potential as therapeutic agents in gynecological cancers, potentially improving treatment outcomes and reducing side effects. This review will aid in the synthesis and development of novel coumarin-based drugs for these cancers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The World Health Organization reports that 30% of adults worldwide suffer from insomnia, while 10% of people worldwide suffer with various forms of anxiety. The significant negative effects of conventional medications used to treat anxiety and insomnia, such as abuse, addiction, amnesia, and cognitive and sexual dysfunction, have led to an increased preference for naturally derived substances with fewer side effects. Accordingly, in this study, the sedative and anxiolytic effects of n-hexane, ethyl acetate (EtOAc), methanol (MeOH) and water extracts of the aerial parts of Capparis sicula Duhamel., which is used for sedative purposes in folk medicine, were evaluated. To evaluate the sedative and anxiolytic effects of each extract, bioassay systems were used including traction and hole-board tests. The MeOH extract of C. sicula was the most active extract on in vivo traction and hole-board tests compared to Diazepam. From the MeOH extract, major components were isolated, and their structures were identified as three flavonoid glycosides [rutin (1), quercetin-3-O-glucoside (2), and quercetin 3-O-rhamnoside (3)] using spectral techniques. The most abundant component was determined to be rutin, comprising 8mg/100mg dry extract in MeOH extract and 76.7 mg/100 mg dry fraction in fraction C using HPLC. The molecular docking studies evaluated the interaction of isolated flavonoid glycosides with the interaction energies and protein-ligand interaction details of the anxiety-related receptors GABAA and GABAB. For the GABAA receptor, quercetin-3-O-glucoside demonstrated the highest docking score. Quercetin-3-O-rhamnoside and rutin also show promising interactions, particularly with the GABAB receptor, highlighting their potential as modulators of these receptors. In conclusion, the use of C. sicula for sedative purposes in folk medicine has been confirmed for the first time by in vivo studies, and its possible active compounds and sedative-anxiolytic mechanism have been determined through phytochemical and in silico studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of S. nigra L. and V. agnuscastus L. plants on obesity in vivo. Extracts were prepared from S. nigra leaves, flowers, fruits and from V. agnus-castus leaves, flowers, and fruits using 100% water and 70% ethanol. The total phenol and flavonoid contents of the extracts were quantified spectrophotometrically. The findings revealed that the ethanol extracts of V. agnus-castus and S. nigra flowers had the highest phenolic content, while the ethanol extracts of S. nigra flowers and V. agnus-castus leaves had the highest flavonoid content. Qualification and quantification of the phenolic contents of the extracts were carried out using liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) analyses. The study investigated the effects of various extracts on plasma levels of leptin, insulin, triiodothyronine (T3), thyroxine (T4), triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and lipase enzyme in obesity-induced rats. The results showed that the ethanol extract of V. agnus-castus flowers, as well as the ethanol and water extracts of V. agnus-castus leaves, resulted in body weight reduction in rats with obesity. Additionally, these extracts were found to decrease serum levels of LDL, triglycerides, leptin, lipase, TNF-α, and IL-1β while increasing levels of HDL and adiponectin. The LC-HRMS results demonstrated that all three extracts exhibited relatively high concentrations of luteolin-7-glycoside and kaempferol, in comparison to the other extracts. The ethanol extract of V. agnus-castus flowers contained 653.04 mg/100 g of luteolin-7-glycoside and 62.63 mg/100 g of kaempferol. The ethanol extract of V. agnus-castus leaves contained 1,720.26 mg/100 g of luteolin-7-glycoside and 95.85 mg/100 g of kaempferol. The water extract of V. agnus-castus leaves contained 690.49 mg/ 100 g of luteolin-7-glycoside and 194.41 mg/100 g of kaempferol. The study suggests that the ethanol extract of V. agnus-castus flowers and leaves, as well as the water extract of V. agnus-castus leaves, may have potential benefits in treating obesity. However, further controlled clinical studies are necessary to evaluate the clinical efficacy of V. agnus-castus in treating obesity and investigate the in vivo anti-obesogenic effects of luteolin-7-glycoside and kaempferol separately, both in their pure form and in combination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bryonia species have traditionally been used as a diuretic and laxative, to reduce edema and relieve joint pain. B. alba roots are used especially to treat rheumatic pain and applied to painful joints in Turkish folk medicine. B. alba roots were extracted with n-hexane, ethyl acetate (EtOAc), and methanol, successively. The carrageenan-induced hind paw edema model and the Whittle method were used to evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity of the extracts in mice. The p-benzoquinone-induced abdominal constriction test and tail flick test were used to evaluate the antinociceptive activity of the extracts in mice. DPPH-radical-scavenging activity, ABTS radical–scavenging activity, total antioxidant activity, and hydroxyl radical– scavenging activity were assessed. Furthermore, the total phenolic and total flavonoid contents were calculated for all the extracts. The EtOAc extract prepared from B. alba roots had the most promising anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive, and antioxidant activities. Moreover, it had high phenolic and flavonoid contents. Therefore, B. alba roots could be alternative treatment method for rheumatic disorders.

In Turkish folk medicine, the fruits of Pyrus elaeagnifolia subsp. elaeagnifolia have been used to treat diarrhea and detoxify poisonous snake bites by enlarging the wound. The aim of the study was to confirm the ethnopharmacological usage of the plant using in vivo and in vitro models. Experimental colitis was performed under anesthesia by intrarectal administration of acetic acid in rats, and the extracts were administered orally. The colonic malondialdehyde (MDA), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and nitrite levels, in addition to the myeloperoxidase (MPO) and caspase-3 activities, were measured to determine the effects of the plant extracts. The methanol (MeOH) extract revealed a significant decrease in MPO and caspase-3 levels. The MeOH extract was found to have the highest total tannin content. It was also found to have significant antioxidant (p ˂ 0.01) and anti-inflammatory activities (p ˂ 0.05) in acetic acid induced colitis rat model . According to our results, the present study exhibited a decrease in MDA, nitrite, IL-6, and TNF-α levels in the colon tissue and blood in the MeOH extract treated group. The findings of this study can help in treating various disorders, such as Clostridium difficile infection, irritable bowel syndrome, and inflammatory bowel diseases.