DARU Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Year:2004 | Volume:12 | Issue:2|Papers Count:8

Two ferulic acid derivatives, hexacosyl - (E) - ferulate [1] and leucosceptoside A [2], have been isolated from the rhizomes of Eremostachys glabra. The chemical structures of these compounds have been elucidated by UV, ESIMS, H~1 NMR and C~13 NMR spectroscopic analyses, and also by comparing experimental data with respective literature data. The free radical scavenging activity and general toxicity of these compounds have been assessed. While none of these compounds has shown any significant general toxicity in the brine shrimp lethality assay (LD__50>1 mg/mL), compounds 1 and 2 displayed significant antioxidant activity in the DPPH assay (RC__50 = 0.0976 mg/mL and 0.0148 mg/mL, respectively).

Two isoflavone, irilin A and irisone B were isolated from Iris songarica and their structures were determined by 1 and 2 D-NMR, IR, UV and MS. The effect of solvent on H~1-NMR spectra of irisone B have been studied.

Ferula gummosa Boiss (Apiaceae) has been used in Iranian traditional medicine for the relief of stomach pain. In this study, effects of aqueous, methanolic and acetone extracts of the seed and root of this plant in experimental models of acute pain (Tail-flick=TF), chronic pain (Formalin test=FT) and inflammation (Cotton pellet granuloma=CPG) was investigated. The results showed that the highest non-sedative dose of each of these three extracts had no effect in TF. Among the extracts, only the acetone extract of the root could reduce licking and biting time in the late phase of FT, although this effect might be to some extent due to the solvent (Tween 80). None of the extracts had anti-inflammatory effect in CPG. Preliminary phytochemical analysis of methanol and acetone extracts showed presence of terpenoids and alkaloids and small amounts of cardenolids. The results of our study suggest further evaluation of antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory effects of other kinds of extracts in order to determine the best extract with highest efficacy and lowest side effects.

Composition of the volatile oil of the aerial parts of Achillea wilhelmsii C. Koch (Compositae) was investigated by GLC and GC-MS. Fifty-seven components representing 98:5% composition of the essential oil were characterized. The main components of the oil were carvacrol (25.1%), linalool (11.0%), 1,8-cineol ( 10.3%), E-nerolidol (9.0%) and borneol (6.4%).

Since hesperidin is a poor water soluble compound, in pharmaceutical formulations its methylated derivatives (hesperidin methyl chalcone, HMC) are used. The aim of this study was to establish an efficient methylation method for preparation of hesperidin methyl derivatives. For this purpose hesperidin was isolated from tangerine peel, purified and its methyl derivatives were prepared using three different techniques, i.e. diazomethane, methyl iodide-sodium hydride and dimethylsulfate. The efficiency of the methods was evaluated in terms of the percentage of unchanged and intact hesperidin in the final methylated products the and amount of unchanged hesperidin was an indication of the better efficiency of the method. A reversed phase HPLC method was also developed for determination and quantification of hesperidin in the final methylated products The method involved the use of a Shim pack CLC-ODS column, a mixture of methanol-phosphate buffer (37:63, v/v) of pH = 2.6 as a mobile phase in an isocratic mode at a flow rate of 1 ml/min and UV detection at 280 nm. The results showed that methylation with methyl iodide-sodium hydride have the highest efficiency among different methylation methods.

Thirty hair samples were collected from the male opioid abusers in which the presence of morphine in their urine samples was confirmed by Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) analyses. The hair samples were washed, cut into small pieces and extracted in a mixture of methanol-triflouroacetic acid (9:1). The metthanolic phase was evaporated to dryness under nitrogen stream and derivitized by addition of N-methyl-N-trimethylsilyl triflouroacetamide (MSTFA) and 1% trimethyl iodosilane (TMIS) with sonication. One micro liter of each derivitized sample was injected into a Gas Chromatograph-Mass Spectrometer (GC/MS), system consisting of a capillary column and finnigan MS with selective ion monitoring (SIM) mode. The selected mass for ions codeine and morphine were 370 and 429, respectively. The limit of detection (LOD) was set at 0.03ng/mg of the hair. By using the above procedure, morphine was detectable in all of the examined samples and this method is capable to detect low levels of morphine in hair for a long period of t1me following the last intake of the drug.

A Spectrophotometric method for determination of Cu (II) based on the complex formation with a new reagent 6-(2-naphthyl)-2,3-dihydro-as-triazine-3-thione(NDTT) is described. NDTT was synthesized based on the knowledge available for the preparation of 6-phenyl-2,3-dihydro-as-triazine-3-thione (PDTT). Reaction of 2-acetylnaphthalene 1 with amyl nitrite gave 2-naphthylglyoxal aldoxime 2, which upon reaction with thiosemicarbazide yielded 6-(2-naphthyl)-2,3-dihydro-as-triazine-3-thione (NDTT) 3. NDTT produces a red complex with copper which is easily extractable with chloroform at pH>8 while the reagent is not extracted under these conditions. The absorption of the complex in the UV region (313 nm) is about 7 times greater than in the visible region (508 nm). The mole ratio of the complex which is formed between Cu (II) and NDTT is 2:3, which was calculated by both the mole ratio and the continuous variation methods. The absorbance of the complex obeys Beer"s law in the concentration range of 0.08-2 m#g Cu(II)/ml chloroform with r = 0.998 and detection limit of 13 ng/ml. This procedure can be carried out in the presence of many cations and anions in the presence or absence of the masking agents.

Anticonvulsant activity of Alkyl, cycloalkyl and arylalkyl ester analogues of nifedipine in which the ortho-nitro phenyl group at position 4 is replaced by 1-methy l-4-nitro-5-imidazolyl substituent, were determined against pentylenetetrazole-induced seizures in mice. The anticonvulsant effects of the compounds were evaluated by the measurement of seizure latency and duration. Significant differences were observed between treated animals with control group and nifedipine in seizure duration. Our results show that most of the compounds had similar activity to the reference drug nifedipine. In addition, compounds 6a, 6b, 6f, 6g, 6h, 8e, 8f, 8g , 8h and 8i were more active than the reference drug nifedipine.