Planta Med 1995; 61(4): 372-373
DOI: 10.1055/s-2006-958107
Letters

© Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart · New York

Lipoxygenase Inhibition and Antioxidant Properties of Protoberberine and Aporphine Alkaloids Isolated from Mahonia aquifolium

Vladimír Mišík1 , 4 , Lídia Bezáková2 , Ľubica Máleková1 , Daniela Košťálová3
  • 1Institute of Experimental Pharmacology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, 842 16 Bratislava, Slovakia
  • 2Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology of Drugs, Faculty of Pharmacy, J. A. Comenius University, 832 32 Bratislava, Slovakia
  • 3Department of Pharmacognosy and Botany, Faculty of Pharmacy, J. A. Comenius University, 832 32 Bratislava, Slovakia
  • 4National Cancer Institute, NIH, Bldg. 10, Rm.B1B50, Bethesda, MD 20892, U.S.A.
Further Information

Publication History

1994

1995

Publication Date:
04 January 2007 (online)

Abstract

Products of lipoxygenase metabolism play a role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. Four protoberberine alkaloids, berberine, oxyberberine, jatrorrhizine, columbamine, and two aporphine alkaloids, magnoflorine, and corytuberine, isolated from Mahonia aquifolium, were tested for lipoxygenase inhibition. Oxyberberine, corytuberine, and columbamine were the most potent lipoxygenase inhibitors tested, whereas berberine and magnoflorine exhibited only low potencies. A strong linear correlation (r = 0.866) between lipoxygenase inhibition and lipid antioxidant properties of these compounds was found. These data suggest that the mechanism of lipoxygenase inhibition by these alkaloids may be linked to the inhibition of lipid hydroperoxide substrate accumulation. Inhibition of lipoxygenase by these compounds may contribute to the therapeutic effect of M. aquifolium extracts in the treatment of psoriasis.