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Planta Med 1993; 59(3): 200-202
DOI: 10.1055/s-2006-959651
Paper

© Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart · New York

Inhibitory Effects of Berberine-Type Alkaloids on Elastase

Toshiaki Tanaka1 , Koichi Metori1 , Satoshi Mineo1 , 4 , Masao Hirotani2 , Tsutomu Furuya2 , Shigeru Kobayashi3
  • 1Department of Pharmacology, The Kohno Clinical Medicine Research Institute, Kitashinagawa 3-4-4, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140, Japan
  • 2School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kitasato University, Shirokane 5-9-1, Minato-ku, Tokyo 108, Japan
  • 3Faculty of Home Economics, Shikoku Women's University, Furukawa, Ohjin-cho, Tokushima-shi, Tokushima 771-11, Japan
  • 4Address for correspondence
Further Information

Publication History

1992

1992

Publication Date:
04 January 2007 (online)

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Abstract

Berberine-type alkaloids and some structurally related alkaloids were tested for inhibitory activity on porcine pancreatic elastase (PPE) and human sputum elastase (HSE). The chlorides of berberine, coptisine, and sanguinarine significantly inhibited the elastolytic activity of both the enzymes, but tetrahydroberberine had no effect on the activity. It seems that the quaternary nitrogen of the alkaloids plays an important role in the inhibition of elastolytic activity. Amidolytic activity of the elastases was not affected by any of the alkaloids tested.

Key words

Porcine pancreatic elastase - human sputum elastase - anti-elastolytic activity - anti-amidolytic activity - berberine-type alkaloid - quaternary nitrogen.

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