NOPAL FEIGENKAKTUS – Aktuelle wissenschaftliche Studien | 36-49
36: Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 2005 Dec;60(4):195-200.
Biochemical and nutritional characterization of three prickly pear species with different ripening behavior.
Hernández-Pérez T, Carrillo-López A, Guevara-Lara F, Cruz-Hernández A, Paredes-López O.
Departamento de Biotecnología y Bioquímica, Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del IPN, Unidad Irapuato, Km 9.6 Libramiento Norte, Carretera Irapuato-León, CP, 36500, México.
Biochemical and nutritional changes were studied during the ripening process of three Opuntia morphospecies with different ripening behavior: Naranjona (O. ficus-indica), Blanca Cristalina (Opuntia sp.), and Esmeralda (Opuntia sp.) of early, early-intermediate, and intermediate-late ripening, respectively. In loss of fresh weight, Naranjona showed the highest values, while in Blanca Cristalina and Esmeralda, a discrete weight loss was found. No significant differences were found among morphospecies in soluble solids, total titratable acidity and pH during the postharvest days. Blanca Cristalina and Esmeralda showed an increase in the content of carotenoids, while these diminished in Naranjona. The cell wall enzymes evaluated showed particular behaviors during the ripening of each morphospecies suggesting a fine biochemical control and not a clear relationship between fruit softening and enzyme activity. This study provides basic information on prickly pear ripening, in order to understand this process for its control and for improving shelf life.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16395631 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
37: J Pharm Pharmacol. 2006 Jan;58(1):113-9.
Radical scavenging and anti-inflammatory activity of extracts from Opuntia humifusa Raf.
Cho JY, Park SC, Kim TW, Kim KS, Song JC, Kim SK, Lee HM, Sung HJ, Park HJ, Song YB, Yoo ES, Lee CH, Rhee MH.
School of Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, Republic of Korea.
Opuntia humifusa Raf. (O. humifusa Raf.) is a member of the Cactaceae family. To determine the antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects of this herb, various solvent fractions (methanol, hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, butanol, and water) prepared from the leaves of cacti were tested using DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-l-picrylhydrazyl radical) and xanthine oxidase assays, and nitric oxide (NO)-producing macrophage cells. We found that O. humifusa Raf. displayed potent antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activity. Thus, all solvent fractions, except for the water layer, showed potent scavenging effects. The scavenging effect of the ethyl acetate fraction was higher than that of the other fractions, with IC50 values of 3.6 and 48.2 microg mL(-1). According to activity-guided fractionation, one of the active radical scavenging principles in the ethyl acetate fraction was found to be quercetin. In contrast, only two fractions (chloroform and ethyl acetate) significantly suppressed nitric oxide production from the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated RAW264.7 cells. In addition, chloroform and ethyl acetate fractions significantly blocked the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthetase (iNOS) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) from the RAW264.7 cells stimulated by LPS. Moreover, ethyl acetate fractions significantly blocked the expression of IL-1beta from the RAW264.7 cells stimulated by LPS. Therefore, the results suggested that O. humifusa Raf. may modulate radical-induced toxicity via both direct scavenging activity and the inhibition of reactive species generation, and the modulation of the expression of inflammatory cytokines. Finally, O. humifusa Raf. may be useful as a functional food or drug against reactive species-mediated disease.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16393471 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
38: BMJ. 2005 Dec 24;331(7531):1515-8.
Interventions for preventing or treating alcohol hangover: systematic review of randomised controlled trials.
Pittler MH, Verster JC, Ernst E.
Complementary Medicine, Peninsula Medical School, Universities of Exeter and Plymouth, Exeter EX2 4NT. M.H.Pittler@exeter.ac.uk
OBJECTIVE: To assess the clinical evidence on the effectiveness of any medical intervention for preventing or treating alcohol hangover. DATA SOURCES: Systematic searches on Medline, Embase, Amed, Cochrane Central, the National Research Register (UK), and ClincalTrials.gov (USA); hand searches of conference proceedings and bibliographies; contact with experts and manufacturers of commercial preparations. Language of publication was not restricted. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION: All randomised controlled trials of any medical intervention for preventing or treating alcohol hangover were included. Trials were considered if they were placebo controlled or controlled against a comparator intervention. Titles and abstracts of identified articles were read and hard copies were obtained. The selection of studies, data extraction, and validation were done independently by two reviewers. The Jadad score was used to evaluate methodological quality. RESULTS: Fifteen potentially relevant trials were identified. Seven publications failed to meet all inclusion criteria. Eight randomised controlled trials assessing eight different interventions were reviewed. The agents tested were propranolol, tropisetron, tolfenamic acid, fructose or glucose, and the dietary supplements Borago officinalis (borage), Cynara scolymus (artichoke), Opuntia ficus-indica (prickly pear), and a yeast based preparation. All studies were double blind. Significant intergroup differences for overall symptom scores and individual symptoms were reported only for tolfenamic acid, gamma linolenic acid from B officinalis, and a yeast based preparation. CONCLUSION: No compelling evidence exists to suggest that any conventional or complementary intervention is effective for preventing or treating alcohol hangover. The most effective way to avoid the symptoms of alcohol induced hangover is to practise abstinence or moderation.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16373736 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
39: Bioresour Technol. 2006 Nov;97(16):2136-40. Epub 2005 Nov 14.
Evaluation of some biological parameters of Opuntia ficus indica. 2. Influence of seed supplemented diet on rats.
Ennouri M, Fetoui H, Bourret E, Zeghal N, Guermazi F, Attia H.
Alimentary Analysis Unit, National Engineering School of Sfax, 3038 Sfax, Tunisia. Monia.Ennouri@enis.rnu.tn
The present research was undertaken to evaluate some biological parameters in rats fed with a supplemented diet with Opuntia ficus indica powder seeds. Feed intake and body weight of rats were measured every two days during nine weeks of treatment. Digestibility, feed conversion efficiency and protein efficiency ratio were determined. No difference in digestibility was noticed between the different diets. The results indicated a significant decrease in body weight of rats receiving a diet partially substituted with O. ficus indica powder seeds, probably due to a significant decrease in serum-free thyroxin (FT(4)) compared to the control group. In the treated group, a decrease of glucose concentration in blood and an increase of glycogen in liver and skeletal muscle were noticed. A significant increase in HDL-cholesterol was noted in the group receiving the supplemented diet with O. ficus indica powder seeds. These results suggest that O. ficus indica seeds can be used as a healthy food.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16290138 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
40: J Ethnopharmacol. 2006 Mar 8;104(1-2):257-62. Epub 2005 Oct 21.
Opuntia ficus-indica attenuates neuronal injury in in vitro and in vivo models of cerebral ischemia.
Kim JH, Park SM, Ha HJ, Moon CJ, Shin TK, Kim JM, Lee NH, Kim HC, Jang KJ, Wie MB.
Department of Veterinary Medicine, Cheju National University, Jeju 690-756, South Korea.
We examined whether the methanol extract of Opuntia ficus-indica (MEOF) has a neuroprotective action against N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA)-, kainate (KA)-, and oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD)-induced neuronal injury in cultured mouse cortical cells. We also evaluated the protective effect of MEOF in the hippocampal CA1 region against neuronal damage evoked by global ischemia in gerbils. Treatment of neuronal cultures with MEOF (30, 300, and 1000 microg/ml) inhibited NMDA (25 microM)-, KA (30 microM)-, and OGD (50 min)-induced neurotoxicity dose-dependently. The butanol fraction of Opuntia ficus-indica (300 microg/ml) significantly reduced NMDA (20 microM)-induced delayed neurotoxicity by 27%. Gerbils were treated with MEOF every 24h for 3 days (0.1, 1.0, and 4.0 g/kg, p.o.) or for 4 weeks (0.1 and 1.0 g/kg, p.o.), and ischemic injury was induced after the last dose. Neuronal cell damage in the hippocampal CA1 region was evaluated quantitatively at 5 days after the ischemic injury. When gerbils were given doses of 4.0 g/kg (3 days) and 1.0 g/kg (4 weeks), the neuronal damage in the hippocampal region was reduced by 32 and 36%, respectively. These results suggest that the preventive administration of Opuntia ficus-indica extracts may be helpful in alleviating the excitotoxic neuronal damage induced by global ischemia.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16243466 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
41: Ann Bot (Lond). 2005 Dec;96(7):1175-89. Epub 2005 Oct 14.
Morphological and secretory characterization of extrafloral nectaries in plants of coastal Veracruz, Mexico.
Díaz-Castelazo C, Rico-Gray V, Ortega F, Angeles G.
Departamento de Ecología Funcional, México. diazcastelazo@yahoo.com.mx
BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Morphological descriptions of the extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) of certain plant species are common in the literature, but they rarely relate morphology with histology, gland distribution and secretory attributes. In this study a morphological/secretory characterization of EFNs occurring on several plant species in a tropical coastal community is made and the implications of gland attributes discussed from a functional perspective. METHODS: The morphology and nectar secretion of the EFNs of 20 plant species are characterized through scanning electron microscopy, histochemical detection of reducing sugars (Fehling's reagent) and nectar volume/concentration estimates. KEY RESULTS: Sixty-five per cent of plant species in coastal communities had EFNs on vegetative structures and 35 % of species had glands on reproductive and vegetative organs. The Fabaceae is the plant family with the most species with EFNs and most diversity of gland morphologies. Four types of vascularized nectaries and four of glandular trichomes are described; sugar-secreting trichomes are characterized using Fehling's technique, and the first descriptions of unicellular and peltate trichomes functioning as EFNs are provided. Glands of ten plant species and six genera are described for the first time. Four plant species possess more than one morphological type of EFN. Eleven species have EFNs in more than one location or organ. More complex glands secrete more nectar, but are functionally homologous to the aggregations of numerous secretory trichomes on specific and valuable plant organs. CONCLUSION: Important diversity of EFN morphology was foundin the coastal plant community studied. Both vascularized and non-vascularized EFNs are observed in plants and, for the latter, previously non-existent morpho-secretory characterizations are provided with a methodological approach to study them. It is recommended that studies relating EFN attributes (i.e. morphology, distribution) with their differential visitation by insects (i.e. ants) and the cost of maintenance to the plants are carried out to understand the evolution of these glands.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16227307 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
42: Phytother Res. 2005 Sep;19(9):807-9.
Antiinflammatory flavonoids from Opuntia dillenii (Ker-Gawl) Haw. flowers growing in Egypt.
Ahmed MS, El Tanbouly ND, Islam WT, Sleem AA, El Senousy AS.
Faculty of Pharmacy, Pharmacognosy Department, Cairo University, Egypt.
Opuntia dillenii (Ker-Gawl) Haw. (Family Cactaceae), is used in folk medicine as an antidiabetic and antiinflammatory. The antiinflammatory activity of the alcohol extracts of the flowers, fruits and stems was carried out using the carrageenan-induced rat paw oedema model. The analgesic effect of the same extracts was evaluated using electric current as a noxious stimulus. The alcohol extract of the flowers revealed the most potent antiinflammatory effect and a pronounced analgesic action at a dose of 200 mg/kg. Bioassay-guided fractionation of this extract using VLC followed by Sephadex and paper chromatography, afforded three flavonoid glycosides, namely, kaempferol 3-O-alpha-arabinoside, isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside and isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside. Their identification was based on physical, chemical and spectroscopic data. Copyright 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
PMID: 16220577 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
43: Phytother Res. 2005 Sep;19(9):796-800.
Opuntia ficus indica (L.) Mill. fruit juice protects liver from carbon tetrachloride-induced injury.
Galati EM, Mondello MR, Lauriano ER, Taviano MF, Galluzzo M, Miceli N.
Pharmaco-Biological Department, School of Pharmacy, University of Messina, Vill. SS. Annunziata, Italy. emgalati@unime.it
The protective effects of the juice of Opuntia ficus indica fruit (prickly pear) against carbon tetrachloride (CCl(4))-induced hepatotoxicity were examined in rats. The animals were treated orally with the juice (3 mL/rat) 2 h after administration of the hepatotoxic agent. Preventive effects were studied by giving the juice (3 mL/rat) for 9 consecutive days. On day 9 the rats received the hepatotoxic agent. Morphological and biochemical evaluations were carried out 24, 48 and 72 h after induction of the hepatic damage. Data show that O. ficus indica fruit juice administration exerts protective and curative effects against the CCl(4)-induced degenerative process in rat liver. Histology evaluation revealed a normal hepatic parenchyma at 48 h; the injury was fully restored after 72 h. Moreover, a significant reduction in CCl(4)-induced increase of GOT and GPT plasma levels is evident; these data are in agreement with the functional improvement of hepatocytes. O. ficus indica fruit juice contains many phenol compounds, ascorbic acid, betalains, betacyanins, and a flavonoid fraction, which consists mainly of rutin and isorhamnetin derivatives. Hepatoprotection may be related to the flavonoid fraction of the juice, but other compounds, such as vitamin C and betalains could, synergistically, counteract many degenerative processes by means of their antioxidant activity. Copyright 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
PMID: 16220574 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
44: Biol Pharm Bull. 2005 Oct;28(10):1844-51.
Hypotensive activity, toxicology and histopathology of opuntioside-I and methanolic extract of Opuntia dillenii.
Saleem R, Ahmad M, Azmat A, Ahmad SI, Faizi Z, Abidi L, Faizi S.
Faculty of Pharmacy, Hamdard University; Karachi, Pakistan. rs127pk@yahoo.com
Methanolic extract of Opuntia dillenii cladodes and its pure compound alpha-pyrone glycoside, opuntioside-I showed potent hypotensive activity in normotensive rats. Both the extract and opuntioside-I showed comparable effect of 44-54% fall in Mean Arterial Blood Pressure (MABP) at the dose of 10 mg/kg. No mortality was observed in rats even at the doses of 1000 mg/kg/d and 900 mg/kg/d per oral of extract and opuntioside-I respectively. However, histopathology revealed adverse effects of high doses on liver and spleen of the experimental animals.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16204933 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
45: J Agric Food Chem. 2005 Oct 5;53(20):7851-5.
Biothiols, taurine, and lipid-soluble antioxidants in the edible pulp of Sicilian cactus pear (Opuntia ficus-indica) fruits and changes of bioactive juice components upon industrial processing.
Tesoriere L, Fazzari M, Allegra M, Livrea MA.
Dipartimento Farmacochimico Tossicologico e Biologico, Università di Palermo, Via C, Forlanini 1, 90134 Palermo, Italy.
Biothiols, taurine, and flavonols, as well as tocopherols and carotenoids have been assessed in the edible pulp of Sicilian red (Sanguigna), yellow (Surfarina), and white (Muscaredda) cultivars of cactus pear. The yellow cultivar has the highest level of reduced glutathione (GSH, 8.1 +/- 0.78 mg/100 g pulp), whereas the white cultivar showed the highest amount of cysteine (1.21 +/- 0.12 mg/100 g pulp). Taurine accounted for 11.7 +/- 1.0 mg/100 g in the yellow pulp, while lower levels were measured in the others. With the exception of kaempferol in the yellow cultivar (2.7 +/- 0.2 microg/100 g pulp), the edible pulp of cactus pear was not a source of flavonols. Very low amounts of lipid-soluble antioxidant vitamins such as vitamin E and carotenoids were measured in all cultivars. As a consequence of industrial processing, a total loss of GSH and beta-carotene and a net decrease of vitamin C and cysteine were revealed in the fruit juice, whereas betalains, taurine, and vitamin E appeared to be less susceptible to degradation.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16190641 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
46: Bioresour Technol. 2006 Aug;97(12):1382-6. Epub 2005 Aug 29.
Evaluation of some biological parameters of Opuntia ficus indica. 1. Influence of a seed oil supplemented diet on rats.
Ennouri M, Fetoui H, Bourret E, Zeghal N, Attia H.
Alimentary Analysis Unit, National Engineering School of Sfax, B.P. 3038, Sfax, Tunisia. monia.ennouri@enis.rnu.tn
Cactus pear (Opuntia ficus indica) is native to Tunisia and the fruit is consumed exclusively as fresh fruit. The seed oil is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids but the nutritive value of the oil is unknown. The objective of our research was to determine the fatty acid content of cactus pear seed oil and to evaluate the effect of an oil supplemented diet on rats. The main fatty acids of prickly pear seed oil were C16:0, C18:0, C18:1, C18:2 with an exceptional level of linoleic acid, up to 700 g kg(-1), and a total content of unsaturated fatty acids of 884.8 g kg(-1). Feed intake and body weight of rats were measured every two days during the nine weeks of treatment. Digestibility, feed conversion efficiency and protein efficiency ratio were determined. No difference in digestibility was noted for the oil enriched diet. The results indicated a significant decrease in serum glucose concentration (22%) over the control group. However, an increase in the concentration of glycogen was noted in liver and muscle. Blood cholesterol and low density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol decreased in the treated group. High density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol concentration remained unaltered during the treatment. These findings support the nutritional value of cactus pear as a natural source of edible oil containing essential fatty acids and reinforce the possibility of cactus pear as a new crop for Tunisia especially in semi-arid regions, where conventional crops are difficult to establish.
PMID: 16129601 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
47: Environ Technol. 2005 Jul;26(7):821-9.
Cd(II) and Pb(II) separation from aqueous solution using clinoptilolite and Opuntia ectodermis.
Barrera-Díaz C, Almaraz-Calderón C, Olguín-Gutiérrez MT, Romero-Romo M, Palomar-Pardavé M.
Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Facultad de Química, Paseo Colón intersección Paseo Tollocan S/N. C.P. 50120, Toluca, Estado de México, México.
This work presents the conditions for Pb(II) and Cd(II) removal from aqueous solution using two different sorbent materials, namely, clinoptilolite and Opuntia ectodermis, which were characterized before and after entering into contact with the metal-containing aqueous media, using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermal analysis (TGA) and surface area (BET). Metal removal was found to depend on the initial metal concentration in aqueous solution, pH and the mass/volume ratio. The Pb(II) and Cd(II) uptake process was maximum at pH 4 for both sorbents, which showed an adsorption capacity that was adequately described by the Freundlich adsorption isotherm. The Thomas model was used to describe the adsorption data from column studies, the sorption capacity was 12.21 Pb(II) mg per gram of Opuntia ectodermis, while 7.71 Pb(II) mg per gram of clinoptilolite were adsorbed; lower values were obtained for Cd(II) removal. It was demonstrated that the use of low cost materials for the treatment of Pb(II), and Cd(II), containing wastewater is an effective and economical alternative method.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16080337 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
48: Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2005 May;30(9):694-6.
[Regulative effect of Opuntia powder on blood lipids in rats and its mechanism]
[Article in Chinese]
Li CY, Cheng XS, Cui MZ, Yan YG.
The First Medical College of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150001, China. lcy032002@yahoo.com.cn
OBJECTIVE: To observe the regulative effect of opuntia powder on blood lipids in wistar rats and to explore its mechanism. METHOD: Forty normal rats were divided into four groups:control group (fed with basal feed), opuntia high, middle and low dosage groups (fed with basal feed and opuntia powder of high, middle and low dosage. The influence of opuntia powder on serum total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), arteriosclerosis index (AI), serum malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD) were observed. (2) All of the hyperlipemia wistar rats for experiments were divided into four groups: model control group and other three groups (high, middle, low dosage groups respectively). Three weeks later, samples of blood were taken for survey of levels of TC, TG HDL-C, LDL-C, AI, MDA, SOD. RESULT: After opuntia powder treatment,the level of TC in nomal wistar rats was decreased. However, there was no significant difference comparing with control group (P > 0.05). The serum MAD level in the low, middle and high dosage groups were all obviously decreased, which were significantly lower than that in the control group. The SOD activities were all higher than that in the control group. The level of TC, LDL-C, AI (P < 0.01), TG (P < 0.05) were lower significantly in hyperlipemia wistar rats after treated by opuntia powder of high, middle and low dosage. The down-regulation of blood lipids was related with the dosage of opuntia powder. CONCLUSION: The opuntia powder may regulate the level of blood lipids in normal and hyperlipemia wistar rats. The effect is more obviously in hyperlipemia rats than that in normal rats.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16075737 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
49: Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2005 May;30(9):690-3.
[Study on the effects of two kinds of cactus polysaccharide on erythrocyte immune function of S180 mice]
[Article in Chinese]
Ji YB, Ji CF, Zou X, Gao SY.
Postdoctoral Research of the Institute of Materia Medica, Harbin University of Commerce, Harbin 150076, China. JYB@hrbcu.edu.cn
OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of two kinds of cactus polysaccharide on erythrocyte immune function in S180 mice. METHOD: Classical pharmaceutical method and test kit. RESULT: The cactus polysaccharide increased the content of RBC-CaR, RFER, decreased the content of RFIR, raised the content of sialic acid. And the effect of median dose group of medical cactus polysaccharide and high dose group of edible cactus polysaccharide is very remarkable (P < 0.01) compared with model group. CONCLUSION: The cactus polysaccharide improved the erythrocyte function of tumor-mice, which may be one of anti-tumor mechanisms.
Publication Types:
PMID: 16075736 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
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