full issue - Association of Biotechnology and Pharmacy
full issue - Association of Biotechnology and Pharmacy
full issue - Association of Biotechnology and Pharmacy
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Current Trends in <strong>Biotechnology</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Pharmacy</strong>Vol. 5 (1) 1073-1082 January 2011. ISSN 0973-8916 (Print), 2230-7303 (Online)1074mechanism leads to over production <strong>of</strong> freeradicals that may exceed system capacity toremove them. This situation ultimately culminatesinto damage <strong>of</strong> macromolecules such as proteins,lipids <strong>and</strong> nucleic acids followed by oxidative stress(5).Several compounds such as phenolic,flavonoids etc. obtained from different plants havestrong antioxidant capacity (4). Dietary phenolsare present in plant foods as bioactive molecules<strong>and</strong> data supporting the proposal that healthbenefits associated with vegetables <strong>and</strong> fruits areprobably linked to the phenol antioxidants theycontain. Phenols are present in a variety <strong>of</strong> plantsutilized as important components <strong>of</strong> both human<strong>and</strong> animal diets (6, 7, 8). A general consensushas been reached during the last few years thatdiet has a major role in the development <strong>of</strong> chronicdiseases, such as cancer, coronary heart disease,obesity, diabetes type 2, hypertension <strong>and</strong> cataract(9, 10). This consensus suggests that apredominantly plant-based diet rich in fruits <strong>and</strong>vegetables, pulses <strong>and</strong> minimally processedstarchy staple foods reduces the risk fordevelopment <strong>of</strong> these diseases significantly (11,12).The recommendations are mainly based onepidemiological studies, are thus, that fruits,vegetables <strong>and</strong> less processed staple foods providethe best protection against the development <strong>of</strong>disease with little or no merit in recommendingvitamin or other micronutrient supplements fordisease prevention. This is a safe principle thatpromises to provide for improved public health.In recent years, search for novel type <strong>of</strong>antioxidants from several plant parts has achievedhuge attention. Management <strong>of</strong> diseases withminimal side effects is still a complicated medicalchallenge. There is an increasing dem<strong>and</strong> to usethe natural products to prevent the free radicalinduced diseases (13, 14). In this regard, weselected L.acutangula to evaluate its antioxidantproperty because it is the popular in Indiantraditional medicine. Luffa acutangula is atropical running vine with rounded leaves <strong>and</strong>yellow flowers belongs to Cucurbitaceae family.Tea <strong>of</strong> these leaves is used as a diuretic, seedshave laxative properties <strong>and</strong> juice <strong>of</strong> the fruit isused against internal hemorrhage in traditionalmedicine. The results suggest that free radicalsmight play a role in the development <strong>of</strong> brain injuryfollowing brain hemorrhage (4). The fruit <strong>of</strong> theLuffa acutangula is rich in phenolic contents.Presently we made a hypothesis that Luffaacutangla may have potential antioxidant activitydue to which it is being used against internalhemorrhage in traditional medicine. None <strong>of</strong> itstherapeutic potentials are scientifically evaluatedexcept robisome inactivating activity (15).Therefore we set out to determine the effect <strong>of</strong>various doses <strong>of</strong> L.acutangula fruit extract onlipid peroxidation, glutathione (GSH) <strong>and</strong>Superoxide dismutase (SOD), Catalase (CAT)activities in erythrocytes in a time <strong>and</strong> dosedependent manner using Tertiary butylhydroperoxide t-BHP induction. It has beenshown that human RBCs may compose up apotent system that can be used as an in vitroexperimental model to investigate the antioxidantpotential <strong>of</strong> dietary foods (16). t-BHP) is a wellknown cytotoxin <strong>and</strong> oxidative stress inducer,induces oxidative damage in different organs likeliver (17) testes (18), etc. mainly by mobilization<strong>of</strong> arachidonic acid (AA) from membranephospholipids under cytotoxic conditions.Materials <strong>and</strong> methodsReagents : The medicinal plant L.acutangulawas purchased from Dr. Madhava Shetty,Department <strong>of</strong> Botany, Sri VenkateswaraUniversity,Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India.Thiobarbituric acid (TBA), 1,1,3,3,tetraethoxypropane (TEP), t-butylPurushotham Reddy et al.