€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ ****ARCHIVES ROUMAINES DE PATHOLOGIE EXPERIMENTALES ET DE MICROBIOLOGIE** Gancevici GG Bioeffects of the plant Mahonia sempervirens. In: Arch Roum Pathol Exp Microbiol (1990 Apr-Jun) 49(2):183-90 ISSN: 0004-0037 Water extracts of mature fruits of Mahonia sempervirens possess four biological properties: hemagglutinin, hemolysin, complement antagonism and antistreptoccocal activity. Partial characterization of the crude extract was carried out by barbital-mediated spectrophotometry, polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, thin layer chromatography and interaction chromatography. Fractionation of the Mahonia extract by ionic exchange static adsorption resulted in the quantitative separation of the fruit red pigment with recovery of the entire anticomplementary activity and indicated that the complement inhibitor was different from the aggregating and lytic properties. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ **CHUNG-KUO CHUNG YAO TSA CHIH CHINA JOURNAL OF CHINESE MATERIA MEDICA* Jiang YL Wang XL Xue SG [Extraction of berberine hydrochloride from Mahonia bealei (Fort.) Carr] In: Chung Kuo Chung Yao Tsa Chih (1993 Jun) 18(6):347-8, 382 ISSN: 1001-5302 (Published in Chinese) The article reports the processing methods for extracting berberine hydrochloride from Mahonia bealei by means of regressive test. The result shows that A2B3C1D2E3F2 is the best way, namely, extractive solvent--0.5% sulfuric acid, salting out--24% salt, soaking temperature--25 degrees C, soaking time--48 hours, pH = 1.5, precipitation time--24 hours. The recovery is 1.45%-1.47%. Registry Numbers: 2086-83-1 (Berberine) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****GENERAL PHARMACOLOGY***** Sotnikova R Kost'alova D Vaverkova S Effect of bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloids from Mahonia aquifolium on the isolated rat aorta. In: Gen Pharmacol (1994 Nov) 25(7):1405-10 ISSN: 0306-3623 1. The extract from roots of Mahonia aquifolium as well as berbamine and oxyacanthine relaxed K(+)-precontracted rat aortal rings with IC50 values of about 20 mumol/l. 2. Relaxation was not inhibited by denudation of the endothelium or by premedication of the aortas with indomethacin, methylene blue or propranolol. 3. Berbamine and oxyacanthine inhibited contractions induced by noradrenaline, phenylephrine and serotonin in a non-competitive manner. Further, they competitively blocked calcium-induced contraction in Ca(2+)-free depolarizing PSS. 4. The blockade of calcium entry appears to be the main mechanism of the dilatory effect of the drugs tested, but their interaction with alpha-adrenoceptors could not be excluded. Registry Numbers: 478-61-5 (berbamine) 50-67-9 (Serotonin) 51-41-2 (Norepinephrine) 548-40-3 (oxyacanthine) 59-42-7 (Phenylephrine) 7440-70-2 (Calcium) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****JOURNAL OF ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY***** Turner NJ Hebda RJ Contemporary use of bark for medicine by two Salishan native elders of southeast Vancouver Island, Canada. In: J Ethnopharmacol (1990 Apr) 29(1):59-72 ISSN: 0378-8741 Elders of the Saanich and Cowichan Coast Salish people of southern Vancouver Island treat, or have treated in the recent past, many ailments with bark preparations. Interviews with two elder Salishan women revealed that: respiratory ailments were treated with bark of Abies grandis, Arbutus menziesii, Cornus nuttallii, Prunus emarginata, Pseudotsuga menziesii and Quercus garryana; digestive tract ailments with the bark of Abies grandis, Alnus rubra, Arbutus menziesii, Malus fusca. Oemleria cerasiformis, Populus tremuloides, Pseudotsuga menziesii, Rhamnus purshianus and Rubus spectabilis; gynaecological problems with bark of Abies grandis, Arbutus menziesii, Populus tremuloides, Prunus emarginata, Pseudotsuga menziesii and Sambucus racemosa; and dermatological complaints with the bark of Mahonia spp., Rubus spectabilis, and Symphoricarpos albus. Tree barks have also been used to treat fevers, diabetes, kidney problems, sore eyes, and haemorrhaging, and also as general tonics. Two recipes for general-purpose multi-bark medicines are provided. In most cases, infusions or decoctions of barks are used. The medicines are drunk or applied externally as a wash. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ McCutcheon AR Ellis SM Hancock RE Towers GH Antifungal screening of medicinal plants of British Columbian native peoples. In: J Ethnopharmacol (1994 Dec) 44(3):157-69 ISSN: 0378-8741 One hundred methanolic plant extracts were screened for antifungal activity against 9 fungal species. Eighty-one were found to have some antifungal activity and 30 extracts showed activity against 4 or more of the fungi assayed. The extracts with the greatest fungal inhibition were prepared from Alnus rubra catkins, Artemisia ludoviciana aerial parts, Artemisia tridentata aerial parts, Geum macrophyllum roots, Mahonia aquifolium roots and Moneses uniflora aerial parts. In addition to these, extracts prepared from the following plants also exhibited antifungal activity against all 9 fungi: Asarum caudatum whole plant, Balsamorhiza sagittata roots, Empetrum nigrum branches, Fragaria chiloensis leaves, Gilia aggregata aerial parts and roots, Glehnia littoralis roots, Heracleum lanatum roots, Heuchera cylindrica roots and Rhus glabra branches. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****PHARMAZIE***** Bezakova L Misik V Malekova L Svajdlenka E Kostalova D Lipoxygenase inhibition and antioxidant properties of bisbenzylisoqunoline alkaloids isolated from Mahonia aquifolium. In: Pharmazie (1996 Oct) 51(10):758-61 ISSN: 0031-7144 Products of lipoxygenase metabolism are known to play a role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. Six bisbenzylisoquinoline (BBIQ) alkaloids, oxyacanthine, armoline, baluchistine, berbamine, obamegine, aquifoline, isolated from Mahonia aquifolium, were tested for lipoxygenase inhibition. Berbamine and oxyacanthine were the most potent lipoxygenase inhibitors, whereas aromoline and baluchistine exhibited only very low potencies. Oxyacanthine and berbamine were also among the most active compounds to inhibit lipid peroxidation. Between the results of lipoxygenase inhibition and the lipid peroxidation a linear correlation was found (r = 0.9533). Our data suggest that in the mechanism of lipoxygenase inhibition by these alkaloids, inhibition of lipid peroxide substrate accumulation, either by direct reaction with peroxide or by scavenging or lipid- derived radicals, may play a role. Inhibition of lipoxygenase by these compounds may contribute to the therapeutic effect of Mahonia aquifolium extracts in treatment of diseases in pathogenesis of which he products of lipoxygenase metabolism are involved. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ *****PLANTA MEDICA***** Muller K Ziereis K Gawlik I The antipsoriatic Mahonia aquifolium and its active constituents; II. Antiproliferative activity against cell growth of human keratinocytes [letter] In: Planta Med (1995 Feb) 61(1):74-5 ISSN: 0032-0943 The extract of the bark of Mahonia aquifolium is an inhibitor of keratinocyte growth with an IC50 of 35 microM. Of its main alkaloids tested, berberine inhibited cell growth to the same extent as did the Mahonia extract, while the benzylisoquinoline alkaloids berbamine and oxyacanthine were more potent inhibitors by a factor of three. €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ Muller K Ziereis K The antipsoriatic Mahonia aquifolium and its active constituents; I. Pro- and antioxidant properties and inhibition of 5-lipoxygenase. In: Planta Med (1994 Oct) 60(5):421-4 ISSN: 0032-0943 The effects of the extract of the bark of Mahonia aquifolium and its main constituents (berberine, berbamine, oxyacanthine) on 5- lipoxygenase, lipid peroxidation in phospholipid liposomes induced by 2,2'-azo-(bis-2-amidinopropane), deoxyribose degradation, and their reactivities against the free radical 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl have been studied. The extract of M. aquifolium inhibits 5-LO with an IC50 value of 50 microM, whereas no appreciable effects were observed by its constituent alkaloids. Reactivity against DPPH increased in the following order: berberine < M. aquifolium < oxyacanthine, berbamine. Pro-oxidant effects by M. aquifolium or its constituents can be excluded, since deoxyribose degradation was not influenced as determined by the release of malondialdehyde. The most prominent feature of M. aquifolium is its efficacy in inhibition of lipid peroxidation (IC50 = 5 microM) which was not mediated by the alkaloids berberine, berbamine, and oxyacanthine. Registry Numbers: EC 1.13.11.34 (Arachidonate 5-Lipoxygenase) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€ Misik V Bezakova L Malekova L Kostalova D Lipoxygenase inhibition and antioxidant properties of protoberberine and aporphine alkaloids isolated from Mahonia aquifolium [letter] In: Planta Med (1995 Aug) 61(4):372-3 ISSN: 0032-0943 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. Registry Numbers: EC 1.13.11.12 (Lipoxygenase) 19716-69-9 (protoberberine) 2141-09-5 (magnoflorine) 478-57-9 (aporphine) 517-56-6 (corytuberine) €€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€€