Antimutagenic constituents of adlay (Coix lachryma-jobi L. var. ma-yuen Stapf) with potential cancer chemopreventive activity.

Abstract

Adlay has long been used in traditional Chinese medicine and as a nourishing food. The acetone extract of adlay hull had previously been demonstrated to possess potent antimutagenic activity. The aims of this study were to identify the antimutagenic constituents from adlay hull by using Ames antimutagenic activity-guide isolation procedures and to investigate their chemopreventive efficacies in cultured cells. The results demonstrated that six compounds showing great antimutagenic activity were identified by spectroscopic methods and by comparison with authentic samples to be p-hydroxybenzaldehyde, vanillin, syringaldehyde, trans-coniferylaldehyde, sinapaldehyde, and coixol. Two of them, trans-coniferylaldehyde and sinapaldehyde, exhibit relatively potent scavenging of DPPH radicals, inhibit TPA stimulated superoxide anion generation in neutrophil-like leukocytes, and induce Nrf2/ARE-driven luciferase activity in HSC-3 cells. Moreover, trans-coniferylaldehyde possesses cytoprotective efficacy against tert-butyl hydroperoxide-induced DNA double-strand breaks in cultured cells, and the chemopreventive potency induced by trans-coniferylaldehyde may be through the activation of kinase signals, including p38, ERK1/2, JNK, MEK1/2, and MSK1/2. In summary, we first identified six antimutagenic constituents from adlay hull. Among them, trans-coniferylaldehyde would be a highly promising agent for cancer chemoprevention and merits further investigation.

• Authors: Huang-Hui Chen, Wenchang Chiang, Jang-Yang Chang, Ya-Lin Chien, Ching-Kuo Lee, Ko-Jiunn Liu, Yen-Ting Cheng, Ting-Fang Chen, Yueh-Hsiung Kuo, Ching-Chuan Kuo
• Journal: Journal of agricultural and food chemistry (J Agric Food Chem) Vol. 59 Issue 12 Pg. 6444-52 (Jun 22 2011) ISSN: 1520-5118 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 21561091 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Aldehydes
• Antimutagenic Agents
• Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic
• Drugs, Chinese Herbal

Topics

• Aldehydes (chemistry, pharmacology)
• Antimutagenic Agents (chemistry, pharmacology)
• Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic (chemistry, pharmacology)
• Cell Line, Tumor
• Coix (chemistry)
• Drugs, Chinese Herbal (chemistry, pharmacology)
• Humans
• Neoplasms (drug therapy, prevention & control)