Background: Multiple drug-delivery systems obtained by loading nanoparticles (NPs) with different drugs that have different physicochemical properties present a promising strategy to achieve synergistic effects between drugs or overcome undesired effects. This study aims to develop a new NP by loading quercetin (Que) and valproic acid (VPA) into chitosan. In this context, our study investigated the antioxidant activities of chitosan NPs loaded with single and dual drugs containing Que against oxidative stress. Method: The synthesis of chitosan NPs loaded with a single (Que or VPA) and dual drug (Que and VPA), the characterization of the NPs, the conducting of in vitro antioxidant activity studies, and the analysis of the cytotoxicity and antioxidant activity of the NPs in human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cell lines were performed. Result: The NP applications that protected cell viability to the greatest extent against H₂O₂-induced cell damage were, in order, 96 µg/mL of Que-loaded chitosan NP (77.30%, 48 h), 2 µg/mL of VPA-loaded chitosan NP (70.06%, 24 h), 96 µg/mL of blank chitosan NP (68.31%, 48 h), and 2 µg/mL of Que- and VPA-loaded chitosan NP (66.03%, 24 h). Conclusion: Our study establishes a successful paradigm for developing drug-loaded NPs with a uniform and homogeneous distribution of drugs into NPs. Chitosan NPs loaded with both single and dual drugs possessing antioxidant activity were successfully developed. The capability of chitosan NPs developed at the nanometer scale to sustain cell viability in SH-SY5Y cell lines implies the potential of intranasal administration of chitosan NPs for future studies, offering protective effects in central nervous system diseases.

Nanostructured materials used have unique properties and many uses in nanotechnology. The most striking of these is using herbal compounds for the green synthesis of nanoparticles. Among the nanoparticle types used for green synthesis, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are used for cancer therapy due to their stable structure and non-cytotoxic. Lung cancer is the most common and most dangerous cancer worldwide in terms of survival and prognosis. In this study, Nasturtium officinale (L.) extract (NO), which contains biomolecules with antioxidant and anticancer effects, was used to biosynthesize AuNPs, and after their characterization, the effect of the green-synthesized AuNPs against lung cancer was evaluated in vitro. Ultraviolet‒visible (UV‒Vis) spectrophotometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), multiple analysis platform (MAP), and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy analyses were performed to characterize the AuNPs prepared from the N. officinale plant extract. Moreover, the antioxidant activity, total phenolic and flavonoid contents and DNA interactions were examined. Additionally, A549 lung cancer cells were treated with 2–48 µg/mL Nasturtium officinale gold nanoparticles (NOAuNPs) for 24 and 48 h to determine the effects on cell viability. The toxicity of the synthesized NOAuNPs to lung cancer cells was determined by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-il)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, and the anticancer effect of the NOAuNPs was evaluated by apoptosis and cell cycle analyses using flow cytometry. The average size of the NPs was 56.4 nm. The intensities of the Au peaks from EDS analysis indicated that the AuNPs were synthesized successfully. Moreover, the in vitro antioxidant activities of the NO and NOAuNPs were evaluated; these materials gave values of 31.78 ± 1.71% and 31.62 ± 0.46%, respectively, in the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay at 200 g/mL and values of 25.89 ± 1.90% and 33.81 ± 0.62%, respectively, in the 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) assay. The NO and NOAuNPs gave values of 0.389 ± 0.027 and 0.308 ± 0.005, respectively, in the ferrous ion reducing antioxidant capacity (FRAP) assay and values of 0.078 ± 0.009 and 0.172 ± 0.027, respectively, in the copper ion reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) assay. When the DNA cleavage activities of NO and the NOAuNPs were evaluated via hydrolysis, both samples cleaved DNA starting at a concentration of 25 g/mL in the cell culture analysis, while the nanoformulation of the NO components gave greater therapeutic and anticancer effects. We determined that the Au nanoparticles were not toxic to A549 cells. Moreover, after treatment with the half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50), determined by the MTT assay with A549 cells, we found that at 24 and 48 h, while the necrosis rates were high in cells treated with NO, the rates of apoptosis were greater in cells treated with NOAuNPs. Notably, for anticancer treatment, activating apoptotic pathways that do not cause inflammation is preferred. We believe that these results will pave the way for the use of NOAuNPs in in vitro studies of other types of cancer. In this study, AuNPs were successfully synthesized from N. officinale extract. The biosynthesized AuNPs exhibited toxicity to and apoptotic effects on A549 lung cancer cells. Based on these findings, we suggest that green-synthesized AuNPs are promising new therapeutic agents for lung cancer treatment. However, since this was an in vitro study, further research should be performed in in vivo lung cancer models to support our findings and to explain the mechanism of action at the molecular level.

In this study we evaluated the secondary metabolites, total phenolic (TPC) and flavonoid contents (TFC), antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of salep orchids, Anacamptis morio, Anacamptis pyramidalis, Neotinea tridentata, Ophrys mammosa, Ophrys lutea, and Ophrys speculum. DPPH free radical scavenging assay was used to determine the antioxidant activities of n-hexane, chloroform, methanol and water extracts of the plants. The antimicrobial activities were also determined by the Broth micro-dilution method. The extracts were studied for antimicrobial activity by the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) approach against seven clinical pathogenic bacteria and two fungi. Phytochemical screening revealed that the presences of coumarins, flavonoids, flavanones, cardiac glycosides, proteins and quinones. The extracts had variable TPC and TFC, with values of 4.46 ± 0.19–45.83 ± 1.86 mg gallic acid equivalent/g dry weight and 0.67 ± 0.04–8.64 ± 0.37 mg quercetin equivalent/g dry weight respectively. O. speculum had the highest (35.12%) antioxidant activity, followed by O. mammosa (33.17%). Chloroform extracts of all species showed significant antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. These bioactivities of the chloroform extracts were positively associated with the total phenolic and flavonoid contents. The MIC concentrations ranged from 0.156–20 mg/mL. The present investigation shows that the extracts of these species, especially chloroform extracts, could be used as potential antioxidant and antimicrobial sources.

Zeytin ağacı (Olea europaea) ülkemizin de içerisinde yer aldığı Akdeniz bölgesinde yaygın olarak yetiştirilen bir türdür. Bu ağacın meyvesi ve yağından yararlanıldığı kadar, yapraklarından da halk hekimliğinde yararlanılmaktadır. Antioksidan, anti-enflamatuar ve antibiotik etkilerinin yanında kalp hastalıklarından korunma, karaciğer yağlanması, diabet gibi bazı yaygın hastalıklara karşı da etkili olduğu bilinmektedir. Zeytin yaprağının en önemli bileşeni oleuropeindir. Çalışmamızda; insan patojenleri için sıklıkla kullanılan model organizma Galleria mellonella (Büyük Balmumu Güvesi) kullanılmıştır. Zeytin yaprağı ekstraktı ile muamele edilen G. mellonella larvalarının toplam hemosit sayısı, enkapsülasyon ve melanizasyon bağışıklık tepkileri üzerine etkileri incelenmiştir. Toplam hemosit sayısının tespiti ve enkapsülasyon-melanizasyon tepkilerinin belirlenmesi için faz-kontrast mikroskop kullanılmıştır. Bulgularımıza göre 1000 ppm dozunda zeytin yaprağı ekstraktı bağışıklığı desteklemektedir.

Phytochemical constituents, and some biological activities i.e. antimutagenicity, DNA damage protecting, antioxidant, antibacterial and antibiofilm of ethanolic extracts of three Verbascum plants (Verbascum mucronatum Lam., V. bombyciferum Boiss., V. vacillans Murb.) were studied. This paper is the first comprehensive research on V. mucronatum, V. bombyciferum, V. vacillans biological activities. V. vacillans ethanol extract has been determined to be lowest plant for phytochemical contents. In 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity three plants extracts showed concentration-dependent antioxidant capacity higher than butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT). V. mucronatum and V. bombyciferum extracts exhibited strong antimutagenic effect on Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100 strains. Verbascum extracts showed DNA damage protection potential in tested concentrations. However, the lowest concentration (0.5 M) of the V. bombyciferum species Form III were observed and almost completely disintegrate DNA in this concentration. Three Verbascum plants were showed strong antibacterial activities with inhibition zones at 9.0 – 19.0 mm and significant reduction in biofilm formation. It was observed that these plants are potential source of various biological activities.

Small molecules that interact with DNA are known to be effective as anticancer and antimicrobial agents. Therefore it is significant to search for new molecules interacting with DNA as potential new therapeutic agents. In this study, we aimed to investigate interactions of novel fluorine substituted imine compound with DNA, (E)-2-((3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl) phenylimino)methyl)-4,6-dimethoxyphenol, and investigate its biological activities. DNA interactions of the compound were investigated by UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy and gel electrophoresis. The results demonstrated that the compound binds to DNA via intercalation. Agarose gel electrophoresis experiments showed that the compound does not cleave pBR322 plasmid DNA hydrolytically or oxidatively. Furthermore, mutagenic, anti-mutagenic, and antimicrobial activities of the compound were studied by Ames and broth microdilution test, respectively. The compound showed mutagenic activity on both TA98 and TA100 strains. Also, the antimutagenic activity was observed in TA100 strain of S. typhimurium. It demonstrated antimicrobial activity against the microorganisms tested in the concentration range of 16-64 µg/µL. The results show that the compound intercalates with DNA and has promising biological activities.