ORCID
0000-0001-5951-9630
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Molecules
Department
Biological Sciences
ISSN
1420-3049
Volume
25
Issue
13
DOI
10.3390/molecules25133101
Publication Date
7-1-2020
Abstract
Plant-derived anthraquinones were evaluated in cell assays for their inhibitory activities against the parasitic protozoa Trichomonas vaginalis human strain G3 that causes the sexually transmitted disease trichomoniasis in women, Tritrichomonas foetus bovine strain D1 that causes sexually transmitted diseases in farm animals (bulls, cows, and pigs), Tritrichomonas foetus-like strain C1 that causes diarrhea in domestic animals (cats and dogs), and bacteria and fungi. The anthraquinones assessed for their inhibitory activity were anthraquinone, aloe-emodin (1,8-dihydroxy-3-hydroxymethylanthraquinone), anthrarufin (1,5-dihydroxyanthraquinone), chrysazin (1,8-dihydroxyanthraquinone), emodin (1,3,8-trihydroxy-6-methylanthraquinone), purpurin (1,2,4-trihydroxyanthraquinone), and rhein (1,8-dihydroxy-3-carboxyanthraquinone). Their activities were determined in terms of IC values, defined as the concentration that inhibits 50% of the cells under the test conditions and calculated from linear dose response plots for the parasitic protozoa, and zone of inhibition for bacteria and fungi, respectively. The results show that the different substituents on the anthraquinone ring seem to influence the relative potency. Analysis of the structure–activity relationships in protozoa indicates that the aloe-emodin and chrysazin with the highest biological activities merit further study for their potential to help treat the diseases in women and domestic and farm animals. Emodin also exhibited antifungal activity against Candida albicans. The suggested mechanism of action and the additional reported beneficial biological properties of anthraquinones suggest that they have the potential to ameliorate a broad spectrum of human diseases. 50
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Friedman, M.,
Xu, A.,
Lee, R.,
Nguyen, D. N.,
Phan, T. A.,
Hamada, S. M.,
Panchel, R.,
Tam, C. C.,
Kim, J. H.,
Cheng, L. W.,
&
Land, K. M.
(2020).
The Inhibitory Activity of Anthraquinones against Pathogenic Protozoa, Bacteria, and Fungi and the Relationship to Structure.
Molecules, 25(13),
DOI: 10.3390/molecules25133101
https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/cop-facarticles/816
