Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill

Fiorito, Serena, Epifano, Francesco, Preziuso, Francesca, Taddeo, Vito Alessandro & Genovese, Salvatore, 2018, Selenylated plant polysaccharides: A survey of their chemical and pharmacological properties, Phytochemistry 153, pp. 1-10 : 6

5.13.1. Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill

S. chinensis (Wu Wei Zi) is a plant native of Russia but nowadays widespread in several Asian countries. Polysaccharides from fruits (called magnolia berries) of this species have been shown to exert antitumor, anti-oxidant, and immunomodulatory effects ( Qu et al., 2014). In 2015 Yue and coworkers synthesized a library of 9 Se-Ps using the carbohydrate fraction from the whole plant with yields in the range 32.6%–54.9% and Se content varying from 3.8 mg /kg to 10.35 mg /kg. All samples were preliminarily screened for their anti-oxidant activity using the DPPH, hydroxyl radical, and ABTS scavenging capacities applying concentration from 0.0626 mg /mL to 1 mg /mL. In vitro assays showed a dose-dependent scavenging activity. The Se-P characterized by a content in Se of 5.4 mg /g displaying the best performance. In the case of S. chinensis to some extent the native polysaccharide exhibited an anti-oxidant effect comparable or even higher respect to some Se-Ps. The most efficient Se-P in in vitro assays was then selected to accomplish further studies consisting in the evaluation of the inhibitory capacities of protein glycation, determination of activities of CAT and SOD, and content of MDA. White Roman chickens vaccinated with ND vaccine were used to this purpose and injected i.m. for 3 days with the Se-P at a dose of 2 mg /kg. Measurements were accomplished every 1 week along 4 weeks of duration of the experiment. Only slight differences were noted in animals treated with the native polymer and the Se-P for what concerns the anti-glycation capacity. On the contrary in the case of CAT, SOD, and MDA the Se-P recorded much higher values. The same research group in 2017 investigated the effects of the same Se-P used in 2015 as an anti-oxidant agent and got insights into the mechanism of action in chicken embryo hepatocytes applying doses of 1 μg/mL, 10 μg/mL, and 100 μg/mL. H 2 O 2 and N -acetylcysteine were used as controls. The administration of the Se-P had no effects on cell viability, while decreasing the extent of apoptosis in cells treated with H 2 O 2 of about 25%. The production of ROS induced by the same chemical was also diminished of about 35% and to values comparable to those recorded for N- acetylcysteine. A massive increase in the activity of CAT, SOD, and GSH, and a decrease in MDA content were also observed. Trying to rationalize the mechanism of action underlying the recorded effects, Yue and coworkers assessed also that the Se-P had the capacity to down-regulate the genomic expression of p -JNK 1, p -ERK 1/2, P38, Box, caspase 3, and cytochrome c while up-regulating Bcl-2. Thus, it may be hypothesized that the strong effect of Se-Ps against cell damages induced by H 2 O 2 is due to a positive regulatory effect on MAPK and mithochondrial-dependent apoptotic signal pathways.