Anti-angiogenic strategies are emerging as an important tool for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases. In the present investigation we isolated several isoflavones from a tempeh (fermented soyabean) extract. The isolated isoflavones were identified as 5,7,4'-trihydroxyisoflavone (genistein), 7,4'-dihydroxyisoflavone (daidzein), 6,7,4'-trihydroxyisoflavone (factor 2), 7,8,4'-trihydr...

Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed form of cancer and the second leading cause of cancer related deaths in the United States. Increased consumption of soy is thought to reduce the risk for this disease. More specifically, the isoflavones found in soy are responsible, in part, for these anticancer effects. Isoflavones are organic compounds found in soy and other legumes and it is t...

The one-step cyclocondensation of substituted isoflavones with cyanothioacetamide in the presence of sodium hydroxide gave an array of 3-cyano-5,6-diaryl pyridine-2(1H)-thiones in good yields. The procedure involves base-mediated ring opening of the isoflavones and subsequent Knoevenagel condensation between the 1,3-dicarbonyl intermediate generated from the isoflavones and cyanothioacetamide, ...

Inflammation, a biological response of body tissues to harmful stimuli, is also known to be involved in a host of diseases, such as obesity, atherosclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and even cancer. Isoflavones are a class of flavonoids that exhibit antioxidant, anticancer, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory properties. Increasing evidence has highlighted the potential for isoflavones to preven...

Because of the health concerns associated with hormone replacement therapy, many women are seeking alternative therapies. Compounds such as soy isoflavones appear to reduce the risk of some age-related diseases and to lessen the severity of menopausal symptoms. However, concerns regarding harmful effects of soy isoflavones on thyroid function have been reported. This 16week, double-blinded, pla...

The mechanisms of some biological effects exerted by flavonoids (e.g. activity against lipid oxidation, multidrug resistance modulation) may involve their interactions with lipid bilayers. Due to variety of substituents attached to the flavonoid nucleus individual isoflavones significantly differ in their properties; in particular they may differently interact with membranes. For this reason we...

We investigated the actions of isoflavones (daidzin + daidzein 22.7%, daidzein 16.9%, genistin + genistein 16.3%, genistein 13.1%) in pregnant rats, assessing possible repercussions regarding the development of female conceptus. Doses of isoflavones, 10 mg/kg or 100 mg/kg, were administered to pregnant rats by oral gavage, from the sixth day of pregnancy until its completion. The pregnant rats ...

Bioconversion of aglycone-formed isoflavones from glycoside-formed isoflavones by commercial lactic acid bacteria in fermented soybean paste was evaluated. Enterococcus faecium KCTC 13410 showed the most resistant capacity and Lactobacillus acidophilus KCTC 3925 had a sensitive susceptibility at a high NaCl concentration (13.2%) in fermented soybean paste. Among the 5 strains tested, Lac. acido...

Isoflavones are commonly consumed in many Asian countries and have potentially positive effects on human being. Only a few and rather controversial data on their interactions with copper and iron are available to date. 13 structurally related isoflavones were tested in the competitive manner for their Cu/Fe-chelating/reducing properties. Notwithstanding the 5-hydroxy-4-keto chelation site was a...

3'-Hydroxylation of isoflavones by Fusarium oxysporum f. lycopersici mainly proceeds with 4'-methoxy-7-hydroxyderivatives; this reaction is used for quantitative conversion of 14C-labelled isoflavones.