Umbelliferone, 13 lignans and an unusual compound 2-(3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)propane-1,3-diol, were isolated from the leaves of Juniperus chinensis. The lignans include meso-secoisolariciresinol, 3,4-methylenedioxy-3’,4’dimethoxylignan-9’,9-olide, hibalactone, isohibalactone, 7-oxohinokinin, 7-hydroxyhinokinin, 7-acetyloxyhinokinin, (+ )-xanthoxylol, dihydrodehydrodiconiferyl alcohol, 3-methox...

Ruminal microbiota plays an important role in the conversion of plant lignans into mammalian lignans. The main mammalian lignan present in the milk of dairy cows fed flax products is enterolactone (EL). The objectives of the present study were to investigate the effects of abomasal infusion of flax oil on the metabolism of flax lignans and concentrations of EL in biological fluids of dairy cows...

Lignans are a large class of secondary metabolites in plants, with numerous biological effects in mammals, including antitumor and antioxidant activities. Sesamin, the most abundant furofuran-class lignan in sesame seeds (Sesamum plants), is produced by the cytochrome P450 enzyme CYP81Q1 from the precursor lignan, pinoresinol. In contrast, Forsythia plants produce dibenzylbutyrolactone-class li...

BACKGROUND AND THE PURPOSE OF THE STUDY Stelleropsis antoninae Pobed. (Family: Thymelaeaceae) grows wildly as an herbaceous plant in Iran. Most of the Thymelaeaceous plants contain lignans and neolignans, which have important pharmacologically properties. In the present study, the isolation and identification of the main lignans and neolignans of S. antoninae, which has not been previously repo...

Extracts from Holostylis reniformis were tested in vivo against Plasmodium berghei and in vitro against a chloroquine-resistant strain of Plasmodium falciparum. The hexane extract of the roots was the most active, causing 67% reduction of parasitemia in vivo. From this extract, six lignans, including a new (7'R,8S,8'S)-3',4'-methylenedioxy-4,5-dimethoxy-2,7'-cyclolignan-7-one, were isolated and...

Dietary lignans, quercetin and resveratrol have oestrogenic properties, and animal studies suggest that they synergistically decrease cancer risk. A protective effect of lignans on the development of oesophageal cancer in humans has recently been demonstrated, and the present study aimed to test whether these three phytochemicals synergistically decrease the risk of oesophageal cancer. Data fro...

PURPOSE Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a potent stimulator of angiogenesis, which is crucial in cancer progression. We have previously shown that estradiol (E2) increases VEGF in breast cancer. Phytoestrogens are potential compounds in breast cancer prevention and treatment by poorly understood mechanisms. The main phytoestrogens in Western diet are lignans, and flaxseed is a rich...

A new dibenzocyclooctadiene lignan named angustifolin D (1) together with four known lignans: kadsulignan L (2), kadsulignan N (3), schisantherin P (4) and meso-dihydroguaiaretic acid (5) were isolated from the stems of Kadsura angustifolia. Their structures and stereochemistries were elucidated by spectral studies. Compounds 2 and 5 showed moderate platelet-activating factor (PAF) antagonistic...

PURPOSE Lignans such as secoisolariciresinol diglucoside in flaxseed, are metabolizes to bioactive mammalian lignans of END and ENL. Because mammalian lignans have chemical structural similarity to the natural estrogen, they are thought to behave like selective estrogen receptor modulators and therefore have anticancer effect against hormone-related cancers. We isolated a series of lignan compo...