New Insights into the Metabolic Profile and Cytotoxic Activity of <i>Kigelia africana</i> Stem Bark
Ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS) was recently employed in many fields to obtain a rapid characterization of plant extracts. <i>Kigelia africana</i> (family Bignoniaceae) is a quintessential African herbal medi...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-03-01
|
| Series: | Molecules |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/30/6/1388 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850279401257697280 |
|---|---|
| author | Dimitrina Zheleva-Dimitrova Rositsa Mihaylova Maria Nikolova Nisha Singh Spiro Konstantinov |
| author_facet | Dimitrina Zheleva-Dimitrova Rositsa Mihaylova Maria Nikolova Nisha Singh Spiro Konstantinov |
| author_sort | Dimitrina Zheleva-Dimitrova |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS) was recently employed in many fields to obtain a rapid characterization of plant extracts. <i>Kigelia africana</i> (family Bignoniaceae) is a quintessential African herbal medicinal plant with immense indigenous medicinal and non-medicinal applications. The aim of the present research was to obtain an in-depth metabolite profiling of the <i>K. africana</i> stem bark extract using UHPLC-HRMS and to conduct a preliminary screening of its anticancer activity against a panel of malignant human cell lines of different origin. The UHPLC-HRMS analysis revealed 63 secondary metabolites including phenolic acids, gallo- and ellagitannins, iridoids, naphthoquinones, and anthraquinones. A total of 34 of all annotated compounds are reported for the first time in <i>K. africana</i> stem bark. The studied profile was dominated by trimethylellagic acid, dimethylellagic acid isomers, and ellagic acid. In all tumor models, we established a pronounced inhibition of cell growth in a mostly dose-dependent manner, with IC<sub>50</sub> values ranging near and well below (4–30 µg/mL) the lowest treatment concentration of 25 µg/mL. The established cytotoxicity profile of the <i>K. africana</i> extract, highly biased toward malignantly transformed but not normal cells, suggests specific modulation of defined molecular tumor targets. This study revealed <i>K. africana</i> stem bark as a new source of gallo- and ellagitannins, and highlighted the studied herbal drug as an antiproliferative agent with potential pharmaceutical application. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9c455ebb7c6a4d828a19274a9a9dc448 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1420-3049 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Molecules |
| spelling | doaj-art-9c455ebb7c6a4d828a19274a9a9dc4482025-08-20T01:49:05ZengMDPI AGMolecules1420-30492025-03-01306138810.3390/molecules30061388New Insights into the Metabolic Profile and Cytotoxic Activity of <i>Kigelia africana</i> Stem BarkDimitrina Zheleva-Dimitrova0Rositsa Mihaylova1Maria Nikolova2Nisha Singh3Spiro Konstantinov4Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Sofia, 1000 Sofia, BulgariaDepartment of Pharmacology, Pharmacotherapy and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Sofia, 1000 Sofia, BulgariaDepartment of Pharmacology, Pharmacotherapy and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Sofia, 1000 Sofia, BulgariaSchool of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4000, South AfricaDepartment of Pharmacology, Pharmacotherapy and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Sofia, 1000 Sofia, BulgariaUltra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS) was recently employed in many fields to obtain a rapid characterization of plant extracts. <i>Kigelia africana</i> (family Bignoniaceae) is a quintessential African herbal medicinal plant with immense indigenous medicinal and non-medicinal applications. The aim of the present research was to obtain an in-depth metabolite profiling of the <i>K. africana</i> stem bark extract using UHPLC-HRMS and to conduct a preliminary screening of its anticancer activity against a panel of malignant human cell lines of different origin. The UHPLC-HRMS analysis revealed 63 secondary metabolites including phenolic acids, gallo- and ellagitannins, iridoids, naphthoquinones, and anthraquinones. A total of 34 of all annotated compounds are reported for the first time in <i>K. africana</i> stem bark. The studied profile was dominated by trimethylellagic acid, dimethylellagic acid isomers, and ellagic acid. In all tumor models, we established a pronounced inhibition of cell growth in a mostly dose-dependent manner, with IC<sub>50</sub> values ranging near and well below (4–30 µg/mL) the lowest treatment concentration of 25 µg/mL. The established cytotoxicity profile of the <i>K. africana</i> extract, highly biased toward malignantly transformed but not normal cells, suggests specific modulation of defined molecular tumor targets. This study revealed <i>K. africana</i> stem bark as a new source of gallo- and ellagitannins, and highlighted the studied herbal drug as an antiproliferative agent with potential pharmaceutical application.https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/30/6/1388<i>Kigelia africana</i>UHPLC-HRMS profilingcytotoxic activity |
| spellingShingle | Dimitrina Zheleva-Dimitrova Rositsa Mihaylova Maria Nikolova Nisha Singh Spiro Konstantinov New Insights into the Metabolic Profile and Cytotoxic Activity of <i>Kigelia africana</i> Stem Bark Molecules <i>Kigelia africana</i> UHPLC-HRMS profiling cytotoxic activity |
| title | New Insights into the Metabolic Profile and Cytotoxic Activity of <i>Kigelia africana</i> Stem Bark |
| title_full | New Insights into the Metabolic Profile and Cytotoxic Activity of <i>Kigelia africana</i> Stem Bark |
| title_fullStr | New Insights into the Metabolic Profile and Cytotoxic Activity of <i>Kigelia africana</i> Stem Bark |
| title_full_unstemmed | New Insights into the Metabolic Profile and Cytotoxic Activity of <i>Kigelia africana</i> Stem Bark |
| title_short | New Insights into the Metabolic Profile and Cytotoxic Activity of <i>Kigelia africana</i> Stem Bark |
| title_sort | new insights into the metabolic profile and cytotoxic activity of i kigelia africana i stem bark |
| topic | <i>Kigelia africana</i> UHPLC-HRMS profiling cytotoxic activity |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/30/6/1388 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT dimitrinazhelevadimitrova newinsightsintothemetabolicprofileandcytotoxicactivityofikigeliaafricanaistembark AT rositsamihaylova newinsightsintothemetabolicprofileandcytotoxicactivityofikigeliaafricanaistembark AT marianikolova newinsightsintothemetabolicprofileandcytotoxicactivityofikigeliaafricanaistembark AT nishasingh newinsightsintothemetabolicprofileandcytotoxicactivityofikigeliaafricanaistembark AT spirokonstantinov newinsightsintothemetabolicprofileandcytotoxicactivityofikigeliaafricanaistembark |