In vitro studies reveal antiurolithic effect of Terminalia arjuna using quantitative morphological information from computerized microscopy.
A Mittal, S Tandon, S K Singla, C Tandon
Author Information
A Mittal: Department of Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat, Solan 173234, Himachal Pradesh, India.
S Tandon: Amity Institute of Molecular Medicine and Stem Cell Research (AIMMSCR), Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Noida.
S K Singla: Department of Biochemistry, Panjab University, Chandigarh - 160014, India.
C Tandon: Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Sector - 125, Noida, U.P., 201313 India.
PURPOSE: For most cases, urolithiasis is a condition where excessive oxalate is present in the urine. Many reports have documented free radical generation followed by hyperoxaluria as a consequence of which calcium oxalate (CaOx) deposition occurs in the kidney tissue. The present study is aimed to exam the antilithiatic potency of the aqueous extract (AE) of Terminalia arjuna (T. arjuna). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The antilithiatic activity of Terminalia arjuna was investigated in vitro nucleation, aggregation and growth of the CaOx crystals as well as the morphology of CaOx crystals using the inbuilt software 'Image-Pro Plus 7.0' of Olympus upright microscope (BX53). Antioxidant activity of AE of Terminalia arjuna bark was also determined in vitro. RESULTS: Terminalia arjuna extract exhibited a concentration dependent inhibition of nucleation and aggregation of CaOx crystals. The AE of Terminalia arjuna bark also inhibited the growth of CaOx crystals. At the same time, the AE also modified the morphology of CaOx crystals from hexagonal to spherical shape with increasing concentrations of AE and reduced the dimensions such as area, perimeter, length and width of CaOx crystals in a dose dependent manner. Also, the Terminalia arjuna AE scavenged the DPPH (2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) radicals with an IC50 at 13.1µg/mL. CONCLUSIONS: The study suggests that Terminalia arjuna bark has the potential to scavenge DPPH radicals and inhibit CaOx crystallization in vitro. In the light of these studies, Terminalia arjuna can be regarded as a promising candidate from natural plant sources of antilithiatic and antioxidant activity with high value.
References
J Environ Pathol Toxicol Oncol. 1999;18(2):119-25
[PMID: 15281223]
Int Braz J Urol. 2012 Mar-Apr;38(2):204-13; discussion 213-4
[PMID: 22555028]
