Pinoresinol benefit

Fungal infection
Antifungal effect of pinoresinol isolated from Sambucus williamsii.Hwang B, Lee J, Liu QH, Woo ER, Lee DG. School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, College of Natural Sciences, Kyungpook National University, 1370 Sankyuk-dong, Puk-ku, Daegu 702-701, Korea.
In this study, we investigated the antifungal activity and mechanism of action of pinoresinol, a biphenolic compound isolated from the herb Sambucus williamsii, used in traditional medicine. Pinoresinol displays potent antifungal properties without hemolytic effects on human erythrocytes. To understand the antifungal mechanism, we conducted fluorescence experiments on the human pathogen Candida albicans. Fluorescence analysis using 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) indicated that pinoresinol caused damage to the fungal plasma membrane. This result was confirmed by using rhodamine-labeled giant unilamellar vesicle (GUV) experiments. Therefore, the present study indicates that pinoresinol possesses fungicidal activities and therapeutic potential as an antifungal agent for the treatment of fungal infectious diseases in humans. Molecules. 201.

J Agric Food Chem. 2008. Lignans and other constituents of the fruits of Euterpe oleracea (Acai) with antioxidant and cytoprotective activities. Chin YW, Chai HB, Keller WJ, Kinghorn AD. Division of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, The Ohio State University, 500 West 12th Avenue, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA. Using a hydroxyl radical scavenging assay, bioactivity-guided fractionation of a methanol-soluble extract of the fruits of Euterpe oleracea (acai) led to the isolation of 22 compounds of previously known structure. Altogether, 14 of these isolates were found to be active in an in vitro hydroxyl radical scavenging assay and seven of these isolates in a 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging assay. Dihydroconiferyl alcohol, (+)-lariciresinol, (+)-pinoresinol, (+)-syringaresinol, and protocatechuic acid methyl ester exhibited cytoprotective activity in cultured MCF-7 cells stressed by H2O2. Lignans have not been previously reported as constituents of this species and were found to be representative of the aryltetrahydronaphthalene, dihydrobenzofuran, furofuran, 8-O-4'-neolignan, and tetrahydrofuran structural types.