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Effect of Ruscus extract and hesperidin methylchalcone on hypoxia-induced activation of endothelial cells
N Bouaziz1, C Michiels, D Janssens
1Laboratoire de Biochimie et Biologie Cellulaire--Facultés Universitaires Notre-Dame de la Paix--Namur, Belgium.
Background:
Ruscus aculeatus extract and the flavonoid hesperidin methylchalcone (HMC) are drugs used in the treatment of chronic venous insufficiency.
Methods:
In the present study, we investigated their effects on the activation of endothelial cells by hypoxia, a condition which mimics venous blood stasis.
Results:
We observed that Ruscus extract was able to inhibit the activation of endothelial cells by hypoxia: the decrease in ATP content, the activation of phospholipase A2 as well as the subsequent increase in neutrophil adherence with a maximal protection obtained at 50 microg/ml. HMC was also able to inhibit the hypoxia-induced decrease in ATP content. Furthermore, the effects of Ruscus extract and of HMC on this decrease seem to be additive.
Conclusions:
The biochemical mechanism evidenced in this work might explain some of the beneficial therapeutic effects of these products in the treatment of chronic venous insufficiency patients.
