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Thymoquinone

About: Thymoquinone is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 1523 publications have been published within this topic receiving 45374 citations. The topic is also known as: thymoquinone.


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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A rapid evaluation for antioxidants, using two TLC screening methods, showed that thymoquinone and the components carvacrol, t‐anethole and 4‐terpineol demonstrated respectable radical scavenging property.
Abstract: The essential oil of black cumin seeds, Nigella sativa L., was tested for a possible antioxidant activity. A rapid evaluation for antioxidants, using two TLC screening methods, showed that thymoquinone and the components carvacrol, t-anethole and 4-terpineol demonstrated respectable radical scavenging property. These four constituents and the essential oil possessed variable antioxidant activity when tested in the diphenylpicrylhydracyl assay for non-specific hydrogen atom or electron donating activity. They were also effective.OH radical scavenging agents in the assay for non-enzymatic lipid peroxidation in liposomes and the deoxyribose degradation assay. GC-MS analysis of the essential oil obtained from six different samples of Nigella sativa seeds and from a commercial fixed oil showed that the qualitative composition of the volatile compounds was almost identical. Differences were mainly restricted to the quantitative composition.

1,807 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The main reports of the pharmacological and toxicological properties of N. sativa and its constituents are reviewed, which include asthma, diarrhoea and dyslipidaemia.
Abstract: The seeds of Nigella sativa Linn. (Ranunculaceae), commonly known as black seed or black cumin, are used in folk (herbal) medicine all over the world for the treatment and prevention of a number of diseases and conditions that include asthma, diarrhoea and dyslipidaemia. This article reviews the main reports of the pharmacological and toxicological properties of N. sativa and its constituents. The seeds contain both fixed and essential oils, proteins, alkaloids and saponin. Much of the biological activity of the seeds has been shown to be due to thymoquinone, the major component of the essential oil, but which is also present in the fi ed oil. The pharmacological actions of the crude extracts of the seeds (and some of its active constituents, e.g. volatile oil and thymoquinone) that have been reported include protection against nephrotoxicity and hepatotoxicity induced by either disease or chemicals. The seeds/oil have antiinflammatory, analgesic, antipyretic, antimicrobial and antineoplastic activity. The oil decreases blood pressure and increases respiration. Treatment of rats with the seed extract for up to 12 weeks has been reported to induce changes in the haemogram that include an increase in both the packed cell volume (PCV) and haemoglobin (Hb), and a decrease in plasma concentrations of cholesterol, triglycerides and glucose. The seeds are characterized by a very low degree of toxicity. Two cases of contact dermatitis in two individuals have been reported following topical use. Administration of either the seed extract or its oil has been shown not to induce significant adverse effects on liver or kidney functions. It would appear that the beneficial effects of the use of the seeds and thymoquinone might be related to their cytoprotective and antioxidant actions, and to their effect on some mediators of inflammation.

1,166 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The pharmacological properties of the oil support the traditional use of N. sativa and its derived products as a treatment for rheumatism and related inflammatory diseases and is greater than is expected from its content of thymoquinone.
Abstract: Samples of the expressed fixed oil from different sources of Nigella sativa seeds were examined by thin-layer and gas chromatography for content of fixed oils and thymoquinone, and these substances were tested as possible inhibitors of eicosanoid generation and membrane lipid peroxidation The crude fixed oil and pure thymoquinone both inhibited the cyclooxygenase and 5-lipoxygenase pathways of arachidonate metabolism in rat peritoneal leukocytes stimulated with calcium ionophore A23187, as shown by dose-dependent inhibition of thromboxane B2 and leukotriene B4, respectively Thymoquinone was very potent, with approximate IC50 values against 5-lipoxygenase and cyclo-oxygenase of < 1 microgram/ml and 35 micrograms/ml, respectively Both substances also inhibited non-enzymatic peroxidation in ox brain phospholipid liposomes, but thymoquinone was about ten times more potent However, the inhibition of eicosanoid generation and lipid peroxidation by the fixed oil of N sativa is greater than is expected from its content of thymoquinone (ca 02% w/v), and it is possible that other components such as the unusual C20:2 unsaturated fatty acids may contribute also to its anti-eicosanoid and antioxidant activity These pharmacological properties of the oil support the traditional use of N sativa and its derived products as a treatment for rheumatism and related inflammatory diseases

850 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The anti-oxidant/anti-inflammatory and anticancer effects of thymoquinone are summarized with a focus on its molecular targets, and its possible role in the treatment of inflammatory diseases and cancer.

446 citations

Journal Article
TL;DR: TQ and DIM, which are cytotoxic for several types of human tumor cells, may be MDR substrates, and that radical generation may not be critical to their cytotoxicity activity.
Abstract: A crude gum, a fixed oil and two purified components of Nigella sativa seed, thymoquinone (TQ) and dithymoquinone (DIM), were assayed in vitro for their cytotoxicity for several parental and multi-drug resistant (MDR) human tumor cell lines. Although as much as 1% w/v of the gum or oil was devoid of cytotoxicity, both TQ and DIM were cytotoxic for all of the tested cell lines (IC50's 78 to 393 microM). Both the parental cell lines and their corresponding MDR variants, over 10-fold more resistant to the standard antineoplastic agents doxorubicin (DOX) and etoposide (ETP), as compared to their respective parental controls, were equally sensitive to TQ and DIM. The inclusion of the competitive MDR modulator quinine in the assay reversed MDR Dx-5 cell resistance to DOX and ETP by 6- to 16-fold, but had no effect on the cytotoxicity of TQ or DIM. Quinine also increased MDR Dx-5 cell accumulation of the P-glycoprotein substrate 3H-taxol in a dose-dependent manner. However, neither TQ nor DIM significantly altered cellular accumulation of 3H-taxol. The inclusion of 0.5% v/v of the radical scavenger DMSO in the assay reduced the cytotoxicity of DOX by as much as 39%, but did not affect that of TQ or DIM. These studies suggest that TQ and DIM, which are cytotoxic for several types of human tumor cells, may not be MDR substrates, and that radical generation may not be critical to their cytotoxic activity.

403 citations


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Performance
Metrics
No. of papers in the topic in previous years
YearPapers
2023132
2022315
2021168
2020149
2019131
2018148