title: Pfaffia paniculata (Brazilian ginseng) methanolic extract reduces angiogenesis in mice.
abstract: Pfaffia paniculata (Brazilian ginseng) roots have been indicated for the treatment of several diseases. Our studies have shown that P. paniculata roots present antineoplastic effects and cancer chemopreventive activity in a mouse hepatocarcinogenesis model. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of the Brazilian ginseng on corneal angiogenesis in mice. We first conducted a toxicological study employing 250, 500, or 1000mg/kg/day of the methanolic extract of P. paniculata roots by gavage to BALB/c mice. Animals did not lose weight during the treatment nor presented histopathological alterations. The effect of this root on angiogenesis in the cornea of BALB/c mice was then assessed. Male mice were treated, by gavage, once a day, with doses of 250, 500, or 1000mg/kg of methanolic extract of P. paniculata powdered root for 10 days; filtered water was used as control. Corneal cauterization was accomplished by the contact of a silver nitrate crystal on the central area of the cornea, in the 5th day of treatment with P. paniculata, which continued thereafter; the animals were euthanized on the 6th day after cauterization. Newly formed blood vessels were filled with India ink, and the corneas were routinely processed. Blood vessels were quantified in an image analysis system. A smaller total area of neovascularization in the mouse cornea was observed in animals treated with 1000mg/kg of the methanolic extract of P. paniculata. These results indicate an antiangiogenic effect of this extract. The mechanisms of this antiangiogenic activity of P. paniculata should be further investigated.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Experimental Oncology, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Zootechny, University of São Paulo, Av Prof Dr Orlando Marques de Paiva, no 87, CEP 05508-900, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carolina Scarpa
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Carneiro
authors.forename: Frederico Azevedo
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Costa-Pinto
authors.forename: Ana Paula
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.forename: Kátia Cristina
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Pinello
authors.forename: Tereza Cristina
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.forename: Patrícia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Matsuzaki
authors.forename: Márcia Kazumi
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Nagamine
authors.forename: Silvana Lima
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Górniak
authors.forename: Mitsue
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Haraguchi
authors.forename: Gokithi
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Akisue
authors.forename: Maria Lúcia Zaidan
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Dagli
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D027703:Amaranthaceae / Q000737:chemistry*; D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D002425:Cautery / Q000009:adverse effects; D003315:Cornea / Q000098:blood supply*; D016510:Corneal Neovascularization / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D008297:Male; D000432:Methanol / Q000737:chemistry; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D005894:Panax; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000737:chemistry; D018675:Toxicity Tests
chemical_list: D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors; D010936:Plant Extracts; D000432:Methanol