α-Hederin

α-Hederin

Identifiers
CAS Number	27013-91-8
3D model (Jmol)	Interactive image
SMILES [H][C@@]1(O[C@@H]2[C@@H](O)[C@H](O)[C@H](C)O[C@@]2([H])O[C@H]2CC[C@@]3(C)[C@@]([H])(CC[C@]4(C)[C@]3([H])CC=C3[C@]5([H])CC(C)(C)CC[C@@]5(CC[C@@]43C)C(O)=O)[C@]2(C)CO)O[C@@H](C)[C@H](O)[C@@H](O)[C@H]1O
Properties
Chemical formula	C42H68O12
Molar mass	764.99 g·mol^−1
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
Infobox references

α-Hederin (alpha-hederin) is a water-soluble pentacyclic triterpenoid saponin found in the seeds of Nigella sativa.^[1][2][3]

Anticancer studies

α-Hederin and also its derivative, kalopanaxsaponin-I, have been studied for their anticancer activities.^[4][1] α-Hederin has been shown to enhance the cytotoxicity of an established chemotherapeutic agent, 5-fluorouracil, in an animal model of colon carcinoma.^[4]

See also

• Hederagenin
• Thymoquinone

References

1. Butt MS, Sultan MT (2010). "Nigella sativa: reduces the risk of various maladies". Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition. 50 (7): 654–65. doi:10.1080/10408390902768797. PMID 20694927. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
   • N. sativa seeds also contain proteins, alkaloids (nigellicines and nigelledine), and saponins (alpha-hederin) in substantial amounts.
   • Some of its components, especially α-Hederin, have shown some significant effects in mitigating the cancerous cell growth (Salem, 2005; Ramadan, 2007).
2. Shafiq H, Ahmad A, Masud T, Kaleem M (2014). "Cardio-protective and anti-cancer therapeutic potential of Nigella sativa". Iranian Journal of Basic Medical Sciences. 17 (12): 967–79. PMC 4387232. PMID 25859300. N. sativa seed composition shows that it is the blessing of nature and it contains and many bioactive compounds like thymoquinone, α-hederin, alkaloids, flavonoids, antioxidants, fatty acids many other compounds that have positive effects on curing of different diseases.
3. Gholamnezhad Z, Havakhah S, Boskabady MH (2016). "Preclinical and clinical effects of Nigella Sativa and its constituent, thymoquinone: A review". Journal of Ethnopharmacology. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2016.06.061. PMID 27364039. Retrieved 2016-07-04. The seeds of the plant also contain many non-oily and non-caloric components in trace amounts, including pyrazole alkaloids (nigellidine and nigellicine, Fig. 1d), isoquinoline alkaloids (nigellicimine and nigellicimine-N-oxide, Fig. 1e), alpha-hederin (a water-soluble pentacyclic triterpene, Fig. 1f), saponin (a potential anticancer agent), vitamins (riboflavin, thiamin, niacin, pyridoxine, folic acid, and vitamin E), and minerals (potassium, sodium, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, copper, and iron) (Nergiz and Ötleş, 1993).
4. Randhawa MA, Alghamdi MS (2011). "Anticancer activity of Nigella sativa (black seed) - a review" (PDF). The American Journal of Chinese Medicine. 39 (6): 1075–91. doi:10.1142/S0192415X1100941X. PMID 22083982. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
   • A literature search has revealed that a lot more studies have been recently carried out related to the anticancer activities of N. sativa and some of its active compounds, such as thymoquinone and alpha-hederin.
   • Another important active compound that has been shown to possess anticancer effects is alpha-hederin, a pentacycline triterpene and a saponin, which is water soluble perhaps the major active component in the aqueous extract of N. sativa.
   • One of the derivatives of alpha-hederin, kalopanaxsaponin-I, was found to possess anticancer activity.
   • Alpha-hederin also, in sub-IC50 cytotoxic concentrations, was shown to enhance the cytotoxicity of 5-fluorouracil in a human colon carcinoma model, HT-29 cells, 3.3-fold (Bun et al. , 2008).
   • Moreover, N. saliva seed, its oil, thymoquinone, alpha-hederin or their analogs could be used in suitable combinations with already established as chemotherapeutic agents.