Promising selective MAO-B inhibition by sesamin, a lignan from Zanthoxylum flavum stems

This study aimed to isolate the secondary metabolites of Zanthoxylum flavum stems and evaluate their recombinant human MAO inhibition, antimicrobial, and antiprotozoal activities. As a result, fourteen compounds were isolated and identified (nine of them were reported from Z. flavum for the first time). Compound 3 (sesamin) exhibited potent selective MAO-B inhibition (IC50 value of 1.45 ± 0.05 µM) which reported herein for the first time. Compound 2 showed selective MAO-A inhibition activity, compound 5 exhibited good trypanocidal activity, and compound 7 displayed moderate antibacterial activity. The promising MAO-B inhibitory activity of sesamin provoked us to further explore the kinetic properties, the binding mode, and the underlying mechanism of MAO-B inhibition by this lignan. This detailed investigation substantiated a reversible binding and mixed MAO-B catalytic function inhibition via sesamin (Ki: 0.473 ± 0.076 μM). Selectivity and reversibility of sesamin on MAO-B provide exciting prerequisites for further in vivo investigation to confirm its therapeutic potentiality.
Source: Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: research