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Introduction: Ampelocissus africana is a medicinal plant used to treat several diseases, including those affecting the prostate. This study investigated the effects of the aqueous extract of rhizomes from Ampelocissus africana (AAA) on a testosterone propionate (TP)-induced benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) model. Methods: The effect of the extract at 50, 150, and 300 mg/kg on BPH in male rats was assessed using daily subcutaneous injections of 3 mg/kg TP for four consecutive weeks. After the induction schedule, physical parameters, prostate index (PI), serum biochemical parameters, homogenate antioxidant, enzyme parameters, and prostates histopathological studies were carried out. Triterpenes and sterols were also assessed. Results: Treatment with AAA reduced the PI level in a dose-dependent manner (up to 75.91% at the dose of 300 mg/kg). The inflammatory marker measured in the present study, namely C-reactive protein, increased significantly in the BPH group and improved with the treatments. In addition, AAA reduced oxidative stress by decreasing the malondialdehyde (MDA) level and increasing the catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels in comparison to the positive control group. A histopathological examination corroborated the result of the analysis of the physical and biochemical parameters. The study also showed interesting levels of triterpenes (119.5 ± 4.5 mg UAE/g) and sterols (104.6 ± 3.06 mg CE/g). Conclusion: These results suggest that the aqueous extract of Ampelocissus africana could be used as a natural herbal therapy to treat BPH.

Background: Flemingia faginea Guill. & Perr. is a medicinal plant used for the endogenous treatment of hypertension. This study aimed to establish the phytochemical profile, antioxidant power, and vasodilation effects of aqueous decoction (FAD), ethyl acetate (EAF) and aqueous residual fractions (ARF) of the leafy stem of Flemingia faginea (F. faginea). Methods: The phytochemical study was performed using high-performance thin-layer chromatography technique and high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS). Folin-Ciocalteu and aluminum trichloride colorimetric methods were used, respectively, to quantify total polyphenols and flavonoids. The antioxidant properties of the extracts were determined using 2,29-azinobis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic (ABTS•), 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•) and ferric ion reduction (FRAP) methods. The vasodilatory effects of F. faginea extracts were performed using the DMT 620M myograph technique for an ex vivo study. Results: The phytochemical study revealed the presence of flavonoids, tannins, coumarins, sterols, and triterpenes, alkaloids, and saponins in the extracts studied. HPLC MS analysis identified as the main phenolic compounds, gallic acid-glucoside (16.56 ± 0.06 mg/g), myricetin rhamnoside (15.39 ± 0.04 mg/g), myricetin rutinoside (9.32 ± 0.00 mg/g), quercetin rutinoside (9.05 ± 0.00 mg/g), caffeoyl-glucoside (6.07 ± 0.02 mg/g) and 5-Caffeoylquinic acid (4.52 ± 0.00 mg/g). The present data also showed higher contents of phenolic compounds and flavonoids in fractions of ARF (280.49 ± 0.08 mgGAE/g) and EAF (33.31 ± 0.33 mgQE/g) fractions respectively. Furthermore, the ARF fraction had the best iron ion reduction capacity (16.96 ± 0.01µgAAE/100 mg), while, the EAF (ABTS: IC50=67.33 ± 0.04 µg/mL; DPPH: IC50=4.69 ± 0.20 µg/mL) was the best free radical scavenger. In endothelium-intact rings, study extracts showed a vasodilation effect in a concentration-dependent manner with half-maximum effective concentration (EC50) of 0.24 ± 0.03 mg/mL, 0.85 ± 0.07 mg/mL and 0.05±0.01 mg/mL respectively for FAD, ARF and EAF. In endothelium-denuded vessels, these values were 0.26 ± 0.09 mg/mL, 0.57 ± 0.05 mg/mL, and 0.85 ± 0.01 mg/mL for EAF, FAD, and ARF, respectively. The maximum effects were of 99.94 ± 0.15%, 86.89 ± 5.58%, and 62.69 ± 5.14% (endothelium-intact) and of 100 ± 0.06%, 96.55 ± 4.68%, and 74.16 ± 4.06% (endothelium-denuded), respectively, for EAF, FAD, and ARF with a significant difference between them. Conclusion: This study reports that the decoction and fractions of F. faginea are rich in various chemical compounds and possess antioxidant and vasodilatory properties. These preliminary data provide a scientific basis which contributed to justify that plant used in traditional medicine.