ENHANCEMENT OF RADICAL INTENSITY AND CYTOTOXIC ACTIVITY OF ASCORBATE BY CRATAEGUS-CUNEATA SIEB ET. ZUCC. EXTRACTS

The radical modulation activity of hot water and NaOH extracts of the them apple of Crataegus Cuneata Sieb. et. Zucc. was investigated, usin g ESR spectroscopy. The radical intensity of sodium ascorbate was slig htly reduced at lower concentrations of the extracts, but it was syner gistically enhanced at higher concentrations. Higher concentrations of the extracts also synergistically stimulated the cytotoxic action of sodium ascorbate against human oral squamous carcinoma and salivary gl and tumor cell lines. All these extracts effectively scavenged superox ide anion and hydroxyl radical, produced by hypoxanthine-xanthine oxid ase and Fenton reaction, respectively, and their activity was comparab le with that of lignins prepared by the same procedure from other plan ts. These data further supports the medicinal efficacy of plant extrac ts.