In Vitro Pharmacological Evaluation of Prunetine for the Management of Cataract
Abstract
Cataracts, characterized by lens opacity and vision impairment, remain a leading cause of blindness globally. Oxidative stress plays a major role in cataractogenesis, with antioxidants offering therapeutic potential. This study investigates the anti-cataract efficacy of prunetine in a glucose-induced in vitro cataract model using goat lenses. Various concentrations of Prunetine were evaluated against standard treatment (ascorbic acid), with assessments on lens opacity, enzymatic antioxidant activity, lipid peroxidation, and protein content. The findings suggest Prunetine significantly inhibits cataract formation, restores biochemical parameters, and may delay cataract progression. Lenses exposed to high glucose showed significant opacification, decreased antioxidant enzymes (CAT, SOD, GSH), elevated MDA levels, and abnormal protein aggregation. Treatment with Prunetine significantly reduced opacity and restored antioxidant enzymatic activity. The 100 µg/ml dose of Prunetine was most effective, restoring lens biochemistry near or above normal levels and preventing protein aggregation more efficiently than ascorbic acid. Prunetine demonstrated potent anti-cataract effects by mitigating oxidative damage and preserving lens protein integrity. The findings underscore its potential as a non-surgical pharmacologic intervention for cataract prevention, warranting further in vivo and clinical evaluation.
Keywords - Oxidative stress, Cataractogenesis, lipid peroxidation, Cataracts, antioxidant
Keywords:
Oxidative stress, Cataractogenesis, lipid peroxidation, Cataracts, antioxidantDOI
https://doi.org/10.22270/jddt.v16i7.7868References
1. Aebi H. Catalase in vitro. Methods Enzymol. 1984;105:121-126. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0076-6879(84)05016-3 PMid:6727660
2. Balogun FO, Ashafa AO, Afolayan AJ. Aqueous root extract of Dicoma anomala prevents cataractogenesis in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats via antioxidant activity. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2016;16:318. doi:10.1186/s12906-016-1306-z.
3. Cahill M, Karabayas M, Ells A, Raju T. Intravitreal ascorbate concentration is reduced in patients with diabetes. Eye [Lond]. 2000;14[2]:173-177.
4. Chidambaram M, Carani Venkatraman G. Protective effect of hippocampus extract on cataractogenic changes in lens proteins. Indian J Exp Biol. 2010;48:25-30.
5. Clifford MN. Anthocyanins: nature, occurrence and dietary burden. J Sci Food Agric. 2000;80[7]:1063-1072. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0010(20000515)80:7<1063::AID-JSFA605>3.0.CO;2-Q
6. Gupta VB, Rajagopala M, Ravishankar B. Etiopathogenesis of cataract: an appraisal. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2014;62[2]:103-110. https://doi.org/10.4103/0301-4738.121141 PMid:24618482 PMCid:PMC4005220
7. Halliwell B, Gutteridge JMC. Free radicals in biology and medicine. 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 1999.
8. Jose J, Krishnaswamy S, Rajesh R, Maurya P. Flavonoids as potential therapeutic agents against cataracts: a review. Mini Rev Med Chem. 2018;18[6]:485-496.
9. Juráni M, Rakusan D. The effect of antioxidants on lens aging: experimental cataract in animal models. Acta Med Martiniana. 2011;11[2]:5-12.
10. Kalekar SA, Munshi R, Gosavi T. Anticataract activity of traditional crude drugs: a review. Asian J Pharm Clin Res. 2018;11[2]:45-51.
11. Kanwar JR, Kanwar RK, Burrows J, Baratchi S. Recent advances in anti-cataract agents. Open Med Chem J. 2009;3:20-27.
12. Kinoshita JH. Mechanisms initiating cataract formation: Proctor lecture. Invest Ophthalmol. 1974;13[10]:713-724.
13. Lowry OH, Rosebrough NJ, Farr AL, Randall RJ. Protein measurement with the Folin phenol reagent. J Biol Chem. 1951;193[1]:265-275. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0021-9258(19)52451-6 PMid:14907713 PMCid:PMC11896512
14. Luximon-Ramma A, Bahorun T, Crozier A, Zbarsky V, Datla KP, Dexter DT, et al. Characterization of the antioxidant functions of flavonoids. J Nutr Biochem. 2005;16[6]:360-367.
15. Nagai N, Ito Y, Okamoto N. The effect of topical instillation of a lens aldose reductase inhibitor, ranirestat, on cataract progression in spontaneous diabetic rats. Biol Pharm Bull. 2007;30[12]:2318-2322.
16. Obrosova IG. Diabetic cataracts: mechanisms and management. Diabetes Metab Res Rev. 2009;25[1]:3-20. https://doi.org/10.1002/dmrr.1075 PMid:20474067
17. Ohkawa H, Ohishi N, Yagi K. Assay for lipid peroxides in animal tissues by thiobarbituric acid reaction. Anal Biochem. 1979;95[2]:351-358. https://doi.org/10.1016/0003-2697(79)90738-3 PMid:36810 PMCid:PMC8374294
18. Palmieri B, Sblendorio V. Oxidative stress tests: overview on reliability and use. Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci. 2007;11[6]:309-342.
19. Pollreisz A, Schmidt-Erfurth U. Diabetic cataract: pathogenesis, epidemiology and treatment. J Ophthalmol. 2010;2010:608751. https://doi.org/10.1155/2010/608751 PMid:20634936 PMCid:PMC2903955
20. Rizvi NB, Aleem S, Khan MR, Ashraf S, Busquets R. Quantitative estimation of protein in sprouts using Kjeldahl and Lowry methods. Molecules. 2022;27[3]:814. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27030814 PMid:35164080 PMCid:PMC8839272
21. Sagar NA, Pareek S, Sharma S, Yahia EM, Lobo MG. Fruit and vegetable peels: utilization of high-value horticultural waste. Trends Food Sci Technol. 2018;82:60-71.
22. Sangeetha P, Venkataraman R. Evaluation of anti-cataract activity of plant extracts in experimental models. Int J Pharmacol Clin Sci. 2014;3[1]:17-24.
23. Saxena M, Saxena J, Nema R, Singh D, Gupta A. Phytochemistry of medicinal plants. J Pharmacogn Phytochem. 2013;1[6]:168-182.
24. Sha G, Liu Y. Diabetes-induced cataract formation and prevention with antioxidants. J Ocul Pharmacol Ther. 2006;22[2]:81-92.
25. Spector A. Oxidative stress-induced cataract: mechanism of action. FASEB J. 1995;9[12]:1173-1182.https://doi.org/10.1096/fasebj.9.12.7672510 PMid:7672510
26. Ramana KV, Friedrich B, Bhatnagar A, Srivastava SK. Aldose reductase mediates cytotoxic signals of hyperglycemia and TNF-alpha in human lens epithelial cells. FASEB J. 2003;17[2]:315-317. https://doi.org/10.1096/fj.02-0568fje PMid:12490536
27. Nambu H, Kubo E, Takamura Y, Tsuzuki S, Tamura M, Akagi Y. Attenuation of aldose reductase gene suppresses high-glucose-induced apoptosis and oxidative stress in rat lens epithelial cells. Diabetes Res Clin Pract. 2008;82[1]:18-24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.diabres.2008.03.023 PMid:18835019
28. Truscott RJW. Age-related nuclear cataract: a lens transport problem. Ophthalmic Res. 2005;37[3]:123-141.
29. Varma SD, Mikuni I. Prevention of cataracts by nutritional and natural antioxidants. Jpn J Ophthalmol. 1986;30[6]:707-719.
30. Vats V, Yadav SP, Grover JK. Anti-hyperglycemic activity of Trigonella foenum-graecum, Coccinia indica, and Momordica charantia in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Indian J Clin Biochem. 2004;19[2]:119-122.
31. Vaya J, Aviram M. Nutritional antioxidants: mechanisms of action and recent findings. Curr Opin Lipidol. 2001;12[1]:31-38.
32. Warrier PK, Nambiar VPK, Ramankutty C. Indian medicinal plants: a compendium of 500 species. Vol. 5. Chennai: Orient Longman; 1996.
33. Yabe-Nishimura C. Aldose reductase in glucose toxicity: a potential target for the prevention of diabetic complications. Pharmacol Rev. 1998;50[1]:21-33. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0031-6997(24)01347-4 PMid:9549756
34. Wang Y, Zhao L, Lu F, Yang X, Deng Q, Ji B, et al. Retinoprotective effects of bilberry anthocyanins via antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-apoptotic mechanisms in a visible light-induced retinal degeneration model in pigmented rabbits. Molecules. 2015;20[12]:22395-22410. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules201219785 PMid:26694327 PMCid:PMC6332335
35. Gupta SK, Kumar B, Nag TC, Agrawal SS, Agrawal R, Agrawal P, et al. Curcumin prevents experimental diabetic retinopathy in rats through its hypoglycemic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory mechanisms. J Ocul Pharmacol Ther. 2011;27[2]:123-130. https://doi.org/10.1089/jop.2010.0123 PMid:21314438
36. Nishikimi M, Rao NA, Yagi K. The occurrence of superoxide anion in the reaction of reduced phenazine methosulfate and molecular oxygen. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 1972;46[2]:849-854. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0006-291X(72)80218-3 PMid:4400444
37. Paglia DE, Valentine WN. Studies on the quantitative and qualitative characterization of erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase. J Lab Clin Med. 1967;70[1]:158-169.
38. Moron MS, Depierre JW, Mannervik B. Levels of glutathione, glutathione reductase and glutathione S-transferase activities in rat lung and liver. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1979;582(1):67-78. https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-4165(79)90289-7
39. Spector A. Oxidative stress-induced cataract: mechanism of action. FASEB J. 1995;9(12):1173-1182. https://doi.org/10.1096/fasebj.9.12.7672510 PMid:7672510
40. Varma SD, Mikuni I. Prevention of cataracts by nutritional and natural antioxidants. Jpn J Ophthalmol. 1986;30(6):707-719.
Published
Abstract Display: 0
PDF Downloads: 0
PDF Downloads: 0 How to Cite
Issue
Section
Copyright (c) 2026 Jaya Shree , Bhumika Chandrakar , Swarnali Das Paul , Nivedita Gautam , Rajesh Chaudhary

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).

.