earticle

영어

Nigella glandulifera (Ranunculaceae) has been used as a folk remedy for treatment of colds, cough and insomnia. The seeds are believed to have diuretic, analgesic, spasmolytic, galactagogue, bronchodilator properties, and to cure edema, urinary calculus, and bronchial asthma. To develop a novel skin depigmenting agent from natural sources, the inhibition of melanogenesis by N. glandulifrea, was evaluated. The methanol extracts of this plant showed significant down-regulated melanin synthesis in a dose dependent manner at a non-toxic concentration in cultured B16F10 mouse melanoma cells. This extract was further fractionated by using solvent-solvent partition and silica open column chromatography to identify the active components. From GC-MS data, oleic acid methyl ester was found as one of the depigmenting agents. In conclusion, we suggest that this fraction may be a safe and effective depigmentation agent.