Dehydrocorydaline chloride (13-Methylpalmatine chloride) is an alkaloid exhibiting anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer activities and can enhance the activation of p38 MAPK.

Treatment of C2C12 myoblasts with 500 nM dehydrocorydrine increased the expression of muscle-specific proteins (including MyoD, myogenin, and myosin heavy chain), and enhanced p38 MAPK activation and the interaction between MyoD and E protein. Additionally, dehydrohydroxyproline restored defects in differentiation-induced p38 MAPK activation and differentiation of myoblasts caused by Cdo. Dehydrohydroxyproline significantly inhibited MCF-7 cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner, reversible by the caspase-8 inhibitor Z-IETD-FMK. It also increased DNA fragmentation without affecting ΔΨm, elevated Bax protein levels, decreased Bcl-2 protein levels, and induced caspase-7 and -8 activation and PARP cleavage, without affecting caspase-9. These findings suggest that dehydrohydroxyproline inhibits MCF-7 cell proliferation by inducing apoptosis through Bax/Bcl-2 regulation, caspase activation, and PARP cleavage.

Dehydrocobaltate (3.6, 6 or 10 mg/kg, intraperitoneal injection) showed a dose-dependent anti-nociceptive effect in the acetic acid-induced writhing test and significantly reduced formalin-induced mice Pain reaction. In the formalin test, dehydrocorydrine can reduce the expression of caspase 6 (CASP6), TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 proteins in the spinal cord. It was confirmed that dehydroyanhusine has an analgesic effect on mice.