Essential oil composition,antioxidant activity and phenolic content of endemic Teucrium alyssifolium Staph. (Lamiaceae)

The present study was designed to examine the chemical composition of the essential oil, in vitro antioxidant activity and total phenolic and flavonoid content of extracts from plant parts (leaf, flower and stem) of Teucrium alyssifolium. The principle components of the essential oil were trans-β-caryophyllene (16.87%), ar-curcumene (11.43%) and bisabolene (11.06%), representing 39.36% of the oil. The total phenolic contents ranged between 13.99 and 41.54 mg of GAE/g of extract. The concentrations of flavonoids varied from 16.82 to 49.52 mg of Ru/g of extract. Antioxidant activity was determined in vitro using DPPH reagent and expressed as concentration of each extract required to inhibit radical by 50% (IC₅₀) values that ranged from 13.52 to 132.55 μg/ml. Our results have indicated that water extract of T. alyssifolium (part leaf) with a total content of polyphenols (41.54 mg of GAE/g) and an IC₅₀ of 13.52 μg/ml is more antioxidant.     

HPLC-ESI-MS/MS analysis of phenolics and in vitro antioxidant activity of Epilobium angustifolium L.

The aerial parts of Epilobium plants are widely used as folk medicine and food around the world. The present study was aimed to investigate the antioxidant activities and active chemical constituents from Epilobium angustifolium L. The results revealed that the EtOAc extract, rich in phenolic compounds and flavonoids (16.81 ± 0.67 g GAE/100 g extract and 4.95 ± 0.21 g QE/100 g extract, respectively), possessed significantly antioxidant activities in reducing power, DPPH radical scavenging activity, ABTS radical scavenging activity and highly in inhibiting lipid peroxidation activity. Simultaneously, active fractions F to H from EtOAc extracts showing potent in vitro antioxidant activities also contained high content of total phenolic and flavonoid. Twenty-eight compounds were identified as phenolic compounds and flavonoids by LC-MS/MS. The results illustrate that the E. angustifolium L., which is rich in phenolics, could be used as a natural resource of antioxidant ingredient.     

Identification and in vitro antioxidant activities of phenolic compounds isolated from Cynoglossum cheirifolium L.

In an extensive search for bioactive compounds from plant sources, the quantitative and qualitative characterisation of the compounds present in Cynoglossum cheirifolium extracts was studied. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents were determined by spectrophotometric techniques. In vitro antioxidant and radical scavenging profiling was determined through DPPH^? scavenging activity and Ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP). Our study showed that leaves produce more phenolic compounds, followed by flowering aerial part. The butanolic fraction obtained from leaves extract exhibited the highest total phenolics (78.65 ± 3.58 mg GAE/g DW) and flavonoids (22.15 ± 4.66 mg CE/g DW). In contrast, this fraction displayed the highest DPPH^? scavenging ability with IC₅₀ values of 0.06 ± 0.003 mg/mL. The RP-HPLC-PDA analysis of phenolic compounds from leaves of C. cheirifolium lets to identify: rosmarinic acid, ferulic acid, caffeic acid, p-coumaric acid, syringic acid, sinapic acid and rutin. The obtained results indicate that this plant represent a valuable source of natural antioxidants.     

Total phenolic content,ferric reducing and DPPH scavenging activity of Arum dioscoridis

Arum dioscoridis, locally called ‘Gavur pancari’, is a wild plant the leaves of which have been used as vegetable and for preparing special soup which has a sour taste. This study was set up to determine in vitro antioxidant activities and total phenolic and flavonoid contents of different extracts of A. dioscoridis. Free radical scavenging activity was evaluated using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric reducing activity with different concentrations of ethanol, methanol, acetone and water extracts of the plant leaves. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents were widely variable depending on solvents. Ethanol and methanol extractions of the plant material showed better performances with respect to both phenolic and flavonoid contents, respectively. The highest phenolic and flavonoid contents of ethanol and methanol extracts were 100.890 mg/g GAE and 72.643 mg/g QE, respectively. The lower DPPH scavenging and ferric reducing activities were determined in comparison with previous reports and standard synthetic chemicals.     

Total phenolic and flavonoid contents,antioxidant, antidiabetic and antiplasmodial activities of Garcinia forbesii King: A correlation study

Garcinia forbesii King belongs to Clusiaceae is a source of secondary metabolites especially xanthones with various biological activities. G. forbesii King is also known for its empirical use for malaria and diabetes. This study investigated the total phenolic and flavonoid contents, in vitro antioxidant, antidiabetic and antiplasmodial activities of four extracts attained from the stem bark of G. forbesii King. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents were determined by spectrophotometric methods and antioxidant activity was evaluated by DPPH, ABTS, FRAP assays. In vitro antidiabetic activity was assessed by α-glucosidase and α-amylase assays and antiplasmodial activity was studied against chloroquine sensitive Plasmodium falciparum strain 3D7. The highest value of total phenolic (187.37 ± 0.06 mg GAE/g) and flavonoid (35.97 ± 0.02 mg QE/g) contents were recorded in n-hexane and methanolic extracts. n-Hexane extract showed the highest DPPH activity with IC₅₀ of 8.12 ± 0.02 μg/mL. Ethyl acetate extract exhibited better scavenging ability for ABTS with IC₅₀ of 3.88 ± 0.04 μg/mL. The FRAP assay showed better activity in methanol extract with an inhibition value of 73.68 ± 3.66 µM Fe²⁺/g. The strong inhibition against α-glucosidase and α-amylase were displayed by dichloromethane extract with IC₅₀ of 35.13 ± 2.01 μg/mL and 4.83 ± 0.20 μg/mL. n-Hexane and methanol extracts showed significant antiplasmodial activity with IC₅₀ of 0.23 ± 0.01 μg/mL and 0.73 ± 0.01 μg/mL, respectively. The correlation analysis indicated a positive relationship of total phenolic and flavonoid contents with antiplasmodial activity. The results revealed that n-hexane and methanol extracts could be used as a potential natural antiplasmodial, while dichloromethane extract is a promising natural antidiabetic.     

Phenolic composition and antioxidant activity of propolis from various regions of Poland

The aim of this work was to determine phenolic acid and flavonoid contents, as well as antioxidant properties of propolis from different regions of Poland. Total phenolic content of propolis samples ranged from 150.05 to 197.14 mg/g GAE, while total flavonoid content was 35.64–62.04 mg/g QE. The dominant phenolic acid was p-coumaric acid, the content of which was from 37.54 to 116.95 mg/g. The samples also contained much ferulic acid. Among the flavonoids, chrysine and galangine were dominant, and for two samples, naringine was dominant. The propolis samples exhibited various antiradical activity measured towards DPPH^√ (1.92–2.69 mM TE/g) and ABTS^√+ (3.96–4.98 mM TE/g) and reducing power was determined by the ferric reducing antioxidant power method (6.23–9.19 mM Fe(II)/g). The significant linear correlations between total phenolic content and antiradical activity and between total phenolic content and reducing power were observed. Moreover, the total flavonoids content significantly correlated with antiradical activity and reducing power.     

Antioxidant potential assessment of phenolic and flavonoid rich fractions of Clematis orientalis and Clematis ispahanica (Ranunculaceae)

The antioxidant activities of crude extract fractions using Hexane, Chloroform, Ethyl Acetate, Butanol and Water of Clematis orientalis and Clematis ispahanica were investigated. 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) assay and the ferric reducing/antioxidant potential (FRAP) were used to evaluate the antioxidant capacity. The total phenolics were found to be 4.37–9.38 and 1.32–11.37 mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g in different fractions for C. orientalis and C. ispahanica, respectively. The ethyl acetate fraction of C. orientalis and chloroform fraction of C. ispahanica showed the highest DPPH and FRAP activities at a concentration of 300 μg/mL. The predominant phenolic compounds identified by HPLC in C. orientalis were Resorcinol (603.5 μg/g DW) in chloroform fraction and Ellagic acid (811.7 μg/g DW) in chloroform fraction of C. ispahanica.     

Polyphenolic profiling of Ipomoea carnea Jacq. by HPLC-DAD and its implications in oxidative stress and cancer

Ipomoea carnea Jacq. is an important folklore medicinal plant, assessed for its underexplored biological potential. Antioxidant, cytotoxic, antiproliferative and polyphenolic profile of whole plant was evaluated using various techniques. Maximum extract recovery (29% w/w), phenolic [13.54 ± 0.27 μg GAE/mg dry weight (DW)] and flavonoid (2.11 ± 0.10 μg QE /mg DW) content were recorded in methanol-distilled water (1:1) flower extract. HPLC-DAD analysis quantified substantial amount of six different polyphenols ranging from 0.081 to 37.95 μg/mg extract. Maximum total antioxidant and reducing potential were documented in methanol-distilled water and acetone-distilled water flower extracts (42.62 ± 0.47 and 24.38 ± 0.39 μg AAE/mg DW) respectively. Ethanol-chloroform root extract manifested highest free radical scavenging (IC₅₀ of 61.22 μg/mL) while 94.64% of the extracts showed cytotoxicity against brine shrimps. Ethanol leaf extract exhibited remarkable activity against THP-1 cell line (IC₅₀ = 8 ± 0.05 μg/mL) and protein kinases (31 mm phenotype bald zone).     

Chemical composition,antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of the edible medicinal Ononis natrix growing wild in Tunisia

Results showed that leaf methanolic extract of Ononis natrix has important total phenol (51 mg GAE/g DW) and flavonoid (14.76 CE/g DW) contents. The chemical composition of O. natrix leaf revealed the presence of quercitine (24.5%), amentoflavone (14.1%), flavones (11.3%) and kaempferol (10.5%). The leaf extract showed a high total antioxidant activity with 60.94 mg of GAE/g DW, displayed a high 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl scavenging ability with low IC₅₀ value (29 μg/mL) and a great reducing power (EC₅₀ = 100 μg/mL). O. natrix leaf extract exhibited a significant broad spectrum activity against all tested microorganisms with bacterial inhibition zone sizes ranging from 8.5 to 17 mm in diameter.     

Phytochemical screening,antioxidant activity,total phenolic and total flavonoid contents of seven local varieties of Rosa indica L.

Rosa indica symbol of godness and beauty known for various healing power, has astringent, sedative, anti-inflammatory and antidepressant qualities. Standard methods were used for qualitative detection of phyto-compounds, and quantitative detection of antioxidants was done using DPPH radical scavenging assay, total phenolics and total flavonoids content were expressed in mg GAE/g dry weight and mg QE/g dry weight. Results revealed phyto-compounds presence in all varieties under study however maximum % inhibition was observed by R. indica var pink perfume (94 ± 0.6) with IC50 value 0.3376 ± 0.01 mg/mL. Highest phenolic and flavonoid content was observed in the leaves extract of R. indica var cardinal red, i.e. 3.3553 ± 0.11 (ethanol) mg of Gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g dry weight and 3.736 ± 0.001(ethanol) mg of quercetin equivalents (QE)/g dry weight, respectively, at conc. 0.125 mg/mL. Our finding provides evidence that all varieties of rose contain medicinally important bioactive compounds and justifies their use for treatment of different diseases.     

α-Glucosidase Inhibition and Antioxidant Properties of Streptomyces sp.: In Vitro

Streptomyces strain isolated from the soil sediment was studied for its in vitro α-glucosidase and antioxidant properties. Morphological characterization and 16S rRNA partial gene sequencing were carried out to confirm that the strain Loyola AR1 belongs to genus Streptomyces sp. Modified nutrient glucose broth was used as the basal medium for growth and metabolites production. Ethyl acetate extract of Loyola AR1 (EA-Loyola AR1) showed 50 % α-glucosidase inhibition at the concentration of 860.50?±?2.68 μg/ml. Antioxidant properties such as total phenolic content of EA-Loyola AR1 was 176.83?±?1.17 mg of catechol equivalents/g extracts. EA-Loyola AR1 showed significant scavenging activity on 2,2-diphenyl-picrylhydrazyl (50 % inhibition (IC₅₀), 750.50?±?1.61 μg/ml), hydroxyl (IC₅₀, 690.20?±?2.38 μg/ml), nitric oxide (IC₅₀, 850.50?±?1.77 μg/ml), and superoxide (IC₅₀, 880.08?±?1.80 μg/ml) radicals, as well as reducing power. EA-Loyola AR1 showed strong suppressive effect on lipid peroxidation (IC₅₀, 670.50?±?2.52 μg/ml). Antioxidants of β-carotene linoleate model system reveals significantly lower than butylated hydroxyanisole.     

Phytochemical,Antimicrobial, Antidiabetic,Thrombolytic, anticancer Activities,and in silico studies of Ficus palmata Forssk

Ficus palmata Forssk. (Moraceae family) is medicinally valuable plant that is mostly used as folk medicine for the treatment of different diseases. Phytochemical composition was evaluated by preliminary phytochemical investigation, GCMS analysis, and total bioactive contents (TPC and TFC). The antioxidant, enzyme inhibition, antimicrobial, thrombolytic and anticancer activities were performed for biological evaluation. The extract exhibited the maximum total phenolic (49.24 ± 1.21 mg GAE/g) and total flavonoid contents (29.9 ± 1.13 mg QE/g) which may be correlated to higher antioxidant potential of extract. The GCMS investigation identified the presence of 27 phytocompounds of different classes related to aldehydes, esters of fatty acids, triterpenes, steroids, triterpenoid. The extract possessed the strong α-glucosidase (73.4 ± 4.65 %) and moderate α-amylase inhibition activity (47.1 ± 3.29 %). Significant results were observed in case of antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial activities. F. palmata extract inhibited the growth of HepG2 cancer cells in a dose-dependent manner. The extract also exhibited moderate in vitro thrombolytic activity. In addition, the phytocompounds identified by GCMS were subjected to in silico molecular docking studies to analyze the binding affinity between phytocompounds and enzymes (α-glucosidase and α-amylase). Moreover, the best docked compounds were selected for ADMET studies which provide information about pharmacokinetics, physicochemical properties, drug-likeness, and toxicity of identified phytocompounds. The outcome of our research revealed that ethanolic extract of F. palmata possessed good antidiabetic, antimicrobial, thrombolytic and anticancer potential. This plant should be further explored to isolate the bioactive compounds for new drug development.     

Phenolic composition,antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory activities of Parkia biglobosa (Jacq.) Benth., Tithonia diversifolia (Hemsl) A. Gray,and Crossopteryx febrifuga (Afzel.) Benth

Medicinal plants from Chad grow under special climatic conditions in between the equatorial forest of Central Africa and the desert of North Africa and are understudied. Three medicinal plants from Chad (T. diversifolia, P. Biglobosa and C. Febrifuga) were evaluated for their phenolic composition, antioxidant and enzyme inhibition activities. The total phenolic composition varied from 203.19 ± 0.58 mg GAE/g DW in the ethyl acetate extract of P. biglobosa, to 56.41 ± 0.89 mg GAE/g DW in the methanol extract of C. febrifuga while the total flavonoid content varied from 51.85 ± 0.91 mg QE/g DW in the methanol extract of P. biglobosa to 08.56 ± 0.25 mg QE/g DW in the methanol extract of C. febrifuga. HPLC-DAD revealed that rutin, gallic acid and protocatechuic acid were the most abundant phenolics in T. diversifolia, P. Biglobosa and C. Febrifuga respectively. The antioxidant activity assayed by five different methods revealed very good activity especially in the DPPH^?, ABTS^?+ and CUPRAC assays where the extracts were more active than the standard compounds used. Good inhibition was exhibited against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) with methanol (IC₅₀: 15.63 ± 0.72 µg/mL), ethyl acetate (IC₅₀: 16.20 ± 0.67 µg/mL) extracts of P. biglobosa, and methanol (IC₅₀: 21.53 ± 0.65 µg/mL) and ethyl acetate (IC₅₀: 30.81 ± 0.48 µg/mL) extracts of T. diversifolia showing higher inhibition than galantamine (IC₅₀: 42.20 ± 0.44 µg/mL) against BChE. Equally, good inhibition was shown on α-amylase and α-glucosidase. On the α-glucosidase, the ethyl acetate (IC₅₀ = 12.47 ± 0.61 µg/mL) and methanol extracts (IC₅₀ = 16.51 ± 0.18 µg/mL) of P. biglobosa showed higher activity compared to the standard acarbose (IC₅₀ = 17.35 ± 0.71 µg/mL) and on α-amylase, the ethyl acetate (IC₅₀ = 13.50 ± 0.90 µg/mL) and methanol (IC₅₀ = 18.12 ± 0.33 µg/mL) extracts of P. biglobosa showed higher activity compared to acarbose (IC₅₀ = 23.84 ± 0.25 µg/mL). The results indicate that these plants are good sources of antioxidant phenolics and can be used to manage oxidative stress linked illnesses such as Alzheimer’s disease and diabetes.     

α-glucosidase inhibitory,antioxidant activity,and GC/MS analysis of Descurainia sophia methanolic extract: In vitro,in vivo,and in silico studies

Due to the presence of various phenolic compounds in D.sophia, this plant may have an inhibitory effect on α-Glc and ultimately diabetes control. Therefore, this work aims to scrutinize total phenolic, flavonoid contents, antioxidant capacity, and α-Glc inhibitory activity in aerial parts of methanolic D.sophia extract. The methanolic flower extracts were selected from among aerial parts for the experimental study of anti-diabetic effects by α-Glc inhibitory assays. The flower extracts were also studied by GC/MS to detect the compounds. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents were 21.38 ± 0.93 GAE/g and 96.2 ± 0.20 QE/g, respectively. The IC₅₀ value of flower extract for α-Glc inhibition with mixed (Competitive/non-competitive) mode was found to be 20.34 ± 0.11 mg/ml. Furthermore, in-vivo studies showed that the blood glucose level reduced after consumption of flower extract compared to the control group. Twenty-one compounds were identified by GC/MS technique. These compounds were assessed for high docking scores against α-Glc in silico. Docking score calculations exhibited that the DES-α-Glc complex had a significantly higher binding energy (-6.13 Kcal/mol) than other compounds. The DES-α-Glc complex which displayed a higher docking energy value than the ACR was subjected to MDs studies. The findings of this study suggest that the flower extract of D.sophia can be used as a suitable additive in syrups or foods with anti-diabetic capacity.     

Essential oil constituents,phenolic content and antioxidant activity of Lavandula stricta Delile growing wild in southern Iran

Lavandula stricta belongs to the Lamiaceae family and is considered as an endemic medicinal plant in southern Iran. Essential oil composition, total phenolic content and antioxidant activity from two different populations of L. stricta were studied for the first time. A GC and GC/MS analysis of essential oil isolated from the aerial part of L. stricta identified 31 constituents; the major constituents were α-pinene (58.34–63.52%), linalool (8.85–9.36%), 3-methyl butyl 2-methyl butanoate (7.45–7.70%), sabinene (2.84–3.56%), limonene (2.87–3.21%) and myrcene (2.25%). The total phenolic content of methanolic extracts was determined with the Folin–Ciocalteu reagent and the antioxidant activity of methanolic extract and essential oil were determined with the 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picryl hydrazyl free radical scavenging assay, respectively. Total phenols varied from 61.05 to 64.45 mg GAE/g dry weight, and IC₅₀ values in the radical scavenging assay ranged from 334.11 to 395.23 μg/mL in methanolic extracts and 420–475 μg/mL in essential oil.     

Physico-chemical properties of Tecoma stans Linn. seed oil: a new crop for vegetable oil

Tecoma stans Linn. is known to have various medicinal and therapeutic properties. However, to our knowledge, no information is available regarding their seed oils. In this study, the fatty acid (FA) compositions, physico-chemical properties and antioxidant capacities of T. stans seed oils (TSOs) were investigated. The oil content of the seeds was 15%. The FAs of the TSOs were analysed by GC–MS. α-Linolenic (45.47%), oleic (23.56%), linoleic (11.48%), palmitic (6.09%) and stearic (4.12%) acids were the major detected FAs. γ-Linolenic acid and stearidonic acid, unusually FAs, were also present (1.04% and 6.65%, respectively). The total tocol content in the TSOs was found to be 266.06 mg/100 g. The main component was γ-tocopherol (78.93%). The total phenolic content (168.69 mg GAE/100 g oil) and total flavonoid content (5.54 mg CE/g oil) were also determined in the TSOs.     

Ruta chalepensis L. (Rutaceae) leaf extract: chemical composition,antioxidant and hypoglicaemic activities

Ruta chalepensis L. (Rutaceae) leaf extract was investigated for its chemical profile and antioxidant and hypoglycaemic properties. The antioxidant effects were investigated by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), β-carotene bleaching, and metal chelating activity assays. The carbohydrate-hydrolysing enzymes inhibition assay was used to test the hypoglycaemic potential. R. chalepensis showed a high content of hesperidin and rutin with values of 591.9 and 266.7 mg/g dry extract, respectively. The extract exhibited a promising protection of lipid peroxidation (IC₅₀ value of 16.9 μg/mL) and inhibited both α-amylase and α-glucosidase enzymes in a concentration-dependent manner. The highest activity was found against α-amylase (IC₅₀ value of 69.0 μg/mL). The obtained results support the use of R. chalepensis leaves as healthy food ingredients.     

LC–QTOF–MS-based metabolite profiling and evaluation of α-glucosidase inhibitory kinetics of Coccinia grandis fruit

Coccinia grandis is an important food crop of the Cucurbitaceae family, widely used for culinary purposes in India. It is reported to possess hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic and antioxidant activities. The current study was aimed to explore the inhibition kinetics as well as major constituents of the active fraction of C. grandis against α-glucosidase. The kinetic study was performed through spectrophotometric assay, with p-nitrophenyl-α-d -glucopyranoside as a substrate with varying concentrations. An in vitro antioxidant study was performed by DPPH assay. In addition, UPLC–QTOF–MS analysis was carried out for metabolite profiling of the bioactive fraction of C. grandis. The results showed that the difference between the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of the ethyl acetate fraction of C. grandis (EFCG) (IC₅₀ 2.43 ± 0.27 mg/ml), and standard inhibitor, acarbose (2.08 ± 0.19 mg/ml), was not statistically significant at a P-value of 0.05. The enzyme kinetics confirmed the inhibition mode in a mixed manner. The EFCG also showed the highest antioxidant activity (101.74 ± 1.95 μg/ml) among all of the fractions. A significant correlation between antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of EFCG was observed. The LC–QTOF–MS study of the EFCG putatively identified 35 metabolites, which may be responsible for its antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibitory properties. Thus, C. grandis fruits can serve as a functional food to address diabetes-related disorders associated with α-glucosidase.     

Phytochemical Profiling,In Vitro Biological Activities,and In Silico Molecular Docking Studies of Dracaena reflexa

Dracaena reflexa, a traditionally significant medicinal plant, has not been extensively explored before for its phytochemical and biological potential. The present study was conducted to evaluate the bioactive phytochemicals and in vitro biological activities of D. reflexa, and perform in silico molecular docking validation of D. reflexa. The bioactive phytochemicals were assessed by preliminary phytochemical testing, total bioactive contents, and GC-MS analysis. For biological evaluation, the antioxidant (DPPH, ABTS, CUPRAC, and ABTS), antibacterial, thrombolytic, and enzyme inhibition (tyrosinase and cholinesterase enzymes) potential were determined. The highest level of total phenolic contents (92.72 ± 0.79 mg GAE/g extract) was found in the n-butanol fraction while the maximum total flavonoid content (110 ± 0.83 mg QE/g extract) was observed in methanolic extract. The results showed that n-butanol fraction exhibited very significant tyrosinase inhibition activity (73.46 ± 0.80) and acetylcholinesterase inhibition activity (64.06 ± 2.65%) as compared to other fractions and comparable to the standard compounds (kojic acid and galantamine). The methanolic extract was considered to have moderate butyrylcholinesterase inhibition activity (50.97 ± 063) as compared to the standard compound galantamine (53.671 ± 0.97%). The GC-MS analysis of the n-hexane fraction resulted in the tentative identification of 120 bioactive phytochemicals. Furthermore, the major compounds as identified by GC-MS were analyzed using in silico molecular docking studies to determine the binding affinity between the ligands and the enzymes (tyrosinase, acetylcholinesterase, and butyrylcholinesterase enzymes). The results of this study suggest that Dracaena reflexa has unquestionable pharmaceutical importance and it should be further explored for the isolation of secondary metabolites that can be employed for the treatment of different diseases.     

A new acylated flavonol from the aerial parts of Asteriscus maritimus (L.) Less (Asteraceae)

Phytochemical investigation of the flowering aerial parts of Asteriscus maritimus (L.) Less (Asteraceae) led to the isolation of a new compound: patuletin 7-O-β-D-[(2″′S) 6″(3″′-hydroxy-2″′-methyl-propanoyl)] glucopyranoside, together with five known metabolites; β-sitosterol 2, chlorogenic acid 3, P-hydroxy -methylbenzoate 4, luteolin 5 and protocatechuic acid 6. The structures of the isolated compounds were determined by comprehensive analyses of its 1D and 2D NMR, HRMS and compared with previously known analogues. The ethanolic extract of the flowering aerial parts of A. maritimus was found to be safe (LD₅₀ = 4.6 mg/kg) and possess significant antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities and this was in accordance with its high phenolic content (107.36 ± 0.051 mg GAE/g extract).