Essential oil and methanolic extract of Zataria multiflora Boiss with anticholinesterase effect

One of the most common strategies in the treatment of cognitive disorders is enhancing the acetylcholine level in the brain through the inhibition of acetylcholinesterase. Despite the effectiveness of current modern drugs, more attention has been paid for finding new anticholinesterase agents from medicinal plants. Zatraia multiflora Boiss. is an endemic plant to Iran which has different uses in traditional medicine as anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, anti spasmodic. We intended to evaluate the in vitro anticholinesterase and free radical scavenging activity of the essential oil and methanolic extract of Z. multiflora. The essential oil and methanolic extract of the plant were evaluated for anticholinesterase activity using modified Ellman method. The free radical scavenging effect of the samples were studied by using of the diphenylpicrylhydrazyl (DPPH). IC50 and the percent of inhibition of acetylcholinesterase was calculated from regression equation. The results showed that both the essential oil and methanolic extract of the plant exhibited high anticholinesterase activity (95.3 +/- 3.4 and 87.9 +/- 2.2% inhibition, respectively) which was similar to eserine (96.2 +/- 1.7% inhibition). The IC50 value of essential oil was determined as 0.97 +/- 0.12 microg mL(-1) in comparison to eserine (0.13 +/- 0.02 microg mL(-1)). The results of antioxidant assay showed that both the essential oil and methanolic extract potentially inhibit DPPH free radical (94.8 +/- 2.4 and 93.2 +/- 1.7% inhibition, respectively). The essential oil and methanolic extract of Z. multiflora have beneficial effect in health promotion and this plant would be good candidate for further studies.     

Antioxidant properties of feruloyl glycerol derivatives

The natural plant components, 1-feruloyl-sn-glycerol (FG) and 1,3-diferuloyl-sn-glycerol (F₂G), were synthesized by the enzymatic esterification of glycerol and soybean oil mono- and diacylglycerols, respectively, with ethyl ferulate. The isolated FG and F₂G were examined for their antioxidant activities as free radical scavengers (DPPH assay) and peroxyl lipid oxidation inhibitors (TBARS assay). The H atom transfer kinetics, as monitored by DPPH free radical bleaching, of FG showed that the mono-feruloyl glycerol acted as a rapid antioxidant (50% reduction of DPPH radical < 5 min) in ethanol solutions while F₂G and ferulic acid activity rates were in the range of intermediate antioxidants (50% reduction of DPPH radical in 5-30 min). FG and F₂G showed similar activity as the control agent, ethyl ferulate, towards the inhibition of the AAPH-induced peroxyl radical oxidation of surfactant emulsified γ-linolenic acid. A slight excess of feruloyl groups was sufficient to completely suppress the formation of secondary lipid oxidation products.     

金柑果皮精油超声波辅助提取工艺优化及其抑菌、抗氧化活性

采用响应面法对金柑果皮精油超声波辅助提取提取工艺条件进行优化,并对金柑果皮精油的抑菌和抗氧化活性进行评价。结果表明,金柑果皮精油超声波辅助提取的最佳工艺条件为:液料比27∶1 m L/g、超声时间1.25 h、超声波功率300 W。在此条件下,金柑果皮精油得率为2.24%,与理论预测值基本一致。金柑果皮精油对金黄色葡萄球菌、大肠杆菌、沙门氏菌、黑曲霉、酵母菌均有一定抑制作用,最小抑菌浓度分别为1.0%、0.5%、0.5%、0.5%、0.1%。抗氧化活性结果表明,金柑果皮精油对食用油脂的货架期有一定的延缓作用,具有一定的清除羟自由基、DPPH自由基的能力和总抗氧化能力。     

椰子种皮油提取物的抗氧化活性研究

测定椰子种皮油提取物中的总酚含量,对羟基自由基、DPPH（1,1-二苯基-2-三硝基苯肼）自由基、ABTS（2,2连氮-双-（3-乙基苯并噻咪唑-6-磺酸）自由基清除能力和总抗氧化能力等抗氧化活性指标。结果表明,椰子种皮油提取物中含有较高的总酚含量（68 mg/g）,提取物浓度为0.1 mg/mL时对羟基自由基的清除率为56.89％,对DPPH自由基的清除率为71.0％,对ABTS自由基的清除率为96.4％,表明椰子种皮油提取物具有很好的抗氧化活性。     

Chemical composition of the essential oil and antioxidant activity of methanolic extracts from fruits and flowers of Hypericum lydium Boiss.

This study was conducted to evaluate the essential oil composition and antioxidant activity of methanolic extracts from fruits and flowers of Hypericum lydium Boiss., a wild growing species of the Turkish flora. The antioxidant activities were determined through several biochemical assays. Both extracts showed an inhibitory effect against the formation of TBARS in a phosphatidylcholine liposome model system, moderate scavenging effect on DPPH and superoxide radicals, prominent reducing power and inhibitory effect on deoxyribose degradation in both the nonsite and site-specific assay, but a greater hydroxyl radical scavenging activity was observed in the non-site specific assay, suggesting that the extracts were better at scavenging hydroxyl radicals than at chelating iron. Correlation analysis indicated that there was a linear relationship between antioxidant potency, free-radical scavenging activity, reducing power and the content of flavonoids of fruits and flowers extracts. The essential oils obtained by hydrodistillation were analyzed by GC and GC-MS. In total forty-three compounds were identified. The most abundant components were monoterpenes hydrocarbons represented principally by α-pinene. The tested oil showed no antioxidant activity.     

Antioxidant and Antimutagenic Activities of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Randia echinocarpa</Emphasis> Fruit

We report for the first time the antioxidant and antimutagenic activities of fractions from Randia echinocarpa fruit, which is a Rubiaceae plant native to Sinaloa, Mexico. This fruit has been traditionally used in the prevention or treatment of cancer, among other diseases. The pulp of the fruit was sequentially extracted with solvents of different polarity (i.e. hexane, chloroform, methanol and water). A high extraction yield was obtained with methanol (72.17% d.w.). The aqueous extract showed the highest content of phenolics (2.27 mg/g as ferulic acid equivalents) and the highest antioxidant activity based on the β-carotene bleaching method (486.15). The commercial antioxidant BHT was used as control (835.05). Antimutagenic activity of the aqueous extract (0–500 μg/tube) was evaluated using the Salmonella microsuspension assay (YG1024 strain) and 1-NP as the mutagen (50 and 100 ng/tube). The aqueous extract was neither toxic nor mutagenic and the percentage of inhibition on 1-NP mutagenicity was 32 and 53% at doses of 50 and 100 ng/tube, respectively. The results of the double incubation assay suggest that the extract inhibited the mutagenicity of 1-NP by a combination of desmutagenic and bioantimutagenic effects.     

Chemical composition and antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of essential oil of Artemisia annua L. from Bosnia

Hydrodistilled volatile oil obtained from the aerial parts of Artemisia annua L., cultivated near Sarajevo, Bosnia, was analyzed by GC-MS. More than one hundred compounds were identi?ed, representing 95.5% of the total oil. The major constituents of essential oil were oxygenated monoterpenes, artemisia ketone (30.7%) and camphor (15.8%). Isolated essential oil was tested for radical-scavenging ability using the stable DPPH radical, the ABTS radical, for reducing power ability with a test based on the reduction of ferric cations, for reducing ability of hydroxy radical in ORAC assay, and for metal chelating ability using the ferrozine assay. In all tests oil did not show a prominent antioxidant activity, but still comparable with thymol, an already known antioxidant. The screening of antimicrobial activity of oil was individually evaluated against representatives of Gram-positive, Gram-negative bacteria and fungi, using the agar diffusion method. All tested microorganisms were inhibited by essential oil. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of antimicrobial activity of essential oil of A. annua against Haemophilus influenzae, Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Micrococcus luteus and Candida krusei microbial strains. The antioxidant, antibacterial and antifungal activity of essential oil of A. annua from Bosnia is presented here for the first time and extends our knowledge in the range of valuable biological activities and possible roles in therapy associated with this medicinal herb.     

Effect of drought on the biochemical composition and antioxidant activities of cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.) seeds

This study is designed to examine the yield components, fatty acid, and essential oil compositions and phenolic contents fruit essential oil composition, the total phenolic amounts as well as the antioxidant activities of cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.) seeds under drought. This plant is one of the most common aromatics in the Mediterranean kitchen. Plants were treated with different levels of water deficit: control (C), moderate water deficit (MWD) and severe water deficit (SWD). Our results indicated that MWD improved the number of umbels per plant as well as the number of umbellets per umbel and the seed yield, in comparison to the control, but it decreased under SWD. Fatty acid composition analysis indicated that petroselinic acid was the major fatty acid (55.9%) followed by palmitic (23.82%) and linoleic (12.40%) acids. Water deficit enhanced the palmitic acid percentage and affected the double bound index of the fatty acid pool and thus the oil quality. The essential oil yield was 1.64% based on the dry weight and increased by 1.40 folds under MWD. Nevertheless it decreased by 37.19% under SWD in comparison to the non treated seeds. Drought results on the modification of the essential oil chemotype from γ-terpinene/phenyl-1,2 ethanediol in the control seeds to γ-terpinene/cuminaldehyde in stressed ones. Besides, total phenolic contents were higher in the treated seeds (MWD and SWD). Results suggest that water deficit treatment may regulate the production of bioactive compounds in cumin seeds, influencing their nutritional and industrial values. Besides, antioxidant activities of the extracts were determined by four different test systems, namely DPPH, β-carotene/linoleic acid chelating and reducing power assays and showed that treated seeds (MWD and SWD) exhibited the highest activity.     

In vitro antioxidant activity of ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia L., Asteraceae) herb

The antioxidant activity in 70% aqueous acetone extracts of the herb of Ambrosia artemisiifolia L., Asteraceae was evaluated with regards to total polyphenol and flavonoid contents. Antioxidant activity has been assessed by two commonly used in vitro tests, based on determination of ferric-reducing antioxidant power (FRAP assay) and DPPH free radical scavenging ability (DPPH assay), against butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), ascorbic acid and quercetin, which were used as positive control substances. The results of both antioxidant tests showed that the plant material expressed a considerable activity (DPPH IC₅₀ = 27.6 μg/ml; FRAP value = 2.37 mmol Fe²⁺/g), attributed to both flavonoid aglyca and resembling glycosides, as verified by dot-blot TLC analysis.     

硒对大豆体内谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶活性的影响

本试验了水培和土壤条件下,硒对大豆植株体内谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶活性的影响。结果表明,在水培和土壤试验中,硒都能显著地提高大豆植株体内ＧＳＨ－Ｐｘ的活性,方差分析结果分别为Ｆ＝５８．６７＊＊和Ｆ＝１１．３８＊＊,     

山苍子雌花和雄花精油成分分析及抗氧化研究

采用水蒸气蒸馏法分别从山苍子雌花和雄花中提取精油，并通过GC-MS气质联用仪对其成分分析，从山苍子雌花精油中鉴定出47种化合物，占总峰面积的98.44％，山苍子雄花精油中鉴定出43种化合物，占总峰面积的98.04％。采用体外抗氧化活性测定法，表明山苍子雌花和雄花精油具有一定的抗氧化活性。还原力测定IC50值，雄花为2.330 mg/mL，雌花为1.473 mg/mL；清除DPPH自由基IC50值，雄花为41.62 mg/mL，雌花为9.663 mg/mL；清除羟自由基IC50值，雄花为56.95 mg/mL，雌花为77.98 mg/mL。     

原生态椰子油体外抗氧化活性

对原生态椰子油(VCO)的体外抗氧化活性进行了评价,分析了VCO中总酚酸的含量及其对DPPH自由基和ABTS+自由基的清除能力,对Fe~(2+)的络合能力以及对花生油的抗氧化能力.结果表明,VCO中总酚酸的含量为(0.180±0.003)mg/mL;对DPPH自由基的清除率为31.95%.低于Trolox、BHT和没食子酸;对ABTS~+自由基的清除能力为67.49 μmol/L Tmlox当量(TEAC值);对Fe~(2+)的络合能力优于Tmlox和BHT,但显著低于没食子酸;VCO对花生油具有一定的抗氧化能力.     

European pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium) from Portugal: Chemical composition of essential oil and antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of extracts and essential oil

There is a growing interest of industry to replace synthetic chemicals by natural products with bioactive properties from plant origin. The aim of this study was to determine the chemical composition of European pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium) essential oil and to characterize the in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of its water (hot and cold) and ethanolic extracts and of the essential oil. The essential oil revealed menthone, pulegone and neo-menthol as the main constituents, comprising 35.9, 23.2 and 9.2% of the essential oil, respectively. The hot water extract exhibited the highest antioxidant activity and phenol content. In contrast, the extracts were not very effective to inhibit the growth of the seven foodborne spoilage and pathogenic bacteria tested, but the essential oil showed antibacterial activity against all bacterial strains. In conclusion, extracts and essential oil of M. pulegium from Mediterranean origin have huge potential as an alternative to chemical additives for the food industry.     

Antioxidant and Antimutagenic Activities of Mexican Oregano (Lippia graveolens Kunth)

Free essential oil methanolic extracts from three different geographical populations of Lippia graveolens in México were screened for antioxidant and antimutagenic properties by the DPPH and Kado microsuspension assay, respectively. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents as well as HPLC identification and quantification of naringenin and rosmarinic acid were also carried out. In addition, a taxonomical phenetic analysis was performed. The L. graveolens extracts showed varying content of phenols and flavonoids. Significant concentration of rosmarinic acid was found for the first time in the species. All the extracts were capable of scavenging DPPH radicals in a concentration dependent fashion; the IC₅₀ values correlate with the phenolic content. None of the extracts was toxic to TA100 and TA98 strains at the concentrations tested; moreover, the extracts at a concentration equivalent to 200 μg of gallic acid inhibited a 39 and 30% the mutagenicity induced by 4-nitro-o-phenylenediamine and sodium azide, respectively. The results suggest that the Mexican oregano is a source of polar bioactive ingredients for the food industry.     

Determination of the Extraction,Physicochemical Characterization,and Digestibility of Sulfated Polysaccharides in Seaweed—Porphyra haitanensis

The aim of the study was to extract Porphyra haitanensis polysaccharides (PHPs) using the water extraction and alcohol precipitation methods and explore their antioxidant activity and physicochemical properties. The single-factor and Box-Behnken response surface methodologies were used to optimize the extraction of polysaccharides from Porphyra haitanensis. Our results showed that the polysaccharide yield was as high as 20.48% with a raw material to water ratio of 0.04, and extraction time of 3 h at 80 °C. The extraction rate observed was similar to the actual extraction rate, thus proving the reliability of the optimization model. The extracted polysaccharides primarily consisted of galactose, glucose, and fucose in the molar ratio 76.2:2.1:1, respectively. The high performance gel permeation chromatography (HPGPC) results showed that the molecular weight of the PHPs obtained was 6.3 × 10⁵ Da, and the sulfate content was 2.7 mg/mL. Fourier infrared spectroscopy was used to analyze the functional groups and structures of the polysaccharides. The effect of concentration, temperature, and pH on the apparent viscosity of the PHPs solution were studied using rheology experiments, which revealed that PHPs were a “non-Newtonian fluid” with shear-thinning behavior. The viscosity of the PHPs gradually increased with increasing sugar concentration, and decreased with increasing temperature, acidity, and alkalinity. Detection of the antioxidant activity of OH*, DPPH*, and ABTS* revealed that the scavenging activity of ABTS* was higher than that of OH* and DPPH* in the concentration range of 1–5 mg/mL. In the experiments of simulating gastric juice and alpha amylase in vitro, it was found that PHPs can better resist digestion of alpha amylase, and have better resistance than fructooligosaccharide (FOS), so PHPs have potential prebiotic activity. These findings demonstrate the potential of PHPs for use in the food and cosmetic industries.     

Chemical profiling and biological screening of Thymus lotocephalus extracts obtained by supercritical fluid extraction and hydrodistillation

Essential oil and extracts from the aerial parts of Thymus lotocephalus were obtained by hydrodistillation (HD) and supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) in two different collectors, respectively. SFE was conducted at 40 °C and a working pressure of 12 or 18 MPa. The chemical profiles were determined using GC-FID and GC-IT-MS. Oxygen-containing monoterpenes were the primary constituents in the essential oil and SFE extracts collected in the second separator, while the extracts obtained in the first separator were predominantly oxygen-containing sesquiterpenes. A large number of compounds were identified by hydrodistillation and, in contrast, the highest extraction yields were obtained using SFE. Linalool (10.43 ± 1.63%) was the main component in essential oil, whereas camphor (7.91 ± 0.84%) and cis-linalool oxide (7.25 ± 1.45%) were the major compounds in the extracts-2nd separator obtained at pressures of 12 and 18 MPa, respectively. Caryophyllene oxide was the primary constituent identified in the extracts-1st separator (4.34 ± 0.51 and 4.41 ± 1.25% obtained at 12 and 18 MPa, respectively). The antioxidant activity was assessed by ORAC and DPPH assays, and the anti-cholinesterase activity was evaluated in vitro using Ellman's method. The essential oil and SFE extracts (first separator) of T. lotocephalus possessed antioxidant activity and strongly inhibited cholinesterases. We also demonstrated that the acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory activities of the essential oil could be attributed to 1,8-cineole and caryophyllene oxide, respectively.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Prunus persica</Emphasis> var. <Emphasis Type="Italic">platycarpa</Emphasis> (Tabacchiera Peach): Bioactive Compounds and Antioxidant Activity of Pulp,Peel and Seed Ethanolic Extracts

A comparative analysis of ethanol extracts from peel, pulp and seed of Prunus persica var. platycarpa (Tabacchiera peach) was done. The total phenol, flavonoid and carotenoid content as well as the antioxidant properties by using different in vitro assays (DPPH, ABTS, FRAP, Fe-chelating, β-carotene bleaching test) were evaluated. Pulp extract was subjected to liquid chromatography-electrospray-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MS/MS). Gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, protocatechualdehyde, chlorogenic acid, p-coumaric acid, and ferulic acid were identified as main constituents. Pulp extract was characterized by the highest total phytonutrients content and exhibited the highest antioxidant activity in all in vitro assays (IC₅₀ values of 2.2 μg/mL after 60 min of incubation by using β-carotene bleaching test and 2.9 μg/mL by using Fe-chelating assay). Overall, the obtained results suggest that P. persica var. platycarpa displays a good antioxidant activity and its consumption could be promoted.     

Composition and Functional Properties of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Lupinus campestris</Emphasis> Protein Isolates

Protein isolates from L. campestris and soybean seeds were prepared using isoelectric precipitation (PI) and micellization (MI) procedures. The amount of protein recovered was considerably higher with the isoelectric precipitation than with the micellization procedure (60% and 30%, respectively). Protein contents were higher than 90% in protein isolates. Antinutritional factors content (alkaloids, lectins, and tannins) were reduced to innocuous levels after protein isolate preparation. Minimum protein solubility for the precipitated lupin protein isolate (LPI) was at pH 4.0, and between pH 4 and 6 for the micellized lupin protein isolate (LMI), increasing at both extremes of the pH scale. Water absorption for the LMI was 1.3 ml/g of protein and its oil absorption 2.2 ml/g of protein. The LPI had 1.7 ml/g of protein in both water and oil absorption. Foaming capacity and stability was pH-dependent. Foaming capacity was higher at pH 2 and lower near the protein isoelectric points. Minimum protein concentration for gelation in LMI was 8% w/v at pH 4, while for LPI was 6% at pH 4 and 6. Amino acid composition in L. campestris flour and protein isolates was high in lysine and low in methionine. Most of the essential amino acids in lupin protein isolates were at acceptable levels compared to a reference pattern for infants and adults. The electrophoretic pattern of both protein isolates showed three bands with different mobilities, suggesting that the protein fractions belong to alpha-conglutin (11S-like protein), beta-conglutin (7S-like protein) and gamma-conglutin. It is proven that some of the functional properties of L. campestris protein isolates are similar to those soybean protein isolates recovered under equal conditions.     

Determination of the Antimicrobial and Antioxidative Properties and Total Phenolics of Two “Endemic” Lamiaceae Species from Turkey: <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ballota rotundifolia</Emphasis> L. and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Teucrium chamaedrys</Emphasis> C. Koch

This study was designed to examine the in vitro antimicrobial and antioxidant activities and the amount of total phenolics of the methanol extracts of Ballota rotundifolia L. and Teucrium chamaedrys C. Koch. In the case of antimicrobial activity tests, polar sub-fractions of the methanol extracts of plant species exhibited weakest antimicrobial activity when compared with the non-polar ones. While, non-polar sub-fraction of B. rotundifolia showed moderate activity against A. lwoffii, C. perfringens and the yeasts, T. chamaedrys performed excellent activity pattern against all of the tested microorganisms. The sub-fractions were also screened for their possible antioxidant activities by two complementary tests, namely DPPH free radical-scavenging and β-carotene/linoleic acid assays. Non-polar extracts of the plant species remained inactive in both test systems. On the other hand polar extracts showed remarkable antioxidant activities. In DPPH system, free radical scavenging effect of T. chamaedrys was measured as 18.00 ± 1.42 μg.mg⁻¹. It is extremely important to point out that, polar sub-fraction of T. chamaedrys is found as effective as the positive control BHT. Non-polar sub-fraction of T. chamaedrys found to have the highest total phenolic amount (97.12 ± 1.28 μg/mg). Results obtained from this experiment confirm the relationship between the amount of phenolics and biological activities.     

苦丁茶冬青粗多糖的分离表征及其抗氧化活性研究

水提醇沉法分离制备苦丁茶冬青粗多糖样品,对其进行初步分离表征（包括总糖、糖醛酸、蛋白质、氨基酸含量和红外光谱分析）和体外抗氧化活性（清除DPPH·自由基、·OH自由基清除能力和还原能力）研究。结果表明,苦丁茶冬青粗多糖中总糖含量为30.67％、糖醛酸含量为12.72％、蛋白质含量为9.35％;含有16种氨基酸成分,总含量为7.72％,其中含有7种人体必需氨基酸,占氨基酸总量的40.41％;红外光谱显示该粗多糖样品中含有α-吡喃糖环结构;此外,苦丁茶冬青粗多糖具有较强的体外抗氧化活性,且其抗氧化活性与多糖浓度之间存在良好的量效关系。