Portulaca oleracea L.: A Review of Phytochemistry and Pharmacological Effects

Portulaca oleracea L., belonging to the Portulacaceae family, is commonly known as purslane in English and Ma-Chi-Xian in Chinese. It is a warm-climate, herbaceous succulent annual plant with a cosmopolitan distribution. It is eaten extensively as a potherb and added in soups and salads around theMediterranean and tropical Asian countries and has been used as a folkmedicine in many countries. Diverse compounds have been isolated from Portulaca oleracea, such as flavonoids, alkaloids, polysaccharides, fatty acids, terpenoids, sterols, proteins vitamins and minerals. Portulaca oleracea possesses a wide spectrum of pharmacological properties such as neuroprotective, antimicrobial, antidiabetic, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiulcerogenic, and anticancer activities. However, few molecular mechanisms of action are known. This review provides a summary of phytochemistry and pharmacological effects of this plant

Edible halophytes of the Mediterranean basin: Potential candidates for novel food products

Background: Recent trends in the food science industry and consumers’ preferences for diversified diets suggest the consumption of wild greens not only as diet complements but also as healthy and functional foods for targeted conditions, rendering its commercial cultivation of major importance in order to avoid irrational gathering and genetic erosion threats. The Mediterranean basin abounds in wild edible species which have been used for food and medicinal purposes by human throughout the centuries. Many of these species can be found near coastal areas and usually grow under saline conditions, while others can adapt in various harsh conditions including high salinity. Scope and approach: The aim of this review focuses on listing and describing the most important halophyte species that traditionally have been gathered by rural communities of the Mediterranean basin, while special interest will be given on their chemical composition and health promoting components. Cases of commercially cultivated halophytes will be also presented to highlight their potential as alternative cash crops, while results from in vitro and in vivo health effects will be presented. Key findings and conclusions: The recent literature has provided useful information regarding the potential of wild halophytes as promising ingredients in functional food products and/or as sources of bioactive compounds. However, further research is needed regarding the chemical characterization of these species under commercial cultivation practices, while further clinical and model trials have to be conducted to assess their long term bioactivity and elucidate potential toxic effects and regulations of safe consumption.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Analysis and Comparison of the Antioxidant Component of Portulaca Oleracea Leaves Obtained by Different Solid-Liquid Extraction Techniques

Portulaca oleracea is a wild plant pest of orchards and gardens, but is also an edible vegetable rich in beneficial nutrients. It possesses many antioxidant properties due to the high content of vitamins, minerals, omega-3 essential fatty acids and other healthful compounds; therefore, the intake of purslane and/or its bioactive compounds could help to improve the health and function of the whole human organism. Accordingly, in this work it was analyzed and compared to the extractive capacity of the antioxidant component of purslane leaves obtained by solid-liquid extraction techniques such as: hot-maceration, maceration with ultrasound, rapid solid-liquid dynamic extraction using the Naviglio extractor, and a combination of two techniques (mix extraction). The chromatographic analysis by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) of the methanolic extract of dried purslane leaves allowed the identification of various polyphenolic compounds for comparison with the standards. In addition, the properties of the different extracts were calculated on dry matter and the antioxidant properties of the total polyphenol components analyzed by the DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) assay. The results showed that mix extraction was the most efficient compared to other techniques. In fact, it obtained a quantity of polyphenols amounting to 237.8 mg Gallic Acid Equivalents (GAE)/100 g of fresh weight, while in other techniques, the range varied from 60-160 mg GAE/100 g fresh weight. In addition, a qualitative analysis by Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) of the phenolic compounds present in the purslane leaves examined was carried out. The compounds were identified by comparison of their molecular weight, fragmentation pattern and retention time with those of standards, using the "Multiple Reaction Monitoring" mode (MRM). Therefore, this study allowed the re-evaluation of a little-known plant that possesses as its beneficial properties, a great potential for use in both the food and the nutraceuticals and cosmetic field

A new alkaloid from Portulaca oleracea L. and its antiacetylcholinesterase activity

International audienc

ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITIES OF HYDROALCOHOLIC EXTRACTS FROM ALOYSIA POLYSTACHYA GRISEB MOLDENKE AND LIPPIA TURBINATA GRISEB (VERBENACEAE)

Objective: The aims of this study were to determine polyphenols and flavonoids composition, to evaluate the antioxidant and antibacterial activities and possible antibacterial synergistic effects of hydroalcoholic extracts of Aloysia polystachya and Lippia turbinata.Methods: The flavonoids analysis was carried out in ethyl acetate fractions by means of high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-Q-TOF-MS). The phenolic content was measured using Folin Ciocalteu reagent. The 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical method was used to estimate the antioxidant capacity. The antibacterial activity was determined by the agar microdilution and broth microdilution methods. The checkerboard assay was carried out to determine possible antibacterial synergism.Results: Several flavonoid compounds were detected for the first time in these species, being Lippia turbinata extract the one that presented the highest total phenolic content and antioxidant activity. Extracts from both species would have bactericidal activity against Staphylococcus strains employed in this work. The extract combinations had a synergistic effect against three bacteria, one of them Gram-negative.Conclusion: These extracts have demonstrated antioxidant and antibacterial activity, and its combination showed a synergistic effect against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Biological activities would be attributed to the whole of phytochemical constituents present in the respective crude extracts. However, it could be considered that the found flavonoids play an important role in the development of these activities.Keywords: Aloysia polystachya, Antibacterial activity, Antioxidant activity, Flavonoids, Lippia turbinataÂ

Profiling polyphenol composition by HPLC-DAD-ESI/MSn and the antibacterial activity of infusion preparations obtained from four medicinal plants

The infusions of Thymus pallescens Noë, Saccocalyx satureioides Coss. et Dur., Ptychotis verticillata Briq. and Limoniastrum guyonianum Boiss. have been used as medicinal remedies for many diseases in Algerian folk medicine. These species have also been well documented as rich sources of phytochemicals, such as phenolic compounds with wide diversified chemical structures, which exhibit far-ranging biological activities. Thus, the phenolic compound profile of the aqueous extracts, obtained by infusing, of the mentioned species was obtained by HPLC-DAD-ESI/MS, and their antibacterial activity was evaluated against clinical isolates. Several phenolic acids were identified and quantified, particularly caffeic acid derivatives along with glycosylated flavonoids. T. pallescens and S. satureioides contain 13 phenolic compounds, where rosmarinic acid was the most abundant phenolic acid present, while L. guyonianum presented myricetin-3-O-glucoside and myricetin-O-rhamnoside as the main compounds among the eight detected molecules. P. verticillata presented a profile of ten phenolic compounds, where 5-O-caffeoylquinic acid was the most abundant phenolic acid, followed by the flavone luteolin-3-O-glucoside. The antibacterial activity of the infusions ranged between 2.5 and 20 mg mL−1 (MIC values), and L. guyonianum showed the highest activity against all of the tested bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa being the most sensitive and resistant strains, respectively. Thus, the studied plant species are sources of natural antibacterial substances that can be used to fight against pathogenic microorganisms.The authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) and FEDER under Programme PT2020 for financial support to CIMO (UID/AGR/00690/2013), S. Heleno (SFRH/BPD/101413/2014) grant and L. Barros contract. The authors are also grateful to the Interreg España- Portugal for financial support through the project 0377_Iberphenol_6_E.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Antimicrobial Substances in Plants: Discovery of New Compounds, Properties, Food and Agriculture Applications, and Sustainable Recovery

Microbial contamination of agriculture and food commodities may cause significant losses, with economic, social and environmental consequences. Therefore, the search for new, promising substances that demonstrate antagonism towards different microorganisms has been observed in recent years. Different plants, as well as differentiated methods of obtaining of biological compounds, are the research subject. Moreover, current trends focus on the sustainable recovery of antimicrobial substances from waste materials. The contributed articles present original research with a focus on: The biological activity of plant-derived extracts and oils: the research is concentrated on the discovery of new sufficient antimicrobial substances, characterized by broad biological properties including antibacterial, antifungal, antimycotoxigenic and cytotoxic activity. Novel extraction techniques to obtain plant-derived extracts such as supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), which has gained acceptance for the extraction of valuable substances due to its environmentally friendly character, or ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE). The extraction techniques of the plant-derived bioactive compounds have a significant impact on the quality of the extracts and their chemical compositio

Elucidation of Apigenin Derivatives from Ethyl Acetate Fraction of Stachys byzantina with Potent Antioxidant and Anti-Staphylococcus aureus Properties

The Stachys genus is a medicinal plant, with 34 different species, from Lamiaceae family that grows in Irano-Anatolian plateau. There are 12 species of Stachys native to Iran. Some species of Stachys have been used in traditional medicine of Iran, Turkey, Italy, Greece, China, and Japan for the treatment of various diseases like inflammation, common cold, and etc. Some researchers have noted many biological effects, such as cytotoxic, antioxidant, immunomodulator, anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial effects for the members of this genus. There are a few evidences on phytochemical constituents of S. byzanthinaThe aim of this study was phytochemical investigation of various extracts of this plant to obtain the most efficient fractions and compound(s) to study the antimicrobial effects of this plant. Separation and isolation of compounds was performed by various methods of chromatography. The structure of each compound was identified by spectroscopic methods.Antimicrobial studies were performed on different fractions of S. byzantina by microdilution method and to determine the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC), agar well diffusion was done.Ethyl acetate fraction has the highest total phenol contents (1082.05 mg GAE/g fraction) and antioxidant capacity (IC50= 1.23 mg/ml). Also, ethyl acetate fraction, the most potential fraction of S. byzanthina, was demonstrated the largest inhibition zone (17.5 ± 0.7 mm) with 5 mg/ml in MIC against Staphylococcus auresus.Apigenin and its derivatives were isolated from this fraction and according to literature; they can be responsible for antibacterial activity of this fraction of S. byzanthina

Nutritional Values and Therapeutical Effects of Mediterranean Herbs, Spices, and Medicinal Plants

This chapter highlights the traditional use of Mediterranean edible plants, frequently used as herbs and spices in Mediterranean cuisine, and medicinal plants, used as natural therapeutics among the people in the Mediterranean region. The high phytonutrient content and diversity of these edible and nonedible wild plants in the Mediterranean are emphasized and their folk use is reviewed. The herbs, spices, and medicinal plants are vital constituents of the Mediterranean dietary pattern and lifestyle, known as the Mediterranean diet (MD). They significantly contribute to high antioxidant and anti-inflammatory character of the diet and its health and well-being benefits