Chemical Profiling of Significant Antioxidant and Phytotoxic Microwave-Extracted Essential Oil from Araucaria heterophylla Resin

Due to the various hazards of using synthetic chemical compounds in pharmaceutics, agriculture, and industry, scientists and researchers do their best to explore and assess new green natural compounds from natural resources with potent activity. The essential oil (EO) from the resin collected from Araucaria heterophylla Salisb. was extracted by the microwave technique and chemically characterized via GC-MS analysis. Furthermore, the extract EO was assessed for its antioxidant and phytotoxic activities. The EO has 33 compounds, mainly terpenes (98.23%), and the major compounds were α-pinene (62.57%), β-pinene (6.60%), germacrene D (5.88%), and β-caryophyllene (3.56%). The extracted EO showed substantial antioxidant activity, where it showed IC50 values of 142.42 and 118.03 mg L−1 for DPPH and ABTS, respectively. On the other hand, the EO revealed considerable phytotoxicity against the weed Chenopodium murale, where the EO showed IC50 values of 304.0, 230.1, and 147.1 mg L−1, for seed germination, seedling shoot growth, and seedling root growth, respectively. Moreover, the EO showed the same pattern of allelopathic inhibition against the weed Sonchus oleraceus, where it showed IC50 values of 295.7, 224.5, and 106.1 mg L−1, for seed germination, seedling shoot growth, and seedling root growth, respectively. The present study showed that the extraction technique affects the constituents of the EO, particularly the quantitative composition. The EO of A. heterophylla resin also revealed considerable antioxidant and phytotoxic activity against weeds. Therefore, it can be considered a promising natural resource that could be integrated into the weed management approach. However, further study is recommended for deep characterization of their authentic compounds and evaluation of their mode of action(s) on a wide spectrum of weeds

Chemical Profile of Cyperus laevigatus and Its Protective Effects against Thioacetamide-Induced Hepatorenal Toxicity in Rats

Cyperus species represent a group of cosmopolitan plants used in folk medicine to treat several diseases. In the current study, the phytochemical profile of Cyperus laevigatus ethanolic extract (CLEE) was assessed using UPLC-QTOF–MS/MS. The protective effect of CLEE at 50 and 100 mg /kg body weight (b.w.) was evaluated on hepatorenal injuries induced by thioacetamide (100 mg/kg) via investigation of the extract’s effects on oxidative stress, inflammatory markers and histopathological changes in the liver and kidney. UPLC-QTOF–MS/MS analysis of CLEE resulted in the identification of 94 compounds, including organic and phenolic acids, flavones, aurones, and fatty acids. CLEE improved the antioxidant status in the liver and kidney, as manifested by enhancement of reduced glutathione (GSH) and coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), in addition to the reduction in malondialdehyde (MDA), nitric oxide (NO), and 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine (8OHdG). Moreover, CLEE positively affected oxidative stress parameters in plasma and thwarted the depletion of hepatorenal ATP content by thioacetamide (TAA). Furthermore, treatment of rats with CLEE alleviated the significant increase in plasma liver enzymes, kidney function parameters, and inflammatory markers. The protective effect of CLEE was confirmed by a histopathological study of the liver and kidney. Our results proposed that CLEE may reduce TAA-hepatorenal toxicity via its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties suppressing oxidative stress

Taxonomic Implication of Integrated Chemical, Morphological, and Anatomical Attributes of Leaves of Eight Apocynaceae Taxa

Up to now, the taxonomic conflict of the Apocynaceae family has attracted the attention of scientists and researchers worldwide. Recently, this family was divided into five subfamilies. The present study aims to investigate the implication of interlacing macro-, micro-morphological, anatomical, and chemical characteristics of the leaves of eight Apocynaceae plants (Adenium obesum, Dipladenia boliviensis, Carissacarandas, Nerium oleander, Asclepias curassavica, Calotropisprocera, Acokanthera oblongifolia, and Thevetia neriifolia), and to provide valuable taxonomic differentiation of these species. The macro-morphological investigation includes shape, apex, base, and venation of leaves, while the micro-morphological study includes leaf epidermal cells, stomata, and trichomes. The anatomical features of the leaf blade were studied by scanning electron microscope (SEM). Additionally, the chemical composition of the silylated methanolic extract was analyzed by Gas chromatography–mass spectroscopy (GC-MS). Sixty-three compounds were characterized from the silylated extracts of the eight plants, where quinic acid, sucrose, D-pinitol, and D-(−)-fructopyranose were determined as major compounds. The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) based on the chemical composition revealed a significant chemical correlation among all species with the presence of sugars and amino acids, as well as phenolic acids and iridoid glycosides. The cluster analysis, based on all merged characters, showed that the eight species can be categorized into three clusters. The first cluster comprises A.obesum, A. curassavica, and T. neriifolia, while the second cluster contains D. boliviensis, N. oleander, A. oblongifolia, and C. carandas, and the third cluster consists of C. procera alone. This cluster revealed some similarities to the recent classification of Apocynaceae, while it showed inconsistency regarding A.obesum, C. procera, and N. oleander. Due to the obtained inconsistent data and observed variation among the studied species, further study is recommended for more characterization of these species, based on additional parameters, including molecular characteristics, particularly A.obesum, C. procera, and N. oleander

Volatile Oils Discrepancy between Male and Female <i>Ochradenus arabicus</i> and Their Allelopathic Activity on <i>Dactyloctenium aegyptium</i>

Volatile oils (VOs) composition of plants is affected by several exogenous and endogenous factors. Male and female plants of the dioecious species exhibit variation in the bioactive constituents’ allocation. The chemical variation in the VOs between male and female plants is not well studied. In the present study, the chemical characterization of the VOs extracted from aerial parts of male and female ecospecies of Ochradenus arabicus was documented. Additionally, the extracted VOs were tested for their allelopathic activity against the weed Dactyloctenium aegyptium. Via GC-MS analysis, a total of 53 compounds were identified in both male and female plants. Among them, 49 compounds were identified from male plants, and 47 compounds were characterized in female plants. Isothiocyanates (47.50% in male and 84.32% in female) and terpenes (48.05% in male and 13.22% in female) were the main components of VOs, in addition to traces of carotenoid-derived compounds and hydrocarbons. The major identified compounds of male and female plants are m-tolyl isothiocyanate, benzyl isothiocyanate, butyl isothiocyanate, isobutyl isothiocyanate, carvone, and α-bisabolol, where they showed variation in the concentration between male and female plants. The O. arabicus VOs of the male plants attained IC50 values of 51.1, 58.1, and 41.9 μL L−1 for the seed germination, seedling shoot growth, and seedling root growth of the weed (D. aegyptium), respectively, while the females showed IC50 values of 56.7, 63.9, and 40.7 μL L−1, respectively. The present data revealed that VOs composition and bioactivity varied significantly with respect to the plant gender, either qualitatively or quantitatively

Essential oil composition and biological activities of Hyssopus officinalis and Perilla frutescens

This article reports on the main constituents of Hyssopus officinalis and Perilla frutescens essential oils (EOs) and their activity as antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti inflammatory and anticancer. The major component of H. officinalis essential oil was isopinocamphone followed by pinocamphone, β-pinene, β-phellandrene, α-thujene and bicyclo-germacrene. The main constituent of the essential oil of P. frutescens was identified as L-perillaldehyde followed by trans-caryophyllene and D-limonene. Both essential oils (hyssop and perilla) showed antioxidant activities with the used three methods and the increase of activity was concentration dependent up to 32μg/ml comparing to ascorbic acid.&nbsp; The values of IC50 for DPPH radical scavenging were in the order of P. frutescens&lt; ascorbic acid&lt; H. officinalis. The values of IC50 for FIC method were in the order of ascorbic acid&lt; P. frutescens&lt; H. officinalis. The IC50 for ABTS method was 8μg for P. frutescence and the values were in the order as ascorbic acid&lt; H. officinalis&lt; P. frutescence. The essential oil of both plant species showed variable activities against all the tested bacterial. The results displayed also that the essential oil of P. frutescens showed significant fungal inhibitions against the four tested Candida strains.&nbsp

Chemical Profiles, Anticancer, and Anti-Aging Activities of Essential Oils of Pluchea dioscoridis (L.) DC. and Erigeron bonariensis L.

Plants belonging to the Asteraceae family are widely used as traditional medicinal herbs around the world for the treatment of numerous diseases. In this work, the chemical profiles of essential oils (EOs) of the above-ground parts of Pluchea dioscoridis (L.) DC. and Erigeron bonariensis (L.) were studied in addition to their cytotoxic and anti-aging activities. The extracted EOs from the two plants via hydrodistillation were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS). GC-MS of EO of P. dioscoridis revealed the identification of 29 compounds representing 96.91% of the total oil. While 35 compounds were characterized from EO of E. bonariensis representing 98.21%. The terpenoids were found the main constituents of both plants with a relative concentration of 93.59% and 97.66%, respectively, including mainly sesquiterpenes (93.40% and 81.06%). α-Maaliene (18.84%), berkheyaradulen (13.99%), dehydro-cyclolongifolene oxide (10.35%), aromadendrene oxide-2 (8.81%), β-muurolene (8.09%), and α-eudesmol (6.79%), represented the preponderance compounds of EO of P. dioscoridis. While, trans-α-farnesene (25.03%), O-ocimene (12.58%), isolongifolene-5-ol (5.53%), α-maaliene (6.64%), berkheyaradulen (4.82%), and α-muurolene (3.99%), represented the major compounds EO of E. bonariensis. A comparative study of our results with the previously described data was constructed based upon principal component analysis (PCA) and agglomerative hierarchical clustering (AHC), where the results revealed a substantial variation of the present studied species than other reported ecospecies. EO of P. dioscoridis exhibited significant cytotoxicity against the two cancer cells, MCF-7 and A-549 with IC50 of 37.3 and 22.3 μM, respectively. While the EO of the E. bonariensis showed strong cytotoxicity against HepG2 with IC50 of 25.6 μM. The EOs of P. dioscoridis, E. bonariensis, and their mixture (1:1) exhibited significant inhibitory activity of the collagenase, elastase, hyaluronidase, and tyrosinase comparing with epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) as a reference. The results of anti-aging showed that the activity of mixture (1:1) &gt; P. dioscoridis &gt; E. bonariensis against the four enzymes

Chemical Composition of Kickxia aegyptiaca Essential Oil and Its Potential Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activities

The exploration of new bioactive compounds from natural resources as alternatives to synthetic chemicals has recently attracted the attention of scientists and researchers. To our knowledge, the essential oil (EO) of Kickxia aegyptiaca has not yet been explored. Thus, the present study was designed to explore the EO chemical profile of K. aegyptiaca for the first time, as well as evaluate its antioxidant and antibacterial activities, particularly the extracts of this plant that have been reported to possess various biological activities. The EO was extracted from the aerial parts via hydrodistillation and then characterized by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The extracted EO was tested for its antioxidant activity via the reduction in the free radicals, 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2'-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS). In addition, the EO was tested as an antibacterial mediator against eight Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacterial isolates. Forty-three compounds were identified in the EO of K. aegyptiaca, with a predominance of terpenoids (75.46%). Oxygenated compounds were the main class, with oxygenated sesquiterpenes attaining 40.42% of the EO total mass, while the oxygenated monoterpenes comprised 29.82%. The major compounds were cuminic aldehyde (21.99%), caryophyllene oxide (17.34%), hexahydrofarnesyl acetone (11.74%), ar-turmerone (8.51%), aromadendrene oxide (3.74%), and humulene epoxide (2.70%). According to the IC50 data, the K. aegyptiaca EO revealed considerable antioxidant activity, with IC50 values of 30.48 mg L-1 and 35.01 mg L-1 for DPPH and ABTS, respectively. In addition, the EO of K. aegyptiaca showed more substantial antibacterial activity against Gram-positive bacterial isolates compared to Gram-negative. Based on the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), the EO showed the highest activity against Escherichia coli and Bacillus cereus, with an MIC value of 0.031 mg mL-1. The present study showed, for the first time, that the EO of K. aegyptiaca has more oxygenated compounds with substantial antioxidant and antibacterial activities. This activity could be attributed to the effect of the main compounds, either singular or synergistic. Thus, further studies are recommended to characterize the major compounds, either alone or in combination as antioxidants or antimicrobial agents, and evaluate their biosafety

Chemical composition and antifungal activity of essential oils from four Asteraceae plants grown in Egypt

The objective of the present paper was the assessment of the chemical composition of the essential oils from four Asteraceae species with a considerable food, medicinal, and agricultural value, collected in Egypt, together with their in vitro inhibitory activity against molds and yeasts. The essential oil of Launaea cornuta flowers was also evaluated for the first time, but because of its very low yield (<0.01%), no antifungal test was performed

Comparative Chemical Profiles of the Essential Oils from Different Varieties of Psidium guajava L.

Guava (Psidium guajava) leaves are commonly used in the treatment of diseases. They are considered a waste product resulting from guava cultivation. The leaves are very rich in essential oils (EOs) and volatiles. This work represents the detailed comparative chemical profiles of EOs derived from the leaves of six guava varieties cultivated in Egypt, including Red Malaysian (RM), El-Qanater (EQ), White Indian (WI), Early (E), El-Sabahya El-Gedida (ESEG), and Red Indian (RI), cultivated on the same farm in Egypt. The EOs from the leaves of guava varieties were extracted by hydro-distillation and analyzed with GC-MS. The EOs were categorized in a holistic manner using chemometric tools. The hydro-distillation of the samples yielded 0.11&ndash;0.48% of the EO (v/w). The GC-MS analysis of the extracted EOs showed the presence of 38 identified compounds from the six varieties. The sesquiterpene compounds were recorded as main compounds of E, EQ, ESEG, RI, and WI varieties, while the RM variety attained the highest content of monoterpenes (56.87%). The sesquiterpenes, &beta;-caryophyllene (11.21&ndash;43.20%), and globulol (76.17&ndash;26.42%) were detected as the major compounds of all studied guava varieties, while trans-nerolidol (0.53&ndash;10.14) was reported as a plentiful compound in all of the varieties except for the RM variety. A high concentration of D-limonene was detected in the EOs of the RM (33.96%), WI (27.04%), and ESEG (9.10%) varieties. These major compounds were consistent with those reported for other genotypes from different countries. Overall, the EOs&rsquo; composition and the chemometric analysis revealed substantial variations among the studied varieties that might be ascribed to genetic variability, considering the stability of the cultivation and climate conditions. Therefore, this chemical polymorphism of the studied varieties supports that these varieties could be considered as genotypes of P. guajava. It is worth mentioning here that the EOs, derived from leaves considered to be agricultural waste, of the studied varieties showed that they are rich in biologically active compounds, particularly &beta;-caryophyllene, trans-nerolidol, globulol, and D-limonene. These could be considered as added value for pharmacological and industrial applications. Further study is recommended to confirm the chemical variations of the studied varieties at a molecular level, as well as their possible medicinal and industrial uses