Evaluation of the Acute Toxicity of Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) Roots

Introduction: Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is a medicinal plant used in alternative medicine for its multiple therapeutic and preventive properties. However, insufficient data are available about its toxicity. Materials and methods: dandelion roots total extract vas prepared by maceration for 24 hours and its toxicity was then assessed on 30 WISTAR male rats divided into four experimental groups receiving the extract at different rates, and one control group treated with the vehicle. Changes in renal, hepatic, lipid, and hematological parameters as well as signs of acute toxicity were noted during 15 days after the one dose extract administration. Results and discussion: The obtained results reveal a very significant (p<0.01) disruption of transaminases but not renal, lipid and hematological parameters. The acute toxicity study demonstrated that dendelion roots extract has low intraperitoneal toxicity with a LD50 ranged between 500 and 5000 mg/kg. Conclusion: Dandelion's richness in secondary metabolites and its low in vivo toxicity make it a good candidate as a source of drugs with anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. Keywords: Dandelion, Acute toxicity, LD50, Transaminases, lipids, hematolog

Chemical composition and antioxidant activity of lipids from Ficus carica L. fruits

Samples of oils from seven types of Ficus carica L. fruits from Algeria were investigated through determinations of their chemical characteristics, quantifying sterols and tocopherols, and analysis of the fatty acids profiles using gas chromatography, and evaluation of antioxidant activity by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) method and total antioxidant activity (TAA) using phosphomolybdenum methods. The results show that acid values ranged from 3.14 to 6.95 mg KOH/g indicating on the high amount of free fatty acids in the figs oils. Neutral lipids occupy a very important proportion of the crude figs oils (NL: 60.30–98.40%) compared to glycolipids (GL: 0.58–28.00%) and phospholipids (PL: 0.40-11.70%). Linoleic (11.70–34.74%) and linolenic (1.15–35.27%) were the major unsaturated fatty acids found in lipid fractions, while the main fraction of saturated fatty acid was palmitic. The tocopherols and sterols contents in fig oils ranged from 14.27 to 108.55 mg α-TE/g lipids and from 0.36 to 2.80 mg CE/g lipids respectively. The best inhibition concentration (IC50) of DPPH antioxidant activity was marked by GL (0.23–1.06 g/L) and PL (0.67–1.23 g/L). The strongest TAA was also marked by GL (IC50: 2.84 to 10.08 g/L) and PL (IC50: 3.73–11.30 g/L). This finding demonstrated for the first time that the studied figs oils possessed good antioxidant activity which may be associated with their alleged health benefits

Chemical Composition and Antioxidant Activity of Lipids from Ficus Carica l. Fruits

Samples of oils from seven types of Ficus carica L. fruits from Algeria were investigated through determinations of their chemical characteristics, quantifying sterols and tocopherols, and analysis of the fatty acids profiles using gas chromatography, and evaluation of antioxidant activity by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) method and total antioxidant activity (TAA) using phosphomolybdenum methods. The results show that acid values ranged from 3.14 to 6.95 mg KOH/g indicating on the high amount of free fatty acids in the figs oils. Neutral lipids occupy a very important proportion of the crude figs oils (NL: 60.30–98.40%) compared to glycolipids (GL: 0.58–28.00%) and phospholipids (PL: 0.40-11.70%). Linoleic (11.70–34.74%) and linolenic (1.15–35.27%) were the major unsaturated fatty acids found in lipid fractions, while the main fraction of saturated fatty acid was palmitic. The tocopherols and sterols contents in fig oils ranged from 14.27 to 108.55 mg α-TE/g lipids and from 0.36 to 2.80 mg CE/g lipids respectively. The best inhibition concentration (IC50) of DPPH antioxidant activity was marked by GL (0.23–1.06 g/L) and PL (0.67–1.23 g/L). The strongest TAA was also marked by GL (IC50: 2.84 to 10.08 g/L) and PL (IC50: 3.73–11.30 g/L). This finding demonstrated for the first time that the studied figs oils possessed good antioxidant activity which may be associated with their alleged health benefits

Abstracts from the NIHR INVOLVE Conference 2017

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Ethnobotanical survey on dandelion use in the western region of Algeria

Introduction: Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is an edible and medicinal plant. We use the leaves, flowers and roots. The objective of this study is to show interest in the use of dandelion as a natural remedy in the primary treatment of serval pathologies. Methods : An ethnobotanical survey of 1000 people in the western region of Algeria was conducted using a questionnaire. Results: the obtained results from this study show that 60% of the population questioned prefer traditional medicine the majority of them use the plant in the medical field whose leaves and roots are most used. Infusion and maceration are the most usable methods for the preparation of the plant and administration is exclusively oral. Most users testify that the plant has significant efficacy with a percentage of 61%. Conclusion :All this information constitutes a database to perform other research in vivo or in vitro to value this planton the therapeutic level. Keywords : Taraxacum Officinale, traditional medicine, leaves, ethnobotanical study

Prediction of phase transition, mechanical and electronic properties of inverse Heusler compound Y2RuPb, via FP-LMTO method

Topological insulators (TI) are immensely investigated due to their promising characteristics for spintronics and quantum computing applications. In this regard, although bismuth, telluride, selenide and antimony containing compounds are typically considered as topological insulators, materials with Hg2CuTi-type structure have also shown their potential for TIs as well. Here, we present first principles study of the Y2RuPb compound, pertaining to its structural, mechanical, electrical and the optical properties. Calculations are executed at the level of the parameterized Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof (PBE) generalized gradient approximation (GGA), employing the full-potential (FP) linearized muffin-tin orbital (LMTO) approach, as designed within the density functional theory (DFT). The study is carried out on the Hg2CuTi-type and Cu2MnAl-type structures of the Y2RuPb compound. From our structural calculations, it is found that Y2RuPb is more stable in its Hg2CuTi-type structure; however, the analysis of the mechanical properties reveals its stability in both phases against any kind of elastic deformation. Similarly, Dirac cone shaped surface energy levels found in the predicted electronic band structure of the Y2RuPb compound, and good agreement of the obtained results with Zhang et al., demonstrates that it is a topological insulating material. Additionally, the real and imaginary parts of the dielectric function ϵ (Ω) and refractive index n (Ω), for an energy range up to 14eV, are analyzed as well