Antioxidant, Hemolytic and Cytotoxic Activities of Senecio Species used in Traditional Medicine of Northwestern Argentina

Senecio nutans Sch. Bip., S. viridis var. viridis Phill. and S. spegazzinii Cabrera are native species used in traditional medicine of northwestern Argentina. The total phenolics, flavonoids and caffeoylquinic acids contents, as well as radical scavenging, antioxidant, hemolytic and cytotoxic activities of aqueous extracts (infusion and decoction) of all three species were determined. S. nutans was the most active. The extracts did not show antibacterial activity. Alkaloids were not detected in any of the aqueous extracts of the three studied species.Fil: Lizarraga, Emilio Fernando. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Química del Noroeste. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia. Instituto de Química del Noroeste; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo; ArgentinaFil: Castro, Juan F.. Fundación Miguel Lillo; ArgentinaFil: Fernández, Francisco. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo; ArgentinaFil: Perotti, Marina Elvira. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Química del Noroeste. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia. Instituto de Química del Noroeste; ArgentinaFil: Catalan, Cesar Atilio Nazareno. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Química del Noroeste. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia. Instituto de Química del Noroeste; Argentin

Activity of Estafietin and Analogues on <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> and <i>Leishmania braziliensis</i>

Sesquiterpene lactones are naturally occurring compounds mainly found in the Asteraceae family. These types of plant metabolites display a wide range of biological activities, including antiprotozoal activity and are considered interesting structures for drug discovery. Four derivatives were synthesized from estafietin (1), isolated from Stevia alpina (Asteraceae): 11&#946;H,13-dihydroestafietin (2), epoxyestafietin (3a and 3b), 11&#946;H,13-methoxyestafietin, (4) and 11&#946;H,13-cianoestafietin. The antiprotozoal activity against Trypanosoma cruzi and Leishmania braziliensis of these compounds was evaluated. Epoxyestafietin was the most active compound against T. cruzi trypomastigotes and amastigotes (IC50 values of 18.7 and 2.0 &#181;g/mL, respectively). Estafietin (1) and 11&#946;H,13-dihydroestafietin (2) were the most active and selective compounds on L. braziliensis promastigotes (IC50 values of 1.0 and 1.3 &#956;g/mL, respectively). The antiparasitic activity demonstrated by estafietin and some of its derivatives make them promising candidates for the development of effective compounds for the treatment of Chagas disease and leihsmaniasis

Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of essential oils from <i>Acantholippia deserticola</i>, <i>Artemisia proceriformis</i>, <i>Achillea micrantha</i> and <i>Libanotis buchtormensis</i> against phytopathogenic bacteria and fungi

<p>Essential oils from aerial parts of <i>Acantholippia deserticola</i>, <i>Artemisia proceriformis</i>, <i>Achillea micrantha</i> and <i>Libanotis buchtormensis</i> were analysed by GC–MS. The major compounds identified were β-thujone (66.5 ± 0.2%), and <i>trans</i>-sabinyl acetate (12.1 ± 0.2%) in <i>A. deserticola</i>; α-thujone (66.9 ± 0.4%) in <i>A. proceriformis</i>; 1,8-cineole (26.9 ± 0.5%), and camphor (17.7 ± 0.3%) in <i>A. micrantha</i> and <i>cis</i>-β-ocimene (23.3 ± 0.3%), and <i>trans</i>-β-ocimene (18.4 ± 0.2%) in <i>L. buchtormensis</i>. The oils showed a weak antimicrobial effect (MIC₁₀₀ > 1.5 mg/ml) on most phytopathogens tested. A moderate antimicrobial activity (MIC₁₀₀ between 0.5 and 1.5 mg/ml) was displayed by the oils of <i>A. deserticola</i>, <i>A. micrantha</i> and <i>L. buchtormensis</i> on <i>Septoria tritici</i> and by the oil of <i>A. deserticola</i> on <i>Septoria glycine</i>. The antimicrobial activity was associated to the contents of β-thujone, <i>trans</i>-sabinyl acetate and <i>trans</i>-sabinol. Our results indicate that the tested essential oils have little inhibitory potency not suitable for use as plant protection products against the phytopathogens assayed.</p

Chemical composition and antifungal activity of essential oils from medicinal plants of Kazakhstan

<p>The composition of essential oils from leaves of Kazakhstan medicinal plants was analysed by GC-MS. The major compounds identified were 1,8-cineole (34.2%), myrcene (19.1%) and α-pinene (9.4%) in <i>Ajania fruticulosa</i>; 1,8-cineole (21.0%), β-thujone (11.0%), camphor (8.5%), borneol (7.3%) and α-thujone (6.5%), in <i>Achillea nobilis</i>; camphor (47.3%), 1,8-cineole (23.9%), camphene (9.8%) and β-thujone (6.0%) in <i>Artemisia terrae-albae</i>; 1,8-cineole(55.8%) and β-pinene (6.2%) in <i>Hyssopus ambiguus</i>; α-thuyene(46.3%) and δ-cadinene(6.3%) in <i>Juniperus sibirica</i>; sabinene (64%) in <i>Juniperus sabina</i>; and α-pinene (51.5%), β-phellandrene (11.2%) and δ-cadinene (6.3%) in <i>Pinus sibirica</i>. The essential oils did not show antifungal effect (MIC > 1.20 mg/mL) on <i>Aspergillus carbonarius</i> and <i>Aspergillus niger</i>, while the oils from <i>A. nobilis</i>, <i>A. terrae-albae</i>, <i>H. ambiguus</i> and <i>J. sabina</i> exhibited moderate and moderate to weak antimicrobial activities on <i>Fusarium verticillioides</i> (MIC = 0.60 mg/mL) and <i>Fusarium graminearum</i> (MIC = 0.60–1.20 mg/mL), respectively. A principal component analysis associated the antifungal activity (<i>r</i>² > 0.80, <i>p</i> = 0.05) with the presence of borneol, camphor, camphene, 1,8-cineole,α- and β-thujone, and of the oxygenated monoterpenes.</p