Volatile Components and Antioxidant Effect of Essential Oil of Anthemis mauritiana Maire & Sennen Flowers

peer reviewedThe volatile components isolated from flowers of Anthemis mauritiana have been studied. The essential oil was obtained by hydrodistillation and by micro steam distillation and analysis were performed by GC/MS. The main constituents of the essential oil obtained by both methods were α-pinene, β-pinene, β-myrcene, γ-terpinene respectively by hydrodistillation and micro steam distillation. The essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation was also subjected to screening for its possible antioxidant activity by using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. The best result was obtained at a dose of 100μg/ml with an inhibition of 37.80 ± 0.24 %, this activity was less effective than the synthetic BHT with 56.59 ± 0.43% at the same dose

Phenolic acid-rich extract of sweet basil restores cholesterol and triglycerides metabolism in high fat diet-fed mice: A comparison with fenofibrate

Many spices are often added to foods as additives to enhance organoleptic qualities, such as flavor, aroma and color. Sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) family of Lamiaceae is widely used in cooking for its culinary attributes. In this study, we aimed at the investigation of the hypocholesterolemic and hypotriglyceridemic activities of the basil phenolic acid-rich extract in high fat diet-induced hyperlipemic mice. Hyperlipemia was developed by a high fat diet containing cholesterol, lard and cholic acid. At the beginning of the experiment, animals were divided into three groups, one of them served as normolipidemic control group (NCG), the second hyperlipidemic control group (HCG) and the third basil-treated group (BTG). After 5 weeks of treatment, basil phenolic acid-rich extract significantly decreased plasma total cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL-cholesterol (-42%,-42% and -86%, respectively, P < 0.001). However, HDL-cholesterol was increased (+79%, P < 0.001). The extract reduced the atherogenic index and LDL/HDL-C ratio (-88% and -94%, respectively, P < 0.001). The reductions of liver total cholesterol and triglycerides were of -50% (P < 0.01) and -58% (P < 0.01), respectively. The hypolipemic effect of the phenolic acid-rich extract is comparable to that exerted by fenofibrate. This drug significantly reduced plasma total cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL-cholesterol (-25.5%, -51%, and -83.5%, respectively, P < 0.001) and increased plasma HDL-cholesterol (+136%, P < 0.001). On the other hand, fenofibrate significantly decreased atherogenic index and LDL/HDL-cholesterol ratio (-91% and -93%, respectively, P < 0.001). The fenofibrate decreased hepatic total cholesterol by 59.5% and triglycerides by 72%, respectively (P < 0.01). HPLC analysis led to identify four major compounds: caftaric acid, cafeic acid, chicoric acid and rosmarinic acid. In conclusion, the Sweet basil contains phenolic products that are able to lower hyperlipidemia and prevent atherosclerosis. © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved

Hypolipidaemic activity of aqueous ocimim basilicum extract in acute hyperlipidaemia induced by triton WR-1339 in rats and its antioxidant property

Hyperlipidaemia, atherosclerosis and related diseases are becoming a major health problem in developing countries. Ocimum basilicum is one of the medicinal plants widely used in Morocco to reduce plasma cholesterol and to reduce the risk of atherosclerosis-related diseases. However, mechanisms underlying the reported hypolipidaemic effect of this plant have not been investigated. This study evaluates the lipid lowering effect of aqueous Ocimum basilicum extract in Triton WR-1339-induced hyperlipidaemic rats. Hyperlipidaemia was developed in animals by intraperitoneal injection of Triton (200 mg/kg). After injection of Triton the animals were divided into three treatment groups: hyperlipidaemic, hyperlipidaemic plus herb extract and hyperlipidaemic plus fenofibrate treated rats. At 7 h after the Triton injection, levels of plasma cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL-cholesterol in rats treated also with the Ocimum basilicum extract (0.5 g/100 g body weight) were, respectively, 50%, 83% and 79% lower than Triton-treated rats and HDL-cholesterol was 129% higher than in rats given Triton alone. At 24 h following Ocimum basilicum administration, total cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL-cholesterol levels decreased by 56%, 63% and 68%, respectively, in comparison with the Triton treated group and HDL-cholesterol was not increased significantly. The hypolipidaemic effect exerted by Ocimum basilicum extract was markedly stronger than the effect induced by fenofibrate treatments. Further it was demonstrated that Ocimum basilicum aqueous extract displayed a very high antioxidant power. These results indicate that Ocimum basilicum extract may contain hypolipidaemic and antioxidant substances and its use as a therapeutic tool in hyperlipidaemic subjects may be of benefit and encourage further investigation in this fiel

THE WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN SEISMOLOGICAL NETWORK

The Royal Naval Observatory in San Fernando (ROA), together with the Complutense University from Madrid (UCM), and in collaboration with the GeoForschungsZentrum of Potsdam (GFZ), have deployed a broad band seismic network around the Alboran sea, in southern Spain, northern Africa. This network started to operate in 1996 with the installation of the SFUC station, near the Observatory. Since then, several stations have been installed and nowadays it is being in expansion with the future installation of several ocean bottom seismometers (OBS). This network is called the Western Mediterranean Network (WM). In this work the present status and the future of the broad band WM network are shown