ANTIMICROBIAL AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITIES OF SELECTED PLANTS USED BY POPULATIONS FROM JURUENA VALLEY, LEGAL AMAZON, BRAZIL

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate selected Brazilian plants from Juruena valley region of Mato Grosso, for their in vitro antimicrobial and antioxidant activities.Methods: The powder obtained from different parts of the twenty-six (26) plants were macerated in hydroethanolic solution to obtain the extracts. The hydroethanolic extracts were tested for their in vitro antimicrobial activity by determining the MIC using broth microdilution. The 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and nitric oxide (NO) methods were used for the determination of antioxidant activities. Correlation between classes of secondary metabolites and antioxidant activity was assessed.Results: Phanera glabra extract (HEPg) showed broad antibacterial spectrum, presenting the best activity against Klebsiella pneumoniae. Hevea microphylla extract (HEHm) presented a narrow spectrum of antibacterial activity with strong effect against Shigella flexneri. The only plant with broad spectrum antifungal activity was Bertholletia excelsa (HEBe), with moderate activity against strains of Aspergillus and Candida. The following extracts were prominent regarding their activities in the DPPH and FRAP assays-HEBe, Cariniana rubra (HECr) and in the FRAP assay alone, Cedrela odorata (HECo) and HEPg. None of the extracts was active in the NO assay. A significant association was observed between DPPH activity and the total phenolic contents.Conclusion: Our results justified the use of some of the investigated plants in the Brazilian ethnomedicine. The antibacterial activities of these plants are bacteriostatic in nature. These findings support that a number of investigated plants could be a valuable source of new antioxidant and antimicrobial compounds that can potentially deliver novel mechanisms of actions.However, further studies are required

In vitro effectiveness of Brazilian brown propolis against Enterococcus faecalis

The aim of this study was to evaluate the in vitro antimicrobial activity of Brazilian brown propolis as an intracanal medication against Enterococcus faecalis. Thirty dentin discs prepared from intact freshly extracted bovine maxillary central incisors were infected with E. faecalis for 21 days. The specimens were distributed into six groups according to the medicament used as follows: G1- calcium hydroxide paste; G2- Carbowax 400 (control group); G3- 20% brown propolis paste; G4- 40% brown propolis paste; G5- 20% brown propolis paste + calcium hydroxide paste; and G6- 40% brown propolis paste + calcium hydroxide paste. The experimental pastes were placed into the canal lumen and left for 14 days. After each period, irrigation was performed with sterile saline to remove the medicament, and the canals were dried with sterile paper points. The dentin chips were removed from the canals with sequential sterile round burs at low speed and were immediately collected in separate test tubes containing BHI broth. The tubes were incubated at 37°C, and microbial growth was analyzed by spectrophotometry after 15 days. All the experimental medications significantly reduced the number of viable bacteria. The G4 and G5 pastes were more effective than the G1 paste, with 35.8%, 41%, and 21.3% antibacterial activity, respectively. Brazilian brown propolis shows antibacterial capacity against E. faecalis

Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants by population of Valley of Juruena Region, Legal Amazon, Mato Grosso, Brazil

Ethnopharmacological importance The use of medicinal plants for treatment, cure and prevention of diseases has been described by many people since time immemorial. Because of this use, commercial and scientific interests have emerged, making it necessary to realize ethnobotanical surveys of medicinal plants species, which is important for subsequent chemical and pharmacological bioprospections. Aim of the study This study aimed at surveying, identifying, cataloging and documenting the medicinal plants species used in the Valley of Juruena, Northwestern Mato Grosso, Legal Amazon Brazil for the treatment of various human diseases, as well as assessed the species of interest for bioprospecting potential. Materials and methods Informants were interviewed using semi-structured form to capture information on socio-demographic and ethnopharmacological data of medicinal plants such as vernacular name, uses, geographic origin, habit, form of preparation and part used. Results were analyzed using descriptive and quantitative means: indices of use-report (Ur) and informant consensus factor (ICF), for the selection of plant species with therapeutic potential. Results Three hundred and thirty two (332) plants species belonging to 90 families were reported for medicinal purposes and totaling 3973 use-reports were reported by 365 (92.9%) of the people interviewed. Asteraceae (32.2%), Fabaceae (26.7%) and Lamiaceae (24.4%) families were the most represented, with majority being species native (64.45%) to Brazil. Leaves (64.5%) were the part of the plant most used and infusion (45.7%) was the most utilized form. Gastrointestinal disorders followed by respiratory complaints topped the list of use-reports. The native or naturalized plants with the highest use reports in the order of decreasing absolute frequency per each emic-category are Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapfc (104), Mentha pulegium L. (94), Arrabidaea chica (Humb. & Bonpl.) B. Verl. (97), Alternanthera brasiliana (L.) Kuntze (71), Baccharis crispa Spreng (57), Phyllanthus niruri L. (48), Gossypium barbadense L. (44), Solidago microglossa DC. (40) and Bauhinia forficata L. (20). And the most cited exotics are: Chenopodium ambrosioides L. (151), Aloe vera (L.) Burm. f., (89) and Rosmarinus officinalis L. (72). In some cases, high ICF values were found, which reflects high degree of homogeneity of consensus among informants in this region on medicinal plants. Conclusion The population of Valle of Juruena makes use of a wide array of medicinal plants distributed in all use categories with predominance of those use in the treatments of gastrointestinal and respiratory ailments. The therapeutic potential of some of the species of medicinal importance extensively utilized by the population of the region have been scientifically validated, and are therefore promising prototype of new drugs. However, there are some of these species whose ethnomedicinal uses are yet to be scientifically verified and thus constitute an unexplored terrain for future biological/pharmacological studies