Phytochemical Profiling, Antimicrobial and Cytotoxic Properties of Four Phlomis species

Chewing of the sticks has been recently recommended by World Health Organization (WHO) as effective accessories for oral health. Salvadora persica plays an important role in maintaining the integrity of the tooth structure. The purpose of the present study was to determine the effectiveness of Salvadora persica extract on saliva pH after acidic changes. Participants were asked to take part in three different days with one-week interval in our open label non-randomized clinical trial. The effects of aqueous ethanolic (80%) extract of fresh S. persica sticks, distilled water, and sucrose on pH of saliva were examined at some time points, immediately to 20 min. The obtained results showed that the pH of saliva was significantly increased following gargling the distilled water (p=0.007) and S. persica extract (p=0.000) compared to the control group. In addition, the pH of saliva in a group which applied mouthwash of S. persica was significantly increased compared to the distilled water (p=0.04). Application of S. persica extract as a mouthwash increased the pH of saliva after acidic changes. Therefore, it may be recommended as an alternative to increase pH of oral cavity for oral health improvement

Bioactive sesquiterpene lactone from Artemisia santolina

Most species of genus Artemisia L. (Compositae) are medicinal herbswith several uses in the folk medicine worldwide. In the present study, methanol extract of Artemisia santolina has been subjected for isolation of its metabolites along with evaluation of cytotoxic activity against Artemia salina larvae. The structures of the compounds determined by 1H-and 13C-NMR, HMQC, HMBC, 1H-1H COSY and Mass spectral analysis. Two sesquiterpenes, 1,5-dihydroxy- 4(15)eudesman-12,6-olid (artemin) (1), 2-hidroxy-2,6,10-trimethyl-7,10- oxide-3,11-dodecadien-5-one (2) and one flavonoid, 5,7,4'-trihydroxy-6,3'-dimethoxyflavone (jaceosidin) (3) have been successfully characterized. Cytotoxicity of the sesquiterpene lactone (1), was assessed on Artemia salina larvae and resulted in IC50 value of 6.44 μg/mL, which was more potent compared to the positive standard berberine hydrochloride (IC50 = 26 μg/mL). In this study, the separation and identification of two sesquiterpenes and one flavone from the aerial parts of A. santolina is described. Among them the compound artemin (1) showed a toxicity effect against A. salina nauplii

Effects of Monoterpenes of Trachyspermum ammi on the Viability of Spermatogonia Stem Cells In Vitro

Trachyspermum ammi (Apiaceae) plants have several medicinal and condimentary applications and are considered an aphrodisiac agent in Iranian Traditional Medicine. Thus, the present study aims to evaluate the effects of oil from Iranian T. ammi plants on the viability of spermatogonial stem cells in vitro. The essential oil of T. ammi fruits was extracted by hydrodistillation, and the amount of thymol was calculated by a gas-chromatography method. Spermatogonial stem cells were isolated from the testes of mice using enzyme digestion. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was applied to assess the gene expressions of promyelocytic leukemia zinc finger protein (Plzf), DNA-binding protein inhibitor (ID-4), tyrosine-protein kinase (c-Kit), B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl2) and Bcl2-associated X protein (BAX). The number and diameter of colonies were also measured in the treated cells. The amount of thymol in the oil was 130.7 ± 7.6 µg/mL. Flow cytometry analysis showed that 92.8% of all cells expressed stimulated by retinoic acid 8 (Stra8), a spermatogonial stem cell marker. Expression of Plzf and ID-4 genes significantly increased in the treatment groups, while c-Kit and BAX decreased, and Bcl2 increased in the presence of essential oil. The numbers and diameters of cells were also improved by the application of the plant oil. These data indicated that monoterpenes from the oil of T. ammi improved the quality and viability of spermatogonia cells in the cell culture