Perspectives of the Apiaceae Hepatoprotective Effects - A Review

The liver has the crucial role in the regulation of various physiological processes and in the excretion of endogenous waste metabolites and xenobiotics. Liver structure impairment can be caused by various factors including microorganisms, autoimmune diseases, chemicals, alcohol and drugs. The plant kingdom is full of liver protective chemicals such as phenols, coumarins, lignans, essential oils, monoterpenes, carotenoids, glycosides, flavonoids, organic acids, lipids, alkaloids and xanthenes. Apiaceae plants are usually used as a vegetable or as a spice, but their other functional properties are also very important. This review highlights the significance of caraway, dill, cumin, aniseed, fennel, coriander, celery, lovage, angelica, parsley and carrot, which are popular vegetables and spices, but possess hepatoprotective potential. These plants can be used for medicinal applications to patients who suffer from liver damage

Effect of Mn doping on structural, optical and magnetic properties of SnO2 nanoparticles

The Mn doped SnO2 nanoparticles synthesized by cost effective chemical co-precipitation method has been investigated in the present work. The main focus of the work is to explore the structural, optical and magnetic properties of the SnO2 nanostructures. The crystallite size decreases with increase in Mn doping to SnO2 matrix. The optical band gap of doped SnO2 nanoparticles continuously decreases with increasing Mn ion doping concentration. All the doped SnO2 nanoparticles show paramagnetic behavior at room temperature. SnO2 exhibits ferromagnetic behavior in the range of low external applied magnetic field due to the presence of oxygen vacancies (V (o) (+) ) and defects. The undoped SnO2 nanoparticles are spherical in shape while Mn doped SnO2 nanoparticles show the segregation of the spherically shaped nanoparticles. Mn ions only enhance the paramagnetic ordering and degrade the ferromagnetism already present in the SnO2 nanoparticle

Molluscicidal activity of four Apiaceae essential oils against the freshwater snail Radix peregra

Snails of the family Lymnaeidae are an essential link in the transmission of zoonotic diseases. Radix peregra is a European freshwater snail and a susceptible intermediate host of Fasciola hepatica, the causing agent of fascioliasis. Essential oils (EOs) extracted from Anethum graveolens (dill), Cuminum cyminum (cumin), Foeniculum vulgare var. vulgare (bitter fennel) and Petroselinum crispum (plain leaf parsley) were characterized by GC and GC-MS. Seven EOs and 11 constituents were first screened through a single-dose bioassay against R. peregra (10 mg L-1 for juveniles and 50 mg L-1 for egg masses and mature snails). EOs from parsley, cumin and bitter fennel (leaves plus stems) were highly active towards eggs and adults at 50 mg L-1. Subsequently, dose and time-lethality bioassays were performed against adults to determine lethal parameters (LC50;90 and LT50;90). Estimated 48 h LC50s varied from 13.7 to 46.5 mg L-1, with P. crispum fruits EO exhibiting the most significant activity. EOs from cumin fruits and bitter fennel infrutescences, and cuminaldehyde, were the most time-effective treatments when assessed by continuous exposure (LT50 for a 50 mg L-1 dose = 15.1, 19.3 and 19.5 h, respectively). A short-time exposure (8 h) to bitter fennel EOs was effective for the control of adults (LT50 <= 25 h). The present study uncovers the potential of four well-known Apiaceae species as natural sources of biomolluscicides.This work was supported by national funds (FCT-Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) under the project UID/AGR/04033/2013. RM Sousa was financially supported by the FCT through a PhD grant SFRH/BD/66041/2009. Authors are grateful to S. Chaves for the English language revision.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio