Evaluation of antiparasitary, cytotoxic and antioxidant activity and chemical analysis of Tarenaya spinosa (Jacq.) Raf. (Cleomaceae)

Active principles found in plants may aid in antiparasitic treatments, however it is important to evaluate if they do not have cytotoxicity. The leishmanicidal and trypanocidal activities of Tarenaya spinosa were evaluated, as well as the cytotoxic potential of their extracts, as well as the phytochemical and antioxidant profile. The phytochemical profile was described by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance of Hydrogen (1H-NMR) and High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC-DAD). The antiparasitic activity was performed with the promastigote forms of Leishmania spp. and epimastigotes from Trypanosoma cruzi. Cytotoxicity was assessed using NCTC mammalian clone 929 fibroblasts. The antioxidant potential was assessed with the DPPH free radical. The ethanolic extract (EETS) and aqueous (EATS) presented terpenes, steroids, nitrogen compounds, sugars, phenolic compounds (simple phenylpropanoides and coumarins), flavonoids and chacolnas. The polyphenolic profile showed that caffeic acid was the major compound of both extracts. It was observed that the EETS showed a significant antileishmania activity against L. brasiliensis (LC50 81.75 μg/mL) and L. infantum (LC50 141.6 μg/mL), whereas EATS had low antileishmania activity. Against T. cruzi, the extracts presented LC50 > 1000 μg/mL. The extracts of T. spinosa present high antioxidant activity, with EETS having an IC50 of 377.7 μg/mL and EATS IC50 of 445.8 μg/mL. However, EETS was toxic to fibroblasts with an LC50 of 397.9 μg/mL, whereas no cytotoxicity was observed for EATS. Therefore, EATS is a promising source of antioxidant compounds since it does not present cytotoxicity. © 2019 South African Association of Botanist

In vitro antibiotic and modulatory activity of Mesosphaerum suaveolens (L.) kuntze against candida strains

The emergence of fungal resistance to commercial drugs has been a major problem for the WHO. In this context, research with natural products is promising in the discovery of new active substances. Thus, this work evaluated the antifungal effect of a medicinal plant (i.e., Mesosphaerum suaveolens) against strains of the genus Candida, tested the combined effect with the drug fluconazole, and, finally, determined the phenolic constituents present in the species. Initially, aqueous extracts of leaves (AELMs) and aerial parts (AEAPMs) of the species were prepared. For microbiological assays, the minimum fungicidal concentration was determined by broth microdilution, and the combined effect of fluconazole extracts were verified by sub‐inhibitory microdilution concentrations (CFM/8) followed by spectrophotometric readings which were used to determine the IC50. HPLC detected the presence of flavonoids and phenolic acids, detecting eight compounds present in the samples of which caffeic acid and quercetin were major components. The AELMs modulated fluconazole activity since it decreased fluconazole’s IC50 from 7.8 μg/mL to an IC50 of 4.7 μg/mL (CA LM 77) and from 28.8 μg/mL to 18.26 μg/mL (CA INCQS 40006) for the C. albicans strains. The AEAPMs were able to potentiate the effect of fluconazole more effectively than the AELMs. Such an effect was significant for the 16 μg/mL concentration for CA LM 77 and 32 μg/mL for CA INCQS 40006. The AEAPMs as well as the AELMs presented clinically relevant activities for C. tropicalis strains. For the C. tropicalis LM 23 strain, the AEPMs obtained an IC50 of 25 μg/mL and the AELMs an IC50 of 359.9 μg/mL. © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland