Current Issue : October - December Volume : 2019 Issue Number : 4 Articles : 5 Articles
Zanthoxylum mezoneurispinosum Ake Assi and Zanthoxylum psammophilum Ake Assi are\nspecies endemic to Cote dâ??Ivoire. In this study, we determined, for the first time, the composition\nand biological activities of essential oils obtained from each of these plants. Essential oils were\nobtained by hydrodistillation from different organs of each plant with a Clevenger-type apparatus\nand analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Thirty-four components,\naccounting for more than 99.9% of the overall composition, were identified in the oils. The Z.\npsammophilum leaf and trunk bark oils exhibited two unusual methylketones, undecan-2-one and\ntridecan-2-one, whereas the root oil was rich in thymol and sesquiterpenoids. The Z.\nmezoneurispinosum leaf and trunk bark oils were rich in monoterpenoids, whereas\nsesquiterpenoids were predominant in the root oil. These samples produced, for the first time,\nsome new chemical profiles of essential oils. The oilsâ?? antioxidant activities were determined using\n2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging capacity and ferric reducing antioxidant\npower (FRAP) assays. The results showed that the essential oil isolated from roots of Z.\nmezoneurispinosum had the highest antioxidant activity, which is in accordance with the high\nthymol content of that oil. We also determined the lipoxygenase inhibitory activities of the\nessential oils. The results showed that all of the tested oils displayed high and close lipoxygenase\ninhibitory activities....
Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a metabolic disease that can affect the central nervous system and behavioral traits in animals.\nStreptozotocin-induced diabetes is considered an autoimmune disease. The aim of the current study was to determine whether\nsupplementation with the alcoholic extract of Avicennia marina leaves could improve diabetes-associated pathological changes.\nThe animals were divided into four groups: a control group (A), an A. marina receiving nondiabetic group (B), a diabetic group\n(C), andaDMgrouporally supplementedwithA.marina alcoholic leaf extract (D).TheDMgroup of animals receiving the alcoholic\nextract of A.marina leaves had reduced blood glucose levels, improved blood picture, and organ functions. This group also showed\nimprovement in locomotory behavior.The results of this study showed that supplementation with the alcoholic extract of A.marina\nleaves reduced oxidative stress and blood sugar levels, protected the liver, and improved the neurobehavioral changes associated\nwith diabetes in mice. Introducing alcoholic leaf extract of A. marina to diabetic mice decreased inflammatory cells aggregation,\nvacuolation, and hemorrhage. Additionally, a positive effect of the alcoholic leaf extract on the histopathological changes was\nobserved in the testicular tissue of treated mice....
Introduction. Antibiotic resistance is one of the greatest threats of the 21st century. Scientists search for potential antimicrobial\nsources that can cope with antibiotic resistance. Plants used in traditional medicine can be identified as potential candidates for the\nsynthesis of novel drug compounds to act against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Objective. To determine the potential antimicrobial\neffects of ethanol, aqueous, and hexane extracts of five Sri Lankan medicinal plants against four human pathogens. Methods.\nAsparagus falcatus (tubers), Asteracantha longifolia (whole plant), Vetiveria zizanioides (roots), Epaltes divaricata (whole plant),\nand Coriandrum sativum (seeds) were used in the study. Plant extracts were screened against four clinically important Grampositive\nand Gram-negative bacterial strains, Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), Pseudomonas\naeruginosa (ATCC 27853), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (ATCC 700603). Antibacterial activity of plant extracts were monitored\nusing the agar disc diffusion method. Eight concentrations of each positive plant extract were used to determine the minimum\ninhibitory concentration (MIC) by 5-fold dilution of plant extracts yielding a serial dilution of the original extract. Results.\nEthanol, aqueous, and hexane extracts of E. divaricata gave the maximum zones of inhibition of 16.3 mm, 7.4 mm, and 13.7mm\nand MIC values of 0.48 mg/ml, 1.2 mg/ml, and 1.6 mg/ml, respectively, against S. aureus. Ethanol and hexane extracts of V.\nzizanioides gave the maximum zones of inhibition of 12.1mm and 11.4mm and MIC values 2.4 mg/ml and 0.003 mg/ml, respectively,\nagainst S. aureus. None of the other plants were effective against any microorganism used for the study. Conclusions. It\ncan be concluded that E. divaricata and V. zizanioides crude ethanol, aqueous, and hexane extracts exhibited significant in vitro\nantibacterial activity against S. aureus, and the active compounds isolated from them can be potential sources for the synthesis of\nantibacterial drugs....
Diabetes is a major metabolic disorder whose prevalence is increasing daily. Medicinal\nplants have played an important role in the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes via\nprophylactic and therapeutic management. In this study, Mangifera Indica leaf (MIL) extract\nwas investigated for its promising anti-diabetic activity via an in vitro model. It was found\nthat MIL extract possessed significant inhibition on alpha-amylase activity up to............................
Background: More than 700 plants are reported to be used for medicinal purposes in Nepal;\nhowever, many of them are not studied for their scientific evidences. The aims of the present study\nwere the estimation of the total phenolic and flavonoid contents, and the evaluation of the free radical\nscavenging and alpha-amylase inhibitory activities of five selected medicinal plants from western Nepal:\nAeschynanthus parviflorus Wall. (Gesneriaceae), Buddleja asiatica Lour. (Loganiaceae), Carica papaya L.\n(Caricaceae), Drepanostachyum falcatum (Nees) Keng f. (Gramineae) and Spondias pinnata (L. f.) Kurz\n(Anacardiaceae). Methods: The total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC) were\nmeasured using Folin-Ciocalteuâ??s phenol reagent and aluminium chloride methods, respectively.\nA 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assay was used to evaluate the free\nradical scavenging activity and an alpha-amylase inhibitory assay was carried out to determine the in vitro\nantidiabetic activity. Results: The phytochemical screening of five hydroalcoholic plant extracts\nrevealed the presence of various secondary metabolites, including alkaloids, flavonoids, reducing\nsugars, saponins, terpenoids and tannins. The amounts of total phenolics and flavonoids were found\nto be the highest in B. asiatica leaf extract, which also showed the most potent free radical scavenging\nactivity. Extract of C. papaya fruits showed the highest alpha-amylase inhibitory activity, whereas the\nextracts of B. asiatica leaves and S. pinnata leaves exhibited moderate activity. Conclusions: Some of\nthe medicinal plants selected in this study showed high TPC and TFC values and potent bioactivities.\nThese results may provide the scientific evidences of the traditional uses of these plants. However,\nfurther detailed studies on bioactive compounds isolation and identification and evaluation of in vivo\npharmacological activities should be performed in future....
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