Background: Plants of Labiatae are used in traditional medicine and phytotherapy. Rosmarinic acid (RA) is a phenolic compound which is found in many genus of Labiatae and exhibits important biological activities. Materials and Methods: In this investigation, RA contents of 29 species of Labiatae named Salvia officinalis, Salvia limbata, Salvia virgata, Salvia hypoleuca, Salvia macrosiphon, Salvia choloroleuca, Melissa officinalis, Origanum vulgare, Lavandula angustifolia, Rosmarinus officinalis, Thymus daenensis, Thymus citriodorous, Thymus pubescens, Thymus vulgaris, Zataria multiflora, Mentha piperita, Mentha pulegium, Mentha longifolia, Mentha spicata, Mentha aquatica, Mentha crispa, Perovskia artemisoides, Zhumeria majdae, Satureja hortensis, Satureja khuzistanica, Satureja bachtiarica, Satureja atropatana, Satureja mutica and Satureja macrantha were determined by using high-performance liquid chromatographic method. Results: The results showed that RA content in different species of Labiatae was 0.0-58.5 mg g ^-1 of dried plants. The highest amount of RA was found in Mentha species especially M. spicata. Conclusion: M. spicata can be considered as a new source of rosmarinic acid .

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Psidium guajava L. leaves were subjected to extraction, fractionation and isolation of the flavonoidal compounds. Five flavonoidal compounds were isolated which are quercetin, quercetin-3-O-α-L-arabinofuranoside, quercetin-3-O-β-D-arabinopyranoside, quercetin-3-O-β-D-glucoside and quercetin-3-O-β-D-galactoside. Quercetin-3-O-b-D-arabinopyranoside was isolated for the first time from the leaves. Fractions together with the isolates were tested for their antimicrobial activity. The antimicrobial studies showed good activities for the extracts and the isolated compounds.

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Background: Quercetin is universally distributed in the plant kingdom and is the most abundant flavonoid in the human diet. In a previous study, we have reported that quercetin stimulated glucose uptake in cultured C2C12 skeletal muscle through an insulin-independent mechanism involving adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK). AMPK is a key regulator of the whole body-energy homeostasis. In skeletal muscle, activation of AMPK increases glucose uptake through the stimulation of the glucose transporter GLUT4 translocation to the plasma membrane. In liver, AMPK decreases glucose production mainly through the downregulation of the key gluconeogenesis enzymes such as phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPCK) and Glucose -6-phosphate (G6Pase). Objective: To study the effect of quercetin on glucose homeostasis in muscle and liver. Materials and Methods: L6 skeletal muscle cells, murine H4IIE and human HepG2 hepatocytes were treated with quercetin (50 μM) for 18 h. Results: An 18 h treatment with quercetin (50 μM) stimulated AMPK and increased GLUT4 translocation and protein content in cultured rat L6 skeletal muscle cells. On the other hand, we report that quercetin induced hepatic AMPK activation and inhibited G6pase in H4IIE hepatocytes. Finally, we have observed that quercetin exhibited a mild tendency to increase the activity of glycogen synthase (GS), the rate-limiting enzyme of glycogen synthesis, in HepG2 hepatocytes. Conclusions: Overall, these data demonstrate that quercetin positively influences glucose metabolism in the liver and skeletal muscle, and therefore appear to be a promising therapeutic candidate for the treatment of in type 2 diabetes.

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The total phenolic distribution of juice, peel, and seed extracts of four Turkish pomegranate, Punica granatum L., cultivars ("Lefan," "Katirbasi," "Cekirdeksiz-IV," and "Asinar") was investigated. Total phenolic compounds were determined with the Folin-Ciocalteu colorimetric method. The results showed that the levels of total phenolic compounds changed depending on cultivars and fruit parts. In all cultivars, the highest levels of total phenolic content were obtained from the peel extracts. The total phenolic content ranged from 1775.4 to 3547.8 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/L among the cultivars. However, the total phenolic content of pomegranate juice and seed extract ranged from 784.4 to 1551.5 mg GAE/L and 117.0 to 177.4 mg GAE/L, respectively. "Lefan" displayed the highest amount of the total phenolic content among the four popular cultivars tested.

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Quercetin, a natural compound of multiple origins, has broad biopharmacological effects, such as antioxidant, directly scavenging free radical, and hepatoprotectivity effects. This study is designed to investigate the interveneous effect of quercetin on liver injury induced by ethanol in rats. The rats that were orally treated with 50% ethanol for continuous ten days, which resulted in cell necrosis, fibrosis and inflammatory infiltration, were included in this study. Higher contents of AST, ALT ADH, γ-GT, TG in plasma and MDA in liver tissue, and lower content of GSH in liver tissue were highlighted in ethanol-treated rats when compared with healthy ones. The levels of cytokines such as IL-1β, IL-1, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α in rats plasma were also significantly enhanced, and level of IL-10 was obviously lowered through ethanol treatment. By preventive and synchronism treatment with quercetin for fourteen days, the contents of AST, ALT ADH, γ-GT, TG and MDA, and levels of IL-1β, IL-1, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α were significantly reduced, whereas GSH and level of IL-10 were obviously increased. It may be deduced that quercetin, by multiple mechanisms interplay, demonstrated somewhat protective effect on liver injury induced by ethanol in rats.

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Quercetin can inhibit the growth of cancer cells with the ability to act as chemopreventers. Its cancer-preventive effect has been attributed to various mechanisms, including the induction of cell-cycle arrest and/or apoptosis as well as the antioxidant functions. Nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-kB) is a signaling pathway that controls transcriptional activation of genes important for tight regulation of many cellular processes and is aberrantly expressed in many types of cancer. Inhibitors of NF-kB pathway have shown potential anti-tumor activities. However, it is not fully elucidated in colon cancer. In this study, we demonstrate that quercetin induces apoptosis in human colon cancer CACO-2 and SW-620 cells through inhibiting NF-kB pathway, as well as down-regulation of B-cell lymphoma 2 and up-regulation of Bax, thus providing basis for clinical application of quercetin in colon cancer cases.

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Background: Curcumin is a phenolic natural product isolated from the rhizome of Curcuma longa (turmeric) and has effects on bone health and fat formation. The bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent cells capable of differentiating into osteoblasts and adipocytes. Osteoblast differentiation of MSCs can be a result of upregulation of heme oxygenase (HO)-1 expression. Curcumin can potently induce HO-1 expression. Objective: The present study describes the effects of curcumin on rat MSC (rMSCs) differentiation into osteoblasts and adipocytes. Materials and Methods: Rat bone marrow MSCs were isolated and treated with or without curcumin. Osteoblast differentiation was confirmed and determined by alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, mineralized nodule formation, the expression of Runx2 (runt-related transcription factor 2) and osteocalcin. Adipocyte differentiation was determined by Oil red O staining and the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ 2 (PPARγ2) and CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein (C/EBP) α. Results: Curcumin increased ALP activity and osteoblast-specific mRNA expression of Runx2 and osteocalcin when rMSCs were cultured in osteogenic medium. In contrast, curcumin decreased adipocyte differentiation and inhibited adipocyte-specific mRNA expression of PPARγ2 and C/EBPα when rMSCs were cultured in adipogenic medium. HO-1 expression was increased during osteogenic differentiation of rMSCs. Conclusions: These findings demonstrate that curcumin can promote osteogenic differentiation of rMSCs and inhibit adipocyte formation. The effect of curcumin on osteogenic differentiation of rMSCs is correlated with HO-1 expression.

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Fourteen purple-black American elderberry accessions (Sambucus canadensis L.) obtained from various sites in midwestern USA and then grown at a single Ohio production site in USA were analyzed for their total phenolic (TP) and total monomeric anthocyanin (TMA) contents and for their antioxidant capacity by the ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and DPPH radical scavenging assays. Total phenolic and anthocyanin contents were measured using the Folin-Ciocalteu reagent and the pH differential methods, respectively. Overall, the phytonutrient contents and antioxidant capacity of our elderberry accessions were similar to those typically reported for black raspberries, blackberries and other dark-fleshed small fruits. Variability among accessions was greatest for TMA content (CV 37.5%); individuals ranged nearly threefold from 1308 to 4004 μg cy3-GE/g on a fresh weight basis. Variation among accessions was also evident for TP, FRAP and DPPH values (CV 14.4, 21.7 and 26.8%, respectively). TP and TMA values were very highly correlated (r = 0.93), although individuals differed in the estimated proportion of total phenolics attributable to anthocyanins. Both TP and TMA also highly correlated to antioxidant capacity values (r = 0.70-0.85). Within this limited study of 14 accessions, variability for phytonutrient content and antioxidant capacity suggested the employment of wild germplasm within an elderberry improvement program to incorporate an array of superior horticultural, post-harvest or processing traits into new or existing cultivars with superior phytonutrient profiles.

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Background: Saffron is harvested from the dried, dark red stigmas of Crocus sativus flowers. It is used as a spice for flavoring and coloring food as a perfume. It is often used for treating several diseases. We investigated the potential of the ethanolic extract of saffron to induce antiproliferative and cytotoxic effects in cultured carcinomic human alveolar basal epithelial cells in comparison with non-malignant (L929) cells. Materials and Methods: Both cells were cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium and treated with the ethanolic extract of saffron at various concentrations for two consecutive days. Our study resulted in sequences of events marked by apoptosis, such as loss of cell viability, morphology changes that were evaluated by MTT assay and invert-microscope, respectively. Results: The results showed that the ethanolic extract of saffron decreased cell viability in malignant cells as a concentration and time-dependent manner. The IC ₅₀ values against the lung cancer cell line were determined as 1500 and 565 μg/ml after 24 and 48 h, respectively. However, the extract at different concentrations could not significantly decrease the cell viability in L929 cells. Morphology of MCF7 cells treated with the ethanolic extract confirmed the MTT results. Conclusion: We also showed that even higher concentrations of saffron is safe for L929, but the extract exerts pro-apoptotic effects in a lung cancer-derived cell line and could be considered as a potential chemotherapeutic agent in lung cancer.

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Thirteen Hypericum species growing in Bulgaria were investigated for free radical-scavenging activity, antioxidant activity, total tannins and total flavonoids contents. Methanolic extracts from the Hypericum species were analyzed for radical scavenging and antioxidant activities using DPPH-, ABTS- free radicals, total antioxidant activity and inhibition of lipid peroxidation by ferric thiocyanate (FTC) method. Butylated hydroxytoluene and ascorbic acid were used as positive controls. Methanolic extracts from H. cerastoides, H. perforatum and H. maculatum demonstrate the highest antioxidant activities and are potential sources of natural antioxidant compounds. The quantification of tannins and flavanoids were determined in Hypericum species using Folin-Chiocalteu reagent and AlCl3, respectively. The amounts of the tannins ranged from 1.30 ± 0.01 mg/100 g dw in H. elegans to 8.67 ± 0.02 g/100 g dw in H. perforatum. The highest concentration of flavonoids was found in H. cerastoides (1.22 ± 0.02 g/100g dw), and the lowest amount was established in H. olympicum (0.20 ± 0.03 g/100g dw).

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This study was conducted to evaluate the in vitro antimicrobial properties of essential oil, its major component, 1,8-cineole, and extracts of two Eucalyptus species, Eucalyptus intertexta and Eucalyptus largiflorens. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the extracts was calculated by broth dilution method and the zone of inhibition was studied by agar disk diffusion method. Gentamicin (10 μg/disk) and rifampin (5 μg/disk) were used as reference controls for antibacterial studies and nystatin (100 μg/disk) for antifungal studies. The results of MIC study revealed that the essential oil has a stronger activity and broader spectrum than those of methanol extracts. It is interesting to point out that the oils had even greater potential of antimicrobial activities than those of 1,8-cineole as their main component.

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Ageratum conyzoides has been used in folklore for the treatment of a wide range of diseases. In the present investigation, the in vitro activity of ethanol, petroleum ether, ethylacetate, butanol, and water extracts of A. conyzoides were screened in some cancer cell lines using the sulphorhodamine B (SRB) assay. These cell lines include: Human non-small cell lung carcinoma (A-549), human colon adenocarcinoma (HT-29), human gastric carcinoma (SGC-7901), human golima (U-251), human breast carcinoma (MDA-MB-231), human prostate carcinoma (DU-145), human hepatic carcinoma (BEL-7402), and mouse leukemia (P-388) cancer cell lines. Furthermore, kaempferol was isolated from the ethylacetate extract and the structure was elucidated by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectroscopy. The effect of DPPH antiradical activity on the extracts and kaempferol was also determined. The results showed that ethylacetate extract exhibited the highest cytotoxic activity on A-549 and P-388 cancer cells with IC ₅₀ values of 0.68 and 0.0003 µg/ml, respectively. Kaempferol isolated from the ethylacetate extract of A. conyzoides rapidly scavenged DPPH at a concentration of 130.07 ±17.36 g/kg. The result therefore showed that A. conyzoides possessed anticancer and antiradical properties.

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Background: Aloe ferox Mill. (Asphodelaceae) is used in South Africa for the treatment of constipation among various ailments. Despite the extensive studies conducted on the antioxidant activities of the leaf gel and pulp extract of the plant, there is no information on the antioxidant properties of the whole leaf extract of the species. Materials and Methods: The antioxidant activities of ethanol, acetone, methanol and aqueous extracts of A. ferox were investigated spectrophotometrically against 1,1­ diphenyl­2­picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2Ͳ-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) diammonium salt, hydrogen peroxide (H ₂ O ₂ ), nitric oxide (NO), lipid peroxidation and ferric reducing power. Total phenols, flavonoids, flavonols, proanthocyanidins, tannins, alkaloids and saponins were also determined using the standard methods. Results: The percentage compositions of phenols (70.33), flavonols (35.2), proanthocyanidins (171.06) and alkaloids (60.9) were significantly high in the acetone extract, followed by the ethanol extract with values of 70.24, 12.53, 76.7 and 23.76 respectively, while the least composition was found in the aqueous extract. Moreover, both flavonoids and saponins contents were appreciably high in both methanol and ethanol extracts, while others were very low. Tannins levels were, however, not significantly different (P > 0.05) in all the solvent extracts. At 0.5 mg/ml, the free radical scavenging activity of the methanol, acetone and ethanol extracts showed higher inhibition against ABTS, hydrogen peroxide and nitric oxide radicals. Whereas, scavenging activity of the extracts against DPPH* and lipid peroxidation were observed at a concentration of 0.016 and 0.118 mg/ml respectively in comparison to the butylated hydroxyltoluene (BHT), gallic acid and rutin. The ferric reducing potential of the extracts was concentration dependent and significantly different from that of vitamin C and BHT. Conclusion: The present study showed high level of radical scavenging activity by ethanol and methanol whole leaf extracts of A. ferox with higher antioxidant activities than acetone and aqueous extracts. The significant differences show that the whole leaf extract could be used as a potent antioxidant in medicine and food industries.

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Rosa canina L. is a member of Rosaceae family, which is well-known for its high phenolic contents. These compounds are known to possess antioxidant, antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic effects. However, they have yet to pass controlled clinical trials for efficacy, and their potential for prooxidant activity is an understudied field of research. In order to estimate the correlations between phenolic contents and antioxidant/proxidant effect mechanisms, different concentrations of R. canina fruit extracts were examined in this study. R. canina showed antioxidant activities at all concentrations with respect to the reducing power, hydrogen peroxide scavenging activity and superoxide anion radical scavenging (O2^·-) activity assays, whereas a negative correlation was observed with the metal ion chelating activity and free radical scavenging activity [1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazil (DPPH) % inhibition] assays at higher concentrations with the phenolic content of R. canina. These results suggest that R. canina may act not only as an antioxidant, but also as a prooxidant with the effects depending on its concentrations.

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Context: Marine algae produce different secondary metabolites with a wide range of biological activities. Many studies have been achieved on the screening of biological effects of marine organisms and a lot of active compounds were isolated and characterized. Aims: In an attempt to find cytotoxic compound of hexane fraction, isolation, identification, and cytotoxicity of active compound of this fraction were performed. Materials and Methods: In this study, total methanolic (70%) extract and partition fractions of hexane, chloroform (CHCl ₃ ), ethyl acetate (EtOAc), and MeOH-H ₂ O of Sargassum angustifolium, Chondria dasyphylla, and Ulva flexuosa, collected from coastlines of the Persian Gulf in south of Iran, were studied against colon carcinoma (HT-29), colorectal adenocarcinoma (Caco-2), breast ductal carcinoma (T47D), and Swiss mouse embryo fibroblast (NIH 3T3) cell lines by MTT assay. Statistical Analysis Used: IC ₅₀ (median growth inhibitory concentration) values were calculated by Sigmaplot (10) software. Results: Hexane fraction of Chondria dasyphylla (IC ₅₀ 82.26 ± 4.09 μg/ml) and MeOH-H ₂ O fraction of Ulva flexuosa (IC ₅₀ 116.92 ± 8.58 μg/ml) showed cytotoxic activity against proliferation of T47D cells. Hexane fraction of Sargassum angustifolium was also observed for cytotoxicity against T47D and HT-29 cell lines (IC ₅₀ 166.42 ± 26.7 and 190.24 ± 52.8 μg/ml), respectively. An investigation of a component from the hexane fraction of Sargassum angustifolium yielded a steroidal metabolite, fucosterol, with cytotoxicity in T47D and HT29 (IC ₅₀ 27.94 ± 9.3 and 70.41 ± 7.5 μg/ml). Conclusions: These results indicated that fucosterol, the most abundant phytosterol in brown algae, is responsible for cytotoxic effect of this extract against breast and colon carcinoma cell lines.

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Background: The chemical characterization is essential to validate the pharmaceutical use of vegetable raw materials. Ultraviolet spectroscopy is an important technique to determine flavonoids, which are important active compounds from Ocimum basilicum. Objective: The objective of this work was to optimize a spectrophotometric method, based on flavonoid-aluminum chloride (AlCl ₃ ) complexation to determine the total flavonoid content (TFC) in leaves of O. basilicum (herbal material), using response surface methodology. Materials and Methods: The effects of (1) the herbal material: Solvent ratio (0.02, 0.03, 0.05, 0.07, and 0.08 g/mL), (2) stock solution volume (0.8, 2.3, 4.4, 6.5, and 8.0 mL) and (3) AlCl ₃ volume (0.8, 1.0, 1.2, 1.4, and 1.6 mL) on the TFC were evaluated. The analytical performance parameters precision, linearity and robustness of the method were tested. Results: The herbal material: Solvent ratio and stock solution volume showed an important influence on the method response. After choosing the optimized conditions, the method exhibited a precision (RSD%) lower than 6% for repeatability (RSD%) and lower than 8% for intermediate precision (on the order of literature values for biotechnological methods), coefficient of correlation of 0.9984, and no important influence could be observed for variations of the time of complexation with AlCl ₃ . However, the time and temperature of extraction were critical for TFC method and must be carefully controlled during the analysis. Conclusion: Thus, this study allowed the optimization of a simple, fast and precise method for the determination of the TFC in leaves of O. basilicum, which can be used to support the quality assessment of this herbal material.

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Background: Phenolic constituents were the principle bioactivity compounds exist in Gynura divaricata, little phenolic compounds were reported from the plant previously. Materials and Methods: 60% ethanol extract from the leaves of Gynura divaricata were isolated and purified by column chromatography of Silica gel, ODS and Sephadex LH-20, the structures of the isolated compounds were identified by UV, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR and MS spectroscopic techniques. Additionally, a high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector-electrospray ionization-mass (HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS) analytical method was developed to identify some minor constituents in the n-butanol fraction of the ethanol extract of Gynura divaricata. Results: Six flavonols and one Dicaffeoylquinic acid were isolated from the leaves of Gynura divaricata, and these compounds were identified as follows: quercetin (1), kaempferol (2), kaempferol-3-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (3), quercetin-3-O-rutinoside (4), kaempferol-3,7-di-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (5), kaempferol-3-O-rutinoside-7-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (6), and 3,5-dicaffeoylquinic acid (7). A total of 13 compounds, including 9 flavonol glycosides and 4 phenolic acids, were tentatively identified by comparing their retention time (RT), UV, and MS spectrum values with those that had been identified and the published data. Conclusion: This was the first time to use the HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS method to identify the phytochemicals of the genera Gynura. Moreover, compounds (6) and (7) have been isolated for the first time from the genus Gynura.

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Swertia spp. (Gentianaceae) grow widely in the eastern and southern Asian countries and are used as traditional medicine for gastrointestinal disorders. Swerchirin, one of the xanthones in Swertia spp., has many pharmacological properties, such as, antimalarial, antihepatotoxic, and hypoglycemic effects. Because of the pharmacological importance of Swerchirin in this investigation, it was purified from Swertia longifolia Boiss. as one of the main components and quantified by means of a validated high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) technique. Aerial parts of the plant were extracted with acetone 80%. Phenolic and non-phenolic constituents of the extract were separated from each other during several processes. The phenolic fraction was injected into the semi-preparative HPLC system, which consisted of a C ₁₈ column and a gradient methanol: 0.1% formic acid mode. Using this method, we were able to purify six xanthones from the plant, in order to use them as standard materials. The analytical method was validated for Swerchirin as one of the most important components of the plant, with more pharmacological activities according to the validation parameters, such as, selectivity, linearity (r2 > 0.9998), precision (≤3.3), and accuracy, which were measured by the determination of recovery (98-107%). The limits of detection and quantization were found to be 2.1 and 6.3 µg/mL, respectively. On account of the speed and accuracy, the UV-HPLC method may be used for quantitative analysis of Swerchirin.

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Background : Phyllanthus emblica, Camellia sinensis, Mangifera indica, Punica granatum, and Acacia catechu have been shown to possess widespread pharmacological application against multitude of diseases namely cancer, diabetes, liver disorders, and oxidative stress. Objective: We evaluated the hepatoprotective activity of the standardized herbal extracts against tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BH) induced toxicity and their mechanism of hepatoprotective action in human hepatocarcinoma cells (HepG2 cell line). Materials and Methods: The hepatoprotective activity was studied by observing the effect of these herbal extracts on t-BH induced reduction in cell viability of HepG2 cells. In addition, the reducing power of the extracts and their ability to scavenge free radicals were evaluated using two antioxidant assay systems: cell free [oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), and [2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonicacid)] (ABTS)] and cell based [cellular antioxidant activity (CAA)]. Results and Discussion: The results obtained showed that these extracts possess significant hepatoprotective activity. This may indicate that the plant extracts contain compounds, which can remove toxic metabolites following t-BH induced toxicity. The extracts exhibited significant antioxidant property as evident by the Trolox values and effective scavenging of DPPH and ABTS radicals. The extracts also demonstrated inhibition of AAPH-induced fluorescence in HepG2 cells. These results indicate the ability of the plant extracts to protect the liver cells from chemical-induced damage, which might be correlated to their radical scavenging potential. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that these extracts have potential hepatoprotective activity which is mainly attributed to the antioxidant potential, which might occur by reduction of lipid peroxidation and cellular damage.

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Background: Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam., popularly known as sweet potato (SP), has played an important role as an energy and a phytochemical source in human nutrition and animal feeding. Ethnopharmacological data show that SP leaves have been effectively used in herbal medicine to treat inflammatory and/or infectious oral diseases in Brazil. The aim of this research was to evaluate the phytochemical, antioxidant, and antimicrobial activities of the crude leaves' extract of SP leaves. Materials and Methods: The screening was performed for triterpenes/steroids, alkaloids, anthraquinones, coumarins, flavonoids, saponins, tannins, and phenolic acids. The color intensity or the precipitate formation was used as analytical responses to these tests. The total antioxidant capacity was evaluated by the phosphomolybdenum complex method. Antimicrobial activity was made by agar disk and agar well diffusion tests. Results: The phytochemical screening showed positive results for triterpenes/steroids, alkaloids, anthraquinones, coumarins, flavonoids, saponins, tannins, and phenolic acids. Total contents of 345.65, 328.44, and 662.02 mg were respectively obtained for alkaloids, anthraquinones, and phenolic compounds in 100 g of the dry sample. The total antioxidant capacity was 42.94% as compared to ascorbic acid. For antimicrobial studies, no concentration of the SP freeze dried extract was able to inhibit the growth of Streptococcus mutans, S. mitis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Candida albicans in both agar disk and agar well diffusion tests. Conclusions: SP leaves demonstrated the presence of secondary metabolites with potential biological activities. No antimicrobial activity was observed.

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In this work, the chemical constituents, antibacterial and modulatory activities of the essential oil of Lantana camara Linn were studied. The essential oil was extracted from the leaves of L. camara by hydrodistillation method using Clevenger's apparatus and its chemical constituents were separated and identified by GC-MS, and the relative content of each constituent was determined by area normalization. Among the 25 identified components, bicyclogermacrene (19.42%), isocaryophyllene (16.70%), valecene (12.94%) and germacrene D (12.34%) were the main constituents. The oil was examined to antibacterial and modulatory activities against the multiresistant strains of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus by microdilution test. The results show an inhibitory activity to E. coli (MIC 512 μg/ml) and S. aureus (MIC 256 μg/ml). The synergism of the essential oil and aminoglycosides was verified too, with significant reduction of MICs (7Χ, 1250-5 μg/ml) against E. coli. It is suggested that the essential oil of Lantana camara Linn could be used as a source of plant-derived natural products with resistance-modifying activity.

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Thymus vulgaris L. (Lamiaceae) is a well-known medicinal plant that contains important compounds such as thymol and carvacrol and it has been used in many pharmaceutical dosage forms. Thymol and carvacrol in essential oils are often quantified by gas chromatography (GC) technique but in this work, a validated and reliable high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method has been developed for the analysis of these two components in T. vulgaris essential oil. The essential oil of the plant was analyzed by HPLC and GC techniques. The HPLC system consisted of ACE C ₁₈ column and an isocratic acetonitrile:water (50:50) as the mobile phase which was kept at a flow rate of 1 ml/min. The method was validated for selectivity, linearity (r² > 0.997 for both thymol and carvacrol), precision (intra-day 0.8-1.9, 1.7-2.6; and inter-day 3.5-4.5, 3.6-4.7) and recovery (97.7%, 97.6%) for thymol and carvacrol, respectively. The limits of detection (LODs) and limits of quantization (LOQs) were calculated to be 2.8, 0.6 μg/ml and 8.6, 1.8 μg/ml for thymol and carvacrol, respectively. The GC system consisted of flame ionization detector (FID) and CP-SIL 8 column. The concentrations of thymol and carvacrol in essential oil obtained by HPLC (41.2%, 4.3%) and GC (40.7%, 4.2%) were compared by statistical methods and they showed good agreement.

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Background: The total flavonoid (TF) and total phenolic (TP) contents of the ethanol extracts of the whole plant, stem, leaf, and seed of Mimosa pudica Linn belonging to the genus Mimosa (Family: Fabaceae alt. Leguminosae), which originates from the subtropical regions of southern China, were determined in this experiment. Materials and Methods: The antioxidant activity of the extracts and 5 flavonoid monomers of M. pudica Linn. were also evaluated by 2 assays, the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical-scavenging activity and ferric reducing/antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. In addition, correlation analysis was also made in the present study. Results: The results showed that leaf extracts contained the highest amount of TF and TP, and the content was significantly higher than that found in other parts of the plant. Moreover, the sequence of antioxidant activity of the ethanol extracts was as follows: leaf > the whole plant > seed > stem; the sequence of the 5 flavonoid monomers was as follows: 5,7,3′,4′-tetrahydroxy-6-C-[β-D-apiose-(1→4)]-β-D-glycopyranosyl flavone (1) > isorientin (2) > orientin (3) > isovitexin (4) > vitexin (5) , and the antioxidant activity of compound 1 is equivalent to the synthetic antioxidant trolox or a bit stronger than trolox, and significant correlations were found among the active ingredient contents and the results of antioxidant activity. Conclusion: The present study suggested that M. pudica Linn. could be a potential rich source of natural antioxidants.

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Background: Zataria multiflora Boiss. is a traditional and popular spice in Iran. The effects of 3 ecotypes (ECTPs) of Z. multiflora essential oils (EOs) against most common causes of food-borne and nosocomial infections were evaluated. Materials and Methods: The antimicrobial activities of the EOs were examined by broth microdilution method as recommended by the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI). The chemical compositions of the EOs from 3 ECTPs of Z. multiflora have been analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Results: Analysis of the EOs indicated that 3 chemotypes were present in Z. multiflora, including carvacrol, thymol-carvacrol, and linalool, whereas previous studies have only found carvacrol and thymol. Inhibition studies showed that the tested EOs entirely inhibited the growth of yeasts at concentrations of less than 1 μL/mL. Moreover, the oils exhibited significant bacteriostatic and bactericidal activities against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria at concentrations ranging from 0.12 to 8 μL/mL. Conclusion: These results suggest that the EOs from Z. multiflora should be investigated further for possible use in antimicrobial products and food preservatives.

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Background: Mulberry (Morus, Moraceae) is widely distributed in the temperate, subtropical, or tropical regions of the world, while there are no conclusive reports on the chemical composition, nutritional value, and antioxidant properties of mulberry cultivars from China. Objective: To investigate chemical properties and to determine proximate nutritive compounds of the eight mulberry cultivars. Materials and Methods: Chemical properties (including moisture, ash, total dry matter, total soluble solids, pH, and total titratable acidity) of the eight mulberry cultivars were investigated. Proximate nutritive compounds (including crude protein, crude fat, mineral elements, total anthocyanins, total polyphenols, total flavonoids, and total sugars) were also determined. Results: The results indicated that the moisture contents were 70.0-87.4%, the crude protein contents 1.62-5.54%, and the crude fat contents from 1.23-2.23%. The major fatty acids in mulberry fruits were linoleic acid (C _18:2 ) and palmitic acid (C _16:0 ), 26.40-74.77% and 9.29-22.26%, respectively. Mulberry fruit is also a good source of minerals and the potassium content (521.37-1718.60 mg/100g DW) is especially higher than that of other elements. Compared with other species, the Morus atropurpurea Roxb. had relatively high total polyphenols content (189.67-246.00 mg GAE/100mg) and anthocyanins content (114.67-193.00 mg/100mg). There was a good linear correlation between antioxidant activity and total polyphenols content. Conclusion: Significant differences of the chemical composition, nutritional value, and antioxidant activities among the mulberry cultivars were observed, the Morus atropurpurea Roxb. showed considerable high nutritional value and antioxidant activity which could be developed for functional food that benefits human health.

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