The chemical composition of the essential oil of Knema kunstleri Warb. (Myristicaceae) was investigated for the first time. The essential oil was obtained by hydrodistillation and fully characterized by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). In total, 36 components were identified in the essential oil, which made up 91.7% of the total oil. The essential oil is composed mainly of β-caryophyllene (23.2%), bicyclogermacrene (9.6%), δ-cadinene (7.3%), α-humulene (5.7%), and germacrene D (4.3%). The essential oil showed moderate activity towards DPPH free-radical scavenging and lipoxygenase inhibition. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study of the composition and bioactivities of the essential oil report concerning the genus Knema.
This study was designed to examine the essential oils compositions of Litsea glauca Siebold and Litsea fulva Fern.-Vill. growing in Malaysia. The essential oils were achieved by hydrodistillation and fully characterized by gas chromatography (GC-FID) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The study identified 17 and 19 components from the leaf oils from L. glauca (80.7%) and L. fulva (81.5%), respectively. The major components of L. glauca oil were β-selinene (30.8%), β-calacorene (11.3%), tridecanal (7.6%), isophytol (4.8%) and β-eudesmol (4.5%); whereas in L. fulva oil gave β-caryophyllene (27.8%), caryophyllene oxide (12.8%), α-cadinol (6.3%), (E)-nerolidol (5.7%), β-selinene (5.5%) and tridecanal (5.0%). Anticholinesterase activity was evaluated using Ellman method. The essential oils showed moderate inhibitory activity on acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase assays. Our findings demonstrate that the essential oil could be very useful for the characterization, pharmaceutical, and therapeutic applications of the essential oil from the genus Litsea.
The genus Knema Lour. is distributed mainly in Southeast Asian and widely used in folk medicine for treating diseases such as jaundice, chronic fever, and inflammation. The chemical composition, acetylcholinesterase inhibition, and molecular docking studies of essential oil from Knema hookeriana Warb. were investigated in this study. The essential oil was achieved through hydrodistillation and was characterised using gas chromatography (GC-FID) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity was evaluated using Ellman method while molecular docking studies were carried out using Autodock v.4.3.2. The results revealed that the essential oil examined consisted mainly of β-caryophyllene (26.2%), germacrene D (12.5%), δ-cadinene (9.2%), germacrene B (8.8%) and bicyclogermacrene (5.5%). The essential oil showed acetylcholinesterase activity with IC50 value of 70.5 µg/mL. The enzyme-ligand molecular docking study showed that β-caryophyllene and δ-cadinene exhibited good binding affinities towards AChE with docking scores -8.1 kcal/mol and -8.3 kcal/mol, respectively.
Different extraction processes were employed to extract bioactive metabolites from Salacca zalacca flesh by a range of aqueous and organic solvents. The highest extraction yield was obtained by 50% ethanol extract of SE (73.18 ± 4.35%), whereas SFE_1 showed the lowest yield (0.42 ± 0.08%). All extracts were evaluated for in vitro α-glucosidase inhibitory activity, measured by their IC50 values in comparison to that of quercetin, the positive control (IC50 = 2.7 ± 0.7 μg/mL). The lowest α-glucosidase inhibitory activity was indicated by water extract of SE (IC50 = 724.3 ± 42.9 μg/mL) and the highest activity was demonstrated by 60% ethanol extract by UAE (IC50 = 16.2 ± 2.4 μg/mL). All extracts were analysed by GC-MS and identified metabolites like carbohydrates, fatty acids, organic acids, phenolic acids, sterols and alkane-based compounds etcetera that may possess the potential as α-glucosidase inhibitor and may attribute to the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity.
In this study, phytochemical composition, antioxidant, enzyme inhibition and cytotoxic activities of methanol and dichloromethane (DCM) extracts of Bougainvillea glabra (B. glabra) flowers were investigated. Methanol extract was found to have higher total bioactive contents and UHPLC-MS analysis of methanol extract revealed the presence of well-known phenolic and flavonoid compounds. Antioxidant activities were performed by radical scavenging (DPPH and ABTS), reducing power (FRAP and CUPRAC), phosphomolybdenum (TAC) and metal chelating assays. From our result, we observed that methanol extract had many antioxidant compounds. The DCM extract exhibited higher cholinesterases and α-glucosidase enzyme inhibition, while methanol extract showed significant urease inhibition. Both extracts exhibited strong to moderate cytotoxicity against MCF-7, MDA-MB-231, CaSki, DU-145 and SW-480 cancer cells with IC50 values ranging from 88.49 to 304.7 µg/mL. The findings showed the B. glabra to possess considerable antioxidant, enzyme inhibition and cytotoxic potentials and therefore has potential to discover novel bioactive molecules.
In this study, different parts (aerial, stem and root) of Salvadora oleoides Decne were investigated in order to explore their phytochemical composition and biological potential. The bioactive contents were evaluated by conventional spectrophotometric methods. Additionally, the secondary metabolite compounds were identified by UHPLC-MS analysis. Biological potential was evaluated by determining antioxidant (DPPH, FRAP, and Phosphomolybdenum) and enzyme inhibitory (butrylcholinesterase and lipoxygenase) effects. Higher total bioactive contents were found in methanolic extracts which tend to correlate with higher radical scavenging and reducing potential of these extracts. LC/MS spectrum revealed the presence of 16 different secondary metabolites belonging to terpene, glucoside and sesquiterpenoid dervivatives. Glucocleomin and emotin A were the main compounds present in all three parts. The strongest butrylcholinesterase and lipoxygenase inhibitory activity was observed for root and stem DCM extracts. Demonstrated biological potential of S. oleoides plant can trace a new road map for developing newly designed bioactive pharmaceuticals.
This study sets out to probe into total bioactive contents, UHPLC-MS secondary metabolites profiling, antioxidant (DPPH, ABTS, FRAP, CUPRAC, phosphomolybdenum and metal chelating) and enzyme inhibitory (acetylcholinesterase- AChE, butyrylcholinesterase- BChE, α-amylase, α glucosidase, and tyrosinase) activities of methanol extract of Aerva javanica, also known as desert cotton or Kapok bush. Aerva javanica contains considerable phenolic (44.79 ± 3.12 mg GAE/g) and flavonoid (28.86 ± 0.12 mg QE/g) contents which tends to correlate with its significant antioxidant potential for ABTS, FRAP and CUPRAC assays with values of 101.41 ± 1.18, 124.10 ± 1.71 and 190.22 ± 5.70 mg TE/g, respectively. The UHPLC-MS analysis identified the presence of 45 phytochemicals belonging to six major groups: phenolic, flavonoids, lignin, terpenes, glycoside and alkaloid. Moreover, the plant extract also showed potent inhibitory action against AChE (3.73 ± 0.22 mg GALAE/g), BChE (3.31 ± 0.19 mg GALAE/g) and tyrosinase (126.05 ± 1.77 mg KAE/g). The observed results suggest A. javanica could be further explored as a natural source of bioactive compounds.
Anagallis arvensis L. commonly known as 'Scarlet Pimpernel' has been used in folklore as natural remedy for treating common ailments. The present research is aimed to explore the phytochemical composition and enzyme inhibition potential of methanol and dichloromethane (DCM) extracts of A. arvensis aerial and root parts. The phytochemical composition was established via HPLC-PDA polyphenolic quantification and UHPLC-MS analysis, while the inhibition potential against amylase and tyrosinase enzymes were assessed using standard in vitro protocols. The HPLC-PDA polyphenolic quantification revealed the presence of important compounds including catechin, gallic acid, chlorogenic acid, and ferulic acid, whereas 34 different secondary metabolites were tentatively identified by UHPLC-MS of both the DCM extracts. All the extracts showed moderate tyrosinase and a weak amylase inhibition activity. The aerial-DCM extract showed comparatively higher tyrosinase and amylase enzyme inhibition potential, which may be due to the presence of secondary metabolites as tentatively identified by its UHPLC-MS profiling.
In tropical forests, Hoya, a plant with significant indigenous medicinal applications, has been underexplored in pharmacological studies. This systematic review meticulously investigates the diverse pharmacological effects exhibited by various Hoya species on human health. A comprehensive literature search, encompassing Scopus, ScienceDirect, and SpringerLink databases, employed specific keyword combinations ('Hoya' and 'pharmacological properties' OR 'pharmacology property'). The included studies exclusively focused on Hoya's impact on human health. The findings underscore Hoya's potential as a medicinal plant, demonstrating promising attributes such as anticancer, antibacterial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, antinociceptive, and parasympatholytic effects. Despite these promising indications, the review underscores the necessity for further in vivo investigations to fully unlock Hoya's therapeutic potential. A comprehensive understanding of its mechanisms of action, efficacy, and safety in living systems is imperative for realising its holistic therapeutic benefits.
This present study aimed to investigate the effects of Gracilaria changii (Red seaweed) extract and its fraction on scavenger receptor class B type I (SR-BI) gene expressions. In vitro studies of the activity of G. changii extract and its fraction against the therapeutic target for hypocholesterolemia were conducted using high-density lipoprotein (HDL) receptor SR-BI via luciferase assay in HepG2 cells. In the current study, methanol crude extract (MCE) and Fraction-2 of G. changii showed the highest expression levels of the SR-BI gene via luciferase assay and increased SR-BI mRNA expression compared to the negative control. Metabolite profiling of the MCE of G. changii by GC-MS revealed nine major compounds, comprising various fatty acids, particularly hexadecenoic acid. Therefore, the MCE and Fraction-2 of G. changii have the potential to be explored in the treatment of hypercholesterolaemia to prevent or reduce the severity of atherosclerosis development.
Leaf extracts of Melicope lunu-ankenda were chemically studied and found to contain mixtures of hydrocarbons and squalene, fatty acids and esters. A geranylated coumaric acid was isolated as the major compound. The crude dichloromethane and methanol extracts of the leaves were found to be strongly larvicidal with LC50 values below 20 microg mL(-1). This is a first isolation of p-O-geranylcoumaric acid from this plant.
Seven flavonoid compounds have been isolated from the aerial parts of tiger's betel (Piper porphyrophyllum), which were identified as 5,7-dimethoxyflavone, 4',5,7-trimethoxy-flavone, 3',4',5,7-tetramethoxyflavone, 4'-hydroxy-3',5,7-trimethoxyflavone, 5-hydroxy-3',4',7-trimethoxyflavone, 4',5-dihydroxy-3',7-dimethoxyflavone and 5-hydroxy-7-methoxyflavanone. The identification of all compounds was achieved by physical properties and spectroscopically. These data were also confirmed by comparison with previously reported spectral data. Flavonoid compounds with high content in P. porphyrophyllum can probably be used as a chemical marker for this Piper species.
A new flavonoid, dihydroglychalcone-A, was isolated from the leaves extract of Glycosmis chlorosperma in addition to two known sulphur-containing amides, dambullin and gerambullin. The structure of the new compound was assigned as 2'-hydroxy-4,6'-dimethoxy-3',4'-(2",2"-dimethylpyrano)dihydrochalcone. The extract of the leaves was also found to exhibit antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities.
Two new bisanthraquinones, glabraquinone A and B (1-2) were isolated from the root of Prismatomeris glabra (Korth.) Valeton. In addition to the new glabraquinones, six known anthraquinones, that is, 1-hydroxy-2-methoxy-6-methylanthraquinone (3), 1,2-dimethoxy-7-methylanthraquinone (4), lucidin (5), nordamnacanthal (6), damnacanthal (7) and 2-carboxaldehyde-3-hydroxyanthraquinone (8)) and an aromatic compound, that is, catechol diethyl ether (9) were isolated and characterized in this study. Compounds 1, 4 and 9 showed mild activity, reducing N2A cell viability to 77%, 82% and 77%, respectively, in anti-neuroblastoma assay.
Chalcones are a group of compounds widely distributed in plant kingdom. The aim of this study was to assess the neurite outgrowth stimulatory activity of selected chalcones, namely helichrysetin, xanthohumol and flavokawin-C. Using adherent rat pheochromocytoma (PC12 Adh) cells, the chalcones were subjected to neurite outgrowth assay and the extracellular nerve growth factor (NGF) levels were determined. Xanthohumol (10 μg/mL) displayed the highest (p
Two new C15-acetogenins, 4-epi-isolaurallene (1) and 4-epi-itomanallene A (2) were isolated from a population of marine red alga Laurencia nangii Masuda from Carrington Reef. The structures of these compounds were determined intensively by NMR and HRESIMS data. Their configurations were elucidated by detailed comparison of chemical shifts, germinal protons splitting and NOE correlations with known and synthesized analogues. In addition, antibacterial activities of these compounds were evaluated. These compounds would serve as diastereomeric models for future reference. Since the isolaurallene, neolaurallene, 9-acetoxy-1,10,12-tribromo-4,7:6,13-bisepoxypentadeca-1,2-diene, itomanallene A and laurendecumallene A were isolated, compounds 1 and 2 were the sixth example of C15-acetogenin with dioxabicyclo[7.3.0]dodecene skeleton.
A new xenicane diterpenoid, 15-deoxy-isoxeniolide-A (1) along with four known compounds 9-deoxy-isoxeniolide-A (2), isoxeniolide-A (3), xeniolide-A (4) and coraxeniolide-B (5) were isolated from the Bornean soft coral Xenia sp. The structures of these metabolites were elucidated on the basis of spectral analysis, NMR and HRESIMS. Compound 5 showed cytotoxic activity against ATL cell line, S1T.
One new compound, 12-epi-9-deacetoxyxenicin (1) along with a hydroperoxide product, 12-epi-9-deacetoxy-8-hydroperoxyxenicin (2) and two known sesquiterpenoids (3-4) were isolated from a population of Bornean soft coral Xenia sp. The structures of these secondary metabolites were elucidated based on their spectroscopic data. Compounds 1 and 2 showed cytotoxic activity against ATL cell line, S1T. In addition, compound 3 exhibited hyphal inhibition of Lagenidium thermophilum.
Four new bicyclogermacrenes, capgermacrenes D (1) E (2) F (3) and G (4) were isolated from a population of Bornean soft coral Capnella imbricata. The structures of these metabolites were elucidated based on their nuclear magnetic resonance and high-resolution electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry spectral data. These compounds showed bacteriastatic and bacteriacidal activities against Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.
Euphorbia hirta (L.) plant is traditionally used in Malaysia for the treatment of gastrointestinal, bronchial and respiratory ailments caused by nosocomial infectious agents. Bioactivity-guided fractionation of the methanol extract of the aerial parts of E. hirta and analysis using high-performance liquid chromatography have led to the isolation of two antibacterial compounds. These compounds were identified as caffeic acid (CA) and (-)-epicatechin 3-gallate (ECG) based on spectroscopic analyses and comparison with previously published data. Using broth microdilution method, both ECG and CA had demonstrated significant minimum inhibitory concentration of 15.6 and 31.3 μg/mL respectively, against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Time-kill assessment of ECG and CA displayed bactericidal effect on P. aeruginosa cells.