Phytochemical Profile of Trigonella caerulea (Blue Fenugreek) Herb and Quantification of Aroma-Determining Constituents.

The herb of Trigonella caerulea (Fabaceae), commonly known as blue fenugreek, is used for the production of traditional cheese and bread varieties in the Alpine region. Despite its frequent consumption, only one study so far has focused on the constituent pattern of blue fenugreek, revealing qualitative information on some flavor-determining constituents. However, with regard to the volatile constituents present in the herb, the applied methods were insufficient and did not take relevant terpenoids into account. In the present study, we analyzed the phytochemical composition of T. caerulea herb applying a set of analytical methods, such as headspace-GC, GC-MS, LC-MS, and NMR spectroscopy. We thus determined the most dominant primary and specialized metabolites and assessed the fatty acid profile as well as the amounts of taste-relevant α-keto acids. In addition, eleven volatiles were quantified, of which tiglic aldehyde, phenylacetaldehyde, methyl benzoate, n-hexanal, and trans-menthone were identified as most significantly contributing to the aroma of blue fenugreek. Moreover, pinitol was found accumulated in the herb, whereas preparative works led to the isolation of six flavonol glycosides. Hence, our study shows a detailed analysis of the phytochemical profile of blue fenugreek and provides an explanation for its characteristic aroma and its health-beneficial effects.

Flavones, Flavonols, Lignans, and Caffeic Acid Derivatives from Dracocephalum moldavica and Their In Vitro Effects on Multiple Myeloma and Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

Phenolic plant constituents are well known for their health-promoting and cancer chemopreventive properties, and products containing such constituents are therefore readily consumed. In the present work, we isolated 13 phenolic constituents of four different compound classes from the aerial parts of the Moldavian dragonhead, an aromatic and medicinal plant with a high diversity on secondary metabolites. All compounds were tested for their apoptotic effect on myeloma (KMS-12-PE) and AML (Molm-13) cells, with the highest activity observed for the flavone and flavonol derivatives. While diosmetin (6) exhibited the most pronounced effects on the myeloma cell line, two polymethylated flavones, namely cirsimaritin (1) and xanthomicrol (3), were particularly active against AML cells and therefore subsequently investigated for their antiproliferative effects at lower concentrations. At a concentration of 2.5 µM, cirsimaritin (1) reduced proliferation of Molm-13 cells by 72% while xanthomicrol (3) even inhibited proliferation to the extent of 84% of control. In addition, both compounds were identified as potent FLT3 inhibitors and thus display promising lead structures for further drug development. Moreover, our results confirmed the chemopreventive properties of flavonoids in general, and in particular of polymethylated flavones, which have been intensively investigated especially over the last decade.

Antimicrobial Prenylated Isoflavones from the Leaves of the Amazonian Medicinal Plant Vatairea guianensis Aubl.

Vatairea guianenis Aubl. (Fabaceae) is an Amazonian medicinal plant species traditionally used for treating skin diseases. In an initial screening, a V. guianensis leaf extract and its subextracts showed antibacterial and antifungal activities. The EtOAc subextract was selected for chemical workup and afforded five known (1-4 and 8) and six undescribed isoflavones, vatairenones C-H (5-7 and 9-11). All isoflavones are prenylated in position C-8, displaying either chain-prenylated (1-7) or ring-closed forms (8-11). The most bioactive compound (3) exhibited in vitro activity against clinically relevant bacteria and fungi with IC50 values ranging from 6.8 to 26.9 µM. Due to its broad antimicrobial activity and low general toxicity, compound 3 is a potential lead compound for structural modifications. The results of the present study support the ethnomedicinal use of V. guianensis in the treatment of dermatological disorders. 1H NMR spectra of some of the isolated compounds showed intricate signal patterns, which might explain repeated errors in assigning the correct structure of the isoflavonoid B-ring in the literature and which we resolved by higher order spectra simulations.

Effects of Crude Fucus distichus Subspecies evanescens Fucoidan Extract on Retinal Pigment Epithelium Cells-Implications for Use in Age-Related Macular Degeneration.

Fucoidan extracts may have beneficial effects in age-related macular degeneration(AMD). Over-the-counter fucoidan preparations are generally undefined, crude extracts. In thisstudy, we investigated the effect of a crude fucoidan extract from Fucus distichus subspeciesevanescens (Fe) on the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Fe extract was investigated for chemicalcomposition and molar mass. It was tested in primary RPE and RPE cell line ARPE19. Oxidativestress was induced with tert-butyl hydroperoxide, cell viability evaluated with MTT assay, VEGFsecretion assessed in ELISA. Phagocytosis was evaluated in a fluorescence microscopic assay.Wound healing ability was tested in a scratch assay. Additionally, the inhibition of elastase andcomplement system by Fe extract was studied. The Fe extract contained about 61.9% fucose andhigh amounts of uronic acids (26.2%). The sulfate content was not as high as expected (6.9%). It wasnot toxic and not protective against oxidative stress. However, Fe extract was able to reduce VEGFsecretion in ARPE19. Phagocytosis was also reduced. Concerning wound healing, a delay could beobserved in higher concentrations. While some beneficial effects could be found, it seems tointerfere with RPE function, which may reduce its beneficial effects in AMD treatment.