Evaluation of antioxidant capacity and synergistic associations of quinonemethide triterpenes and phenolic substances from Maytenus ilicifolia (Celastraceae).

This work describes the isolation of the secondary metabolites identified as the quinonemethides maytenin (1) and pristimerin (2) from Maytenus ilicifolia extracts obtained from root barks of adult plants and roots of seedlings and their quantification by high performance liquid chromatography coupled to a diode array detector. The electrochemical profiles obtained from cyclic voltammetry and a coulometric detector coupled to high-performance liquid chromatography contributed to the evaluation of their antioxidant capacity. The antioxidant properties of individual components and the crude extracts of the root barks of Maytenus ilicifolia were compared and the possible synergistic associations of quinonemethide triterpenes and phenolic substances were investigated by using rutin as a model phenolic compound.

Pharmacobotanical characterization of Monteverdia ilicifolia (Mart. ex Reiss.) Biral leaves and its adulterants sold as medicinal tea in Brazil: a contribution to quality control / Caracterización farmacobotánica de hojas de Monteverda ilicifolia (Mart. ex Reiss.) Biral y sus adulterantes vendidos como té medicinal en Brasil: una contribución al contol de calidad

Leaves of Monteverdia ilicifolia ("espinheira-santa") are considered a medicinal tea by the Brazilian Sanitary Surveillance Agency (Anvisa), by their anti-dyspeptic, anti-acid and protective of the gastric mucosa properties. Their spiny margins are similar to those of other botanical species, which may lead to misidentifications. The aim of this work was to evaluate the authenticity of 32 samples of herbal drugs commercialized as "espinheira-santa" in the formal trade in Brazil, by macro and microscopic morphological studies of the leaves. The evaluation of the botanical authenticity was based on leaf venation patterns, shape and anatomy of the petiole and midrib region in cross section, vascular system arrangement and epidermal characters. Analysis of these characters compared to literature data suggests that 34% of the samples are M. ilicifolia and the remaining 66% are Sorocea bonplandii, a species with no clinical studies assuring its effective and safe use, representing thus a potential risk to public health.

Las hojas de Monteverdia ilicifolia ("espinheira-santa") son consideradas tés medicinales por la Agencia Nacional de Vigilancia Sanitaria (Anvisa), Brasil, por las indicaciones terapéuticas como antidispépticos, antiácidos y protectores de la mucosa gástrica. Sus márgenes foliares espinescentes se parecen a los de otras especies, conduciendo a identificaciones erróneas. El objetivo de este trabajo fue evaluar la autenticidad de 32 muestras de drogas vegetales vendidas como "espinheira-santa" en el comercio legal de Brasil, realizando un estudio morfológico de las hojas. Esta evaluación se ha basado en observar de la hoja, sus patrones de nerviación, su forma y anatomía (pecíolo y nervadura central en corte transversal), disposición del sistema vascular y caracteres epidérmicos. El análisis de la morfología, comparado con los datos de literatura, sugiere que el 34% de las muestras son M. ilicifoliay el 66% son Sorocea bonplandii, una especie que no cuenta con los estudios clínicos que garantizan su uso efectivo y seguro, representando un riesgo para la salud pública.

Stem and leaf morphoanatomy of Maytenus ilicifolia.

Maytenus ilicifolia is a woody medicinal plant, employed mainly for its antiulcerogenic properties. The stem and leaf morphoanatomy has been studied, aiming to supply knowledge for the pharmacognostic and taxonomic species identification. The vegetative material was fixed, freehand sectioned and stained according to usual microtechniques. The stem organization, in secondary growth, shows periderm beneath the remaining epidermis, conspicuous sclerenchymatic ring in the cortex and cambium forming phloem outside and xylem inside. The leaf is simple, alternate and lanceolate and has sparsely spiny teeth along the margin. Epidermal cells containing calcium oxalate crystals, thick cuticle that forms cuticular flanges, dorsiventral mesophyll and amphicrival bundle in the midrib and petiole are observed.

Comparação do teor de taninos entre duas espécies de espinheira-santa (Maytenus aquifolium Mart.e Maytenus ilicifolia Mart. ex Reissek)cultivadas no Horto Medicinal do Refúgio Biológico Bela Vista - RBBV da Itaipu Binacional - Foz do Iguaçu, PR - Brasil / Comparison of the tannin doses between two species of thorn-santa (Maytenus ilicifolia Mart. and Maytenus aquifolium Mart. ex Reissek) grown in the medicinal garden of Bela Vista Biological Refuge - RBBV of Itaipu Binational - Foz do Iguacu, PR - Brazil

RESUMO As duas espécies de espinheira-santa Maytenus aquifolium Mart. e Maytenus ilicifolia Mart. ex Reissek pertencentes à família Celastraceae e têm sido intensamente exploradas nas populações nativas devido seu alto valor medicinal. O grande interesse pela espinheira-santa é para o tratamento de gastrites, úlceras gástricas e duodenais. O efeito antiulcerogênico está relacionado com a presença de polifenóis totais, mais especificamente com os taninos. Este trabalho teve como objetivo comparar o teor de taninos entre essas duas espécies cultivadas no Horto Medicinal do Refúgio Biológico Bela Vista - RBBV da Itaipu Binacional no município de Foz do Iguaçu, PR - Brasil. Foram realizadas duas coletas com intervalo de um mês para cada espécie e para a quantificação foi realizada a análise por espectrofotometria segundo a Farmacopeia Brasileira V. Os resultados foram analisados através do teste de variância (ANOVA) e a diferença no teor de taninos foi evidenciada pelo teste Tukey, a 5% de nível de significância empregando-se o software SISVAR. Foram obtidos em média 0,61% para o lote 1 e 2 de Maytenus aquifolium e (3,90%) para Maytenus ilicifolia, resultando em uma média de 84,35% de taninos a mais para Maytenus ilicifolia em comparação com Maytenus aquifolium concluindo assim que as espécies não devem ser intercambiáveis.

ABSTRACT The two species of (espinheira-santa) Maytenus aquifolium and Maytenus ilicifolia, which belong to the Celastraceae family, have been intensively explored in native populations, due to its medicinal potential. The great interest in the espinheira-santa is due to its effectiveness on the treatment of gastritis, gastric and duodenal ulcers. The antiulcerogenic effect is related to the presence of phenolic compounds, more specifically the tannins. This study aimed to compare the tannin doses between these two species grown in the Medicinal Garden of Bela Vista Biological Refuge - RBBV of Itaipu in the city of Foz do Iguaçu, PR - Brazil. Two trials were conducted with one month interval, for the quantification of the tannins by a spectrophotometry, according to the Brazilian Pharmacopoeia V. The results were analyzed through the analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the difference in the tannins doses was demonstrated in a Tukey test at 5% level of significance employing the SISVAR software. It were found 0.61% of tannins for lot 1 and 2 of Maytenus aquifolium, and 3.90% for Maytenus ilicifolia, which represents 84.35% more tannin at Maytenus ilicifolia than at Maytenus aquifolium. Therefore, the species should not be interchanged.

Quantitative determination for cytotoxic Friedo-nor-oleanane derivatives from five morphological types of Maytenus ilicifolia (Celastraceae) by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography.

Five different morphological types of Maytenus ilicifolia of the same age and harvested under the same conditions showed distinct accumulations of some friedo-nor-oleananes. A rapid, sensitive and reliable reverse-phase HPLC method (employing an external standard) was used for the determination of the cytotoxic triterpenoids, 20 alpha-hydroxymaytenin, 22 beta-hydroxymaytenin, maytenin, celastrol and pristimerin in each of the five types. Well resolved peaks with good detection response and linearity in the range 1.0-100 micrograms/mL were obtained.