Identification of flavonoids in Hymenaea martiana Hayne (Fabaceae) by HPLC-DAD-MSn analysis.

Hymenaea martiana is a native tree known in Brazil as 'jatobá' and used in folk medicine to treat pain and inflammation. The aim of this work was to identify the flavonoids present in the crude ethanolic extract and ethyl acetate fraction using HPLC-DAD and LC-MSn analysis. The ethanolic extract was partitioned to obtain the ethyl acetate fraction. The analysis of astilbin content also was carried out by HPLC analysis. HPLC-DAD-ESI/MSn analysis of the ethanolic extract and ethyl acetate fraction revealed the presence of eleven peaks in the chromatograms, and all these peaks were identified: taxifolin, eucryphin, astilbin and 3 diastereoisomers, engeletin and 2 diastereoisomers, quercitrin and 2,6,3',4'-tetrahydroxy-2-benzylcoumaran-3-one. The ethyl acetate fraction had a higher astilbin concentration (151.87 µg/mL) than the ethanolic extract (40.13 µg/mL). In conclusion, the species could be considered a good source of flavonoids, which can be related to the main chemotaxonomic markers for the genus Hymenaea.

Chemical composition, larvicidal and cytotoxic activity of Annona salzmannii (Annonaceae) seed oil

The seed oil of Annona salzmannii A. DC. was analyzed by GC-MS and 1H qNMR, revealing a mixture of unsaturated (80.5%) and saturated (18.7%) fatty acids. Linoleic (45.3%) and oleic (33.5%) acid were the major unsaturated fatty acids identified, while palmitic acid (14.3%) was the major saturated fatty acid. The larvicidal effects of A. salzmannii seed oil were evaluated against third-instar larvae of Aedes aegypti (Linn.). The oil exhibited moderate larvicidal activity, with a LC50 of 569.77 ppm (95% CI = 408.11 to 825.88 ppm). However, when the cytotoxic effects of the oil were evaluated, no expressive antiproliferative effects were observed in tumor cell lines B16-F10 (mouse melanoma), HepG2 (human hepatocellular carcinoma), K562 (human chronic myelocytic leukemia), HL-60 (human promyelocytic leukemia), and non-tumor cell line PBMC (peripheral blood mononuclear cells), with IC50 values > 50 µg·mL-1. This is the first study to evaluate the chemical composition, larvicidal and cytotoxic activity of A. salzmannii seed oil

Determination of phenolic compounds, in vitro antioxidant activity and characterization of secondary metabolites in different parts of Passiflora cincinnata by HPLC-DAD-MS/MS analysis.

Ethanol extracts of different parts of Passiflora cincinnata were obtained by maceration. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents were evaluated. The antioxidant activities were determined by ß-carotene-linoleic acid bleaching test, 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazil (DPPH), and 2,2'-azinobis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) radical scavenging. The crude ethanol stem extract showed the highest amount of total polyphenols (45.53 mg gallic acid equivalent/g) while the highest total flavonoid contents (1.42 mg of quercetin equivalent/g) were observed in the leaf extract. The lowest IC50 (25.65 µg/ml) by the DPPH method was observed for the stem extract. The ABTS method showed a significant antioxidant activity for all investigated extracts. The secondary metabolite composition of ethanol extracts was assessed by HPLC-DAD-MS/MS analysis, leading to the identification of fourteen secondary metabolites in P. cincinnata extracts. These results showed the potentiality of this species as a source of phenolic compounds and antioxidants.

Influence of light intensity, fertilizing and season on the cirsiliol content, a chemical marker of Leonotis nepetifolia (Lamiaceae).

BACKGROUND: Leonotis nepetifolia (Family Lamiaceae) is a medicinal plant from which the flavonoid cirsiliol with sedative, hypnotic, anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic activity has been extracted. METHODS: Seedlings were cultivated under different levels of shade in native or fertilized modes. The content of cirsiliol was measured monthly by high-performance liquid chromatography and the total phenolic content by the Folin-Ciocalteu method. Monitoring of growth was carried out with the weekly measurement of height until the stabilization of growth. RESULTS: The application of fertilizing and/or shading does not alter significantly the cirsiliol content. However, this content varies throughout the year, reaching the peak production in the summer, independently of the treatment applied. This same profile, with production in the summer, was also verified for phenolic compounds, reaching 58.15 ± 9.35 mg of equivalents of gallic acid per g of extract in the summer, content 1.84 times greater than the content verified in winter (31.56 ± 4.09 mg of gallic acid/g of extract). Although shading and fertilizing had no effect on cirsiliol content, the results also showed a positive influence on the height and biomass of the plant, which can causes a higher yield of extractable material. DISCUSSION: Biotic and abiotic stresses are able to increase or decrease the production of secondary metabolites, including phenolic compounds in medicinal plants and, as the stress response is peculiar to each species, cultivation studies become necessary. The present study reports by the first time the influence of shading, fertilizing and seasons in cirsiliol content in L. nepetifolia. Among analyzed variables, the seasons showed a larger influence in expression of cirsiliol and among seasons, our results showed that the summer is the ideal season for collections. In summer, the photoperiod is larger than in other seasons of the year and due to that, the plants need greater protection against the long photoperiod. For this, the plants increase the production of phenolic compounds as observed in this study. Although they do not influence the production of cirsiliol, the shading and nutrients in soil favor growth and leaf area of several plants, explaining, thus, the higher height and biomass obtained.

Gingerol suppresses sepsis-induced acute kidney injury by modulating methylsulfonylmethane and dimethylamine production.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) and metabolic dysfunction are critical complications in sepsis syndrome; however, their pathophysiological mechanisms remain poorly understood. Therefore, we evaluated whether the pharmacological properties of 6-gingerol (6G) and 10-gingerol (10G) could modulate AKI and metabolic disruption in a rat model of sepsis (faecal peritonitis). Animals from the sham and AKI groups were intraperitoneally injected with 6G or 10G (25 mg/kg). Septic AKI decreased creatinine clearance and renal antioxidant activity, but enhanced oxidative stress and the renal mRNA levels of tumour necrosis factor-α, interleukin-1ß, and transforming growth factor-ß. Both phenol compounds repaired kidney function through antioxidant activity related to decreased oxidative/nitrosative stress and proinflammatory cytokines. Metabolomics analysis indicated different metabolic profiles for the sham surgery group, caecal ligation and puncture model alone group, and sepsis groups treated with gingerols. 1H nuclear magnetic resonance analysis detected important increases in urinary creatine, allantoin, and dimethylglycine levels in septic rats. However, dimethylamine and methylsulfonylmethane metabolites were more frequently detected in septic animals treated with 6G or 10G, and were associated with increased survival of septic animals. Gingerols attenuated septic AKI by decreasing renal disturbances, oxidative stress, and inflammatory response through a mechanism possibly correlated with increased production of dimethylamine and methylsulfonylmethane.

1H HR-MAS NMR-based metabolomics study of different persimmon cultivars (Diospyros kaki) during fruit development.

1H HR-MAS NMR spectroscopy was used to track the metabolic changes throughout the whole development of astringent ('Giombo') and non-astringent ('Fuyu') cultivars of persimmon (Diospyros kaki). The NMR data revealed the low concentration of amino acids (threonine, alanine, citrulline and GABA) and organic acids (malic acid). In addition, the signals of carbohydrates (sucrose, glucose and fructose) seemed to play the most important role in the fruit development. In both cultivars, the growth was characterized by fluctuating sucrose concentration along with a constant increase in both glucose and fructose. In the initial growth stage, the polyphenol composition was quite different between the cultivars. Gallic acid was detected throughout the growth of 'Giombo', while for 'Fuyu', signals of polyphenols disappeared over time. Additional multivariate analysis suggested that these cultivars share many metabolic similarities during development. These findings might help the comprehension of fruit development, which in turn, impacts the quality of the fruits.