The First Comprehensive Chemical Profiling of Vachellia gummifera (Willd.) Kyal. & Boatwr., a Plant with Medicinal Value.

Vachellia gummifera (Willd.) Kyal. & Boatwr. is a medicinal plant endemic to Morocco that has no documented studies on its chemical composition. In this study, the chemical composition of the water/methanol (4 : 1) extracts of air-dried leaf and stem samples of Moroccan V. gummifera was determined using UHPLC-MS and NMR. In total, over 100 metabolites were identified in our study. Pinitol was the major compound in both the leaf and stem extracts, being significantly more abundant in the former. Asparagine and 3-hydroxyheteroendrin were the second most abundant compounds in the stem and leaf extracts, respectively, though both compounds were present in each tissue. The other compounds included flavonoids based on quercetin, and phenolic derivatives. Eucomic acid, only identified in the stems and was the major aromatic compound distinguishing the leaf and stem profiles. Quercetin 3-O-(6''-O-malonyl)-ß-D-glucopyranoside was identified as the major flavonoid in the leaves but was also present in the stems. Other malonylated derivatives that were all flavonol glycosides based on myricetin, kaempferol, and isorhamnetin in addition to quercetin were also identified. This is the first report of eucomic acid and malonylated compounds in Vachellia species. This report provides valuable insights into the chemotaxonomic significance of the Vachellia genus.

Phenolics from Medicinal and Aromatic Plants: Characterisation and Potential as Biostimulants and Bioprotectants.

Biostimulants and bioprotectants are derived from natural sources and can enhance crop growth and protect crops from pests and pathogens, respectively. They have attracted much attention in the past few decades and contribute to a more sustainable and eco-friendly agricultural system. Despite not having been explored extensively, plant extracts and their component secondary metabolites, including phenolic compounds have been shown to have biostimulant effects on plants, including enhancement of growth attributes and yield, as well as bioprotectant effects, including antimicrobial, insecticidal, herbicidal and nematicidal effects. Medicinal and aromatic plants are widely distributed all over the world and are abundant sources of phenolic compounds. This paper reviews the characterisation of phenolic compounds and extracts from medicinal and aromatic plants, including a brief overview of their extraction, phytochemical screening and methods of analysis. The second part of the review highlights the potential for use of phenolic compounds and extracts as biostimulants and bioprotectants in agriculture as well as some of the challenges related to their use.

Tissue biochemical diversity of 20 gooseberry cultivars and the effect of ethylene supplementation on postharvest life.

The European gooseberry (Ribes uva-crispa) is still an understudied crop with limited data available on its biochemical profile and postharvest life. A variety of polyphenols were detected in the skin and flesh of 20 gooseberry cvs, representing mainly flavonol glycosides, anthocyanins and flavan-3-ols. In contrast, gooseberry seeds were for the first time characterised by the presence of considerable amounts of hydroxycinnamic acid glycosides tentatively identified by UPLC-QToF/MS. All cvs examined represented a good source of vitamin C while being low in sugar. Furthermore, the postharvest stability of bioactives was explored by supplementation of exogenous ethylene in air at 5 °C. Results suggest a low sensitivity of gooseberries to ethylene. The overall quality of gooseberries remained stable over two weeks, showing potential for extended bioactive life.

Effects of Greek legume plant extracts on xanthine oxidase, catalase and superoxide dismutase activities

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Legumes are considered to have beneficial health implications, which have been attributed to their phytochemical content. Polyphenols are considered the most important phytochemical compounds extensively studied for their antioxidant properties. The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of potent antioxidant legume plant extracts on xanthine oxidase (XO), catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities. XO exerts a dual role, as it is the major contributor of free radicals during exercise while it generates uric acid, the most potent antioxidant molecule in plasma. CAT and SOD are two of the main enzymes of the antioxidant defence of tissues. We demonstrate that the majority of the extracts inhibited XO activity, but they had no effect on CAT inhibition and SOD induction when used at low concentrations. These results imply that the tested extracts may be considered as possible source of novel XO inhibitors. However, we have shown that allopurinol administration, a known XO inhibitor, before exercise reduces performance and induces oxidative stress in rats. Considering the fact that the extracts examined had an inhibitory effect on XO activity, possibly posing a restriction in their characterization as antioxidants, phytochemical antioxidant administration before exercise should probably be reconsidered (AU)

Effects of Greek legume plant extracts on xanthine oxidase, catalase and superoxide dismutase activities.

Legumes are considered to have beneficial health implications, which have been attributed to their phytochemical content. Polyphenols are considered the most important phytochemical compounds extensively studied for their antioxidant properties. The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of potent antioxidant legume plant extracts on xanthine oxidase (XO), catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities. XO exerts a dual role, as it is the major contributor of free radicals during exercise while it generates uric acid, the most potent antioxidant molecule in plasma. CAT and SOD are two of the main enzymes of the antioxidant defence of tissues. We demonstrate that the majority of the extracts inhibited XO activity, but they had no effect on CAT inhibition and SOD induction when used at low concentrations. These results imply that the tested extracts may be considered as possible source of novel XO inhibitors. However, we have shown that allopurinol administration, a known XO inhibitor, before exercise reduces performance and induces oxidative stress in rats. Considering the fact that the extracts examined had an inhibitory effect on XO activity, possibly posing a restriction in their characterization as antioxidants, phytochemical antioxidant administration before exercise should probably be reconsidered.

Effects of grape extracts on the in vitro activity of enzymes involved in oxidative stress regulation.

BACKGROUND/AIM: A number of in vitro and in vivo studies have investigated the potential preventive activity of grape extracts against different diseases, and have mostly focused on their antioxidant properties. The present study examined the effects of 21 extracts from stem, skin and berry from Greek grape varieties on the activity of enzymes involved in regulation of oxidative stress, namely xanthine oxidase (XO), catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The effects of the extracts on the enzymatic activity of XO, CAT and SOD were studied spectrophotometrically. RESULTS: The tested extracts inhibited CAT and XO activity, while higher extract concentrations are required to induce SOD. However, stem and skin extracts exhibited a different inhibitory pattern against CAT and XO compared to berry extracts. The observed differences are possibly attributed to the extract polyphenolic composition. CONCLUSION: Although the induction of SOD activity suggests an antioxidant capacity, the inhibition of CAT and XO indicates a pro-oxidant action. In general, the extracts showed pro-oxidant activity, possibly dependent on both their polyphenolic composition and concentration.

Antilisterial activities of polyphenol-rich extracts of grapes and vinification byproducts.

The quantitation of the main polyphenols and the assessment of the total polyphenolic content (TPC) in polyphenol-rich extracts of grape berries and vinification byproducts, obtained from Vitis vinifera cultivars of the Greek islands, are presented. The results indicated that seed extracts contain high concentrations of flavan-3-ols and their derivatives, whereas pomace and stem extracts consist of significant amounts of flavonoids, stilbenes, and phenolic acids. In particular, stemsa scarcely studied class of grape byproductwere also characterized by high trans-resveratrol and epsilon-viniferin content. The evaluation of their in vitro antilisterial activities revealed as most potent the seed and stem extracts of the red variety Mandilaria. Their minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were assessed using a Malthus apparatus by two methods, a plate count technique and an automated technique that combines the conductance measurements with the common dilution method. The results revealed the usefulness of the conductance method as an alternative rapid means for the MIC estimation, whereas the respective values (0.26 and 0.34 for seeds and stems) indicated that both extracts represent an inexpensive source of potent natural antilisterial mixtures, which may be incorporated in food systems to prevent the growth of Listeria monocytogenes .