Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Activities of Stellera chamaejasme L. Roots and Aerial Parts Extracts.

Natural products, mainly plants, have a crucial role in folk medicine. Particularly, Stellera chamaejasme L. has been traditionally used in Mongolian medicine to treat various diseases, including chronic tracheitis, tuberculosis, and psoriasis. In this study, ethanol (EtOH) and dichloromethane (DCM) extracts of its roots (R) and aerial parts (AP) were evaluated for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Thin-layer chromatography demonstrated the presence of flavonoids, namely kaempferol and quercetin-3-O-glucopyranoside, only in the EtOH-AP. Conversely, it showed that kaempferol, quercetin-3-O-glucopyranoside, coumarin, luteolin, rutin, morin, and riboflavin were not present in the other three extracts. The S. chamaejasme extracts exhibited strong antioxidant activity. In addition, the roots extracts presented the highest antioxidant activity against peroxyl radicals, with the EtOH-R being the most potent (IC50 = 0.90 ± 0.07 µg/mL). S. chamaejasme extracts also efficiently inhibited the production of one of the main pro-inflammatory cytokines, interleukin (IL)-6, in a dose-dependent manner by lipopolysaccharide-stimulated macrophages. Particularly, DCM-R was the strongest extract, reducing ≈ 91.5% of the IL-6 production. Since this extract was the most effective, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analyses were performed and demonstrated the presence of two fatty acids (palmitic acid and 9-octadecenoic acid), one fatty alcohol (1-hexadecanol), and one triterpenoid (squalene) that can contribute to the observed bioactivity. Herewith, S. chamaejasme extracts, mainly DCM-R, exhibit antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities that could be applied as new and innovative natural formulations for the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases.

Anti-oxidative, Acetylcholinesterase Inhibitory Activities and Acute Toxicity Study of Nepeta sibirica L

Nepeta sibirica L. or Siberian catmint is a medicinal plant species used in Mongolian traditional medicine for curing human different disorders and veterinary practices. The previous study of the whole plant concentrated on the determination of its essential oil composition and reported that the major ones are sesquiterpenes, including nepetalactone. The aim of this study was to reveal a new biological activity of the above-ground parts of N. sibirica L. and compare the activity of different extracts correlating with the content of biologically active compounds and evaluate their toxicity. For this purpose, anti-oxidative and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activities of the above-ground parts of N. sibirica L. aqueous and ethanol (EtOH) (40%, 70%) extracts were assayed spectrophotometrically. The aqueous extract showed positive anti-oxidative activity by both tested DPPH and FRAP assays with IC 50 134.24 ± 1.42 mg/mL and FRAP value 1385.15 ± 8.12 μmol/L at 200 μg/mL, in contrast to 40% and 70% EtOH extracts. The 70% EtOH extract presented the highest acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity (IC 50 77.29 ± 0.38 mg/mL) followed by 40% EtOH extract (176.72 ± 0.35 mg/mL) and aqueous extract (275.41 ± 0.23 mg/mL). Total phenolics were found to be gallic acid equivalent, % 3.74 ± 0.05 (70% EtOH), 3.94 ± 0.04 (40% EtOH), and 3.79 ± 0.16 (aqueous), whereas the total flavonoids as a rutin equivalent, % as 2.01 ± 0.12, 1.44 ± 0.17 and 1.99 ± 0.02, each. The aqueous extract showed the best antioxidative and lowest activity against the acetylcholinesterase; however, the 70% EtOH extract showed the opposite effects than that of the aqueous. No mortality incidence was visible at various doses, indicating that the oral median lethal dose of aqueous and 70% EtOH extracts were considered greater than 5000 mg/kg. N. sibirica L. belongs to the non-toxic category of the OECD 423 classification.

Isolated compounds from Saxifraga Spinulosa and their antioxidative activity / Монголын эм зүй, эм судлал

Abstract@#The genus <i>Saxifraga</i>, one of the largest genera of the Saxifragaceae family, comprises 540 species and is distributed widely in mountainous and rocky regions, with 12 species being found in Mongolia. <i>Saxifraga spinulosa</i> Adams is a perennial herbaceous plant common in mainland China, Russia, and Mongolia, inhabiting stony marginal terrain. The isolated compounds from <i>Saxifraga spinulosa</i> were screened for DPPH radical-scavenging activity, with Trolox as a positive control (IC₅₀ 23.3 µM). All the new glucosides exhibited potent activities (IC₅₀ 19.0–72.9 µM). A crude ex- tract of <i>S. spinulosa</i> has been reported to display the highest DPPH radical-scavenging activity among numerous Mongolian medicinal plants, which may now be attributed, at least in part, to the presence of the new flavonoid and galloyl group-containing isolated compounds.