Determination of Chemical Composition and Investigation of Biological Activities of Ocimum basilicum L.

This study aimed to determine the chemical composition of the essential oils (EOs) of Ocimum basilicum L., as well as to evaluate the antibacterial, antidiabetic, dermatoprotective, and anti-inflammatory properties, and the EOs and aqueous extracts of O. basilicum. The antibacterial activity was evaluated against bacterial strains, Gram-positive and Gram-negative, using the well diffusion and microdilution methods, whereas the antidiabetic activity was assessed in vitro using two enzymes involved in carbohydrate digestion, α-amylase and α-glucosidase. On the other hand, the dermatoprotective and anti-inflammatory activities were studied by testing tyrosinase and lipoxygenase inhibition activity, respectively. The results showed that the chemical composition of O. basilicum EO (OBEO) is dominated by methyl chavicol (86%) and trans-anethol (8%). OBEO exhibited significant antibacterial effects against Gram-negative and Gram-positive strains, demonstrated by considerable diameters of the inhibition zones and lower MIC and MBC values. In addition, OBEO exhibited significant inhibition of α-amylase (IC50 = 50.51 ± 0.32 µg/mL) and α-glucosidase (IC50 = 39.84 ± 1.2 µg/mL). Concerning the anti-inflammatory activity, OBEO significantly inhibited lipoxygenase activity (IC50 = 18.28 ± 0.03 µg/mL) compared to the aqueous extract (IC50 = 24.8 ± 0.01 µg/mL). Moreover, tyrosinase was considerably inhibited by OBEO (IC50 = 68.58 ± 0.03 µg/mL) compared to the aqueous extract (IC50 = 118.37 ± 0.05 µg/mL). The toxicological investigations revealed the safety of O. basilicum in acute and chronic toxicity. The finding of in silico analysis showed that methyl chavicol and trans-anethole (main compounds of OBEO) validate the pharmacokinetics of these compounds and decipher some antibacterial targets.

Impacts of nutritive and bioactive compounds on cancer development and therapy.

For persons who survive with progressive cancer, nutritional therapy and exercise may be significant factors to improve the health condition and life quality of cancer patients. Nutritional therapy and medications are essential to managing progressive cancer. Cancer survivors, as well as cancer patients, are mostly extremely encouraged to search for knowledge about the selection of diet, exercise, and dietary supplements to recover as well as maintain their treatment consequences, living quality, and survival of patients. A healthy diet plays an important role in cancer treatment. Different articles are studied to collect information and knowledge about the use of nutrients in cancer treatment as well as cancer prevention. The report deliberates nutrition and exercise strategies during the range of cancer care, emphasizing significant concerns during treatment of cancer and for patients of advanced cancer, but concentrating mostly on the requirements of the population of persons who are healthy or who have constant disease following their repossession from management. It also deliberates choice nutrition and exercise problems such as dietary supplements, food care, food selections, and weight; problems interrelated to designated cancer sites, and common questions about diet, and cancer survival. Decrease the side effects of medicines both during and after treatment.

Biological and Pharmacological Properties of Myrtenol: A Review.

Myrtenol (C10H16O) is a volatile compound belonging to the terpenoid family of monocyclic monoterpenes. It is one of the essential oils constituents of several aromatic plants, including the genera Myrtus, Tanacetum, Artemisia, Hyssopus, and Rhodiola. The oxidation of α-pinene can produce it. Several reports demonstrated the pharmacological properties of myrtenol, including its antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal, antidiabetic, anxiolytic, and gastroprotective activities. In this review, we discussed and highlighted in depth the pharmacological activities, cellular and molecular, providing insight into the mechanisms of myrtenol. In light of this finding, the interesting biological activities and abundance of myrtenol in nature suggests its potential applications in medicinal settings in the fight against various diseases.

Chemical Composition, Antioxidant, Anti-Diabetic, Anti-Acetylcholinesterase, Anti-Inflammatory, and Antimicrobial Properties of Arbutus unedo L. and Laurus nobilis L. Essential Oils.

The objectives of this work were to determine the phytochemical composition and antioxidant, anti-diabetic, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and anti-acetylcholinesterase properties of Arbutus unedo L. and Laurus nobilis L. EOs. The antioxidant effects were estimated using four complementary methods. In addition, the anti-diabetic activity was assessed by targeting three carbohydrate-hydrolyzing enzymes, namely α-amylase, α-glucosidase, and lipase. The anti-inflammatory and anti-acetylcholinesterase effects were evaluated by testing the inhibitory potential of both plants on lipo-oxygenase and acetylcholinesterase (AChE), respectively. The antimicrobial activity of these oils was evaluated using disc-diffusion, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), and minimum lethal concentration (MLC) tests. The chemical composition of L. nobilis essential oil (EO) was dominated by eucalyptol (36.40%), followed by α-terpineole (13.05%), α-terpinyl acetate (10.61%), linalool (10.34%), and northujane (5.74%). The main volatile compounds of A. unedo EOs were decenal (13.47%), α-terpineol (7.8%), and palmitic acid (6.00%). L. nobilis and A. unedo EOs inhibited α-amylase with IC50 values of 42.51 ± 0.012 and 102 ± 0.06 µg/mL, respectively. Moreover, both oils inhibited the activity of α-glucosidase (IC50 = 1.347 ± 0.021 µg/mL and IC50 = 76 ± 0.021 µg/mL) and lipase (IC50 = 21.23 ± 0.021 µg/mL and IC50 = 97.018 ± 0.012 µg/mL, respectively). In addition, L. nobilis EO showed an anti-AChE activity (IC50 = 89.44 ± 0.07 µg/mL) higher than that of A. unedo EO (IC50 = 378.57 ± 0.05 µg/mL). Regarding anti-inflammatory activity, in vitro assays showed that L. nobilis significantly inhibits (IC50 = 48.31 ± 0.07 µg/mL) 5-lipoxygenase compared to A. unedo (IC50 = 86.14 ± 0.05 µg/mL). This was confirmed in vivo via a notable inhibition of inflammation recorded after 6 h of treatment in both plants at a dose of 50 mg/kg. The microbiological results revealed that EOs from both plants inhibited the growth of all tested organisms except P. aeruginosa, with the highest antimicrobial effect for L. nobilis. The results of these tests showed that these two plants possess remarkable biological and pharmacological properties, explaining their medicinal effects and suggesting them as promising sources of natural drugs.

Advances in Dietary Phenolic Compounds to Improve Chemosensitivity of Anticancer Drugs.

Despite the significant advances and mechanistic understanding of tumor processes, therapeutic agents against different types of cancer still have a high rate of recurrence associated with the development of resistance by tumor cells. This chemoresistance involves several mechanisms, including the programming of glucose metabolism, mitochondrial damage, and lysosome dysfunction. However, combining several anticancer agents can decrease resistance and increase therapeutic efficacy. Furthermore, this treatment can improve the effectiveness of chemotherapy. This work focuses on the recent advances in using natural bioactive molecules derived from phenolic compounds isolated from medicinal plants to sensitize cancer cells towards chemotherapeutic agents and their application in combination with conventional anticancer drugs. Dietary phenolic compounds such as resveratrol, gallic acid, caffeic acid, rosmarinic acid, sinapic acid, and curcumin exhibit remarkable anticancer activities through sub-cellular, cellular, and molecular mechanisms. These compounds have recently revealed their capacity to increase the sensitivity of different human cancers to the used chemotherapeutic drugs. Moreover, they can increase the effectiveness and improve the therapeutic index of some used chemotherapeutic agents. The involved mechanisms are complex and stochastic, and involve different signaling pathways in cancer checkpoints, including reactive oxygen species signaling pathways in mitochondria, autophagy-related pathways, proteasome oncogene degradation, and epigenetic perturbations.

Chemical Profiling and Biological Activities of Pelargonium graveolens Essential Oils at Three Different Phenological Stages.

The aim of this work was the determination of Pelargonium graveolens (aerial parts) volatile compounds at three developmental stages and the evaluation of their antioxidant, antidiabetic, dermaprotective, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial effects. The aerial parts of Pelargonium graveolens were collected at three stages, namely the vegetative, beginning, and full flowering. Pelargonium graveolens essential oils were extracted from the dried materials of these aerial parts by hydrodistillation. The volatiles were analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry GC-MS, and the antioxidant activity was assessed by DPPH, ABTS, H2O2, and FRAP assays. The in vitro antidiabetic effect was evaluated by the inhibition of α-amylase, α-glucosidase, and lipase enzymes, while the antibacterial activity was assessed against six bacterial strains using an agar well diffusion assay and a microdilution method. The main constituents were menthol, menthene, eremophilene, isoborneol, isogeraniol, α-pinene, linalyl acetate, and 3-carene, with quantitative differences at the three phenological stages. The essential oil at the full flowering stage showed the best antioxidant activity, with IC50 values of 83.26 ± 0.01, 116.42 ± 0.07, 132.25 ± 0.11, and 48.67 ± 0.04 µg/mL for DPPH, FRAP, ABTS, and H2O2 assays, respectively. This oil also exhibited significant effects against α-amylase (IC50 = 43.33 ± 0.01 µg/mL), α-glucosidase (IC50 = 19.04 ± 0.01 µg/mL), lipase (IC50 = 24.33 ± 0.05 µg/mL), 5-lipoxygenase (IC50 = 39.31 ± 0.01 µg/mL), and tyrosinase (IC50 = 124.49 ± 0.07 µg/mL). The essential oil extracted at the full flowering stage showed the best antibacterial effect against a panel of microorganisms with diameter inhibition zones ranging between 11.00 ± 0.17 mm and 17.30 ± 0.17 mm and MIC values from 0.25% to 2% v/v. Overall, the results presented here suggest that the full flowering stage is the best optimal harvest time of Pelargonium graveolens for food and pharmaceutical applications.

Singular and Combined Effects of Essential Oil and Honey of Eucalyptus Globulus on Anti-Inflammatory, Antioxidant, Dermatoprotective, and Antimicrobial Properties: In Vitro and In Vivo Findings.

Eucalyptus globulus is a plant widely used by the world population, including Morocco, in the treatment of several pathologies. The aim of this work is to evaluate the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, dermatoprotective, and antimicrobial effects of essential oil and honey from E. globulus, as well as their combination. Chemical composition was determined by GC-MS analysis. The antioxidant activity was evaluated by three tests, namely, DPPH, reducing power, and the ß-carotene/linoleic acid assay. The anti-inflammatory activity was investigated in vitro (5-lipoxygenase inhibition) and in vivo (carrageenan-induced paw edema model), while the dermatoprotective activity was tested in vitro (tyrosinase inhibition). Moreover, the antibacterial activity was assessed using agar well diffusion and microdilution methods. The results showed that eucalyptol presents the main compound of the essential oil of E. globulus (90.14%). The mixture of essential oil with honey showed the best antioxidant effects for all the tests used (0.07 < IC50 < 0.19 mg/mL), while the essential oil was the most active against tyrosinase (IC50 = 38.21 ± 0.13 µg/mL) and 5-lipoxygenase (IC50 = 0.88 ± 0.01 µg/mL), which corroborated the in vivo test. Additionally, the essential oil showed the best bactericidal effects against all strains tested, with inhibition diameter values ranging from 12.8 to 21.6 mm. The findings of this work showed that the combination of the essential oil with honey showed important results in terms of biological activity, but the determination of the underlying mechanisms of action remains a major prospect to be determined.

Health Benefits and Pharmacological Aspects of Chrysoeriol.

A flavone, chrysoeriol is synthetized in several plant species. It comes from several natural sources, especially medicinal plants. The identification and isolation of this compound has been carried out and verified by several research teams using different spectral methods. It seems that the concentration of this molecule is variable and fluctuating depending on the source, the part extracted, the region, and the methods of extraction and characterization. The aim of this paper is to highlight the in vitro and in vivo pharmacological properties of chrysoeriol and to provide insight into its pharmacokinetics. Anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antifungal, anti-osteoporosis, anti-insecticide, and neuroprotective actions have been shown in a number of studies on this chemical. Different mechanisms in theses pharmacological effects include subcellular, cellular, and molecular targets. In vivo pharmacokinetic analysis has proved the good stability of this molecule, showing its promising potential to prevent or treat diseases including cancer, diabetes, inflammation, osteoporosis, Parkinson's disease, and cardiovascular diseases.

Natural Sources and Pharmacological Properties of Pinosylvin.

Pinosylvin (3,5-dihydroxy-trans-stilbene), a natural pre-infectious stilbenoid toxin, is a terpenoid polyphenol compound principally found in the Vitaceae family in the heartwood of Pinus spp. (e.g., Pinus sylvestris) and in pine leaf (Pinus densiflora). It provides defense mechanisms against pathogens and insects for many plants. Stilbenoids are mostly found in berries and fruits but can also be found in other types of plants, such as mosses and ferns. This review outlined prior research on pinosylvin, including its sources, the technologies used for its extraction, purification, identification, and characterization, its biological and pharmacological properties, and its toxicity. The collected data on pinosylvin was managed using different scientific research databases such as PubMed, SciFinder, SpringerLink, ScienceDirect, Wiley Online, Google Scholar, Web of Science, and Scopus. In this study, the findings focused on pinosylvin to understand its pharmacological and biological activities as well as its chemical characterization to explore its potential therapeutic approaches for the development of novel drugs. This analysis demonstrated that pinosylvin has beneficial effects for various therapeutic purposes such as antifungal, antibacterial, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, neuroprotective, anti-allergic, and other biological functions. It has shown numerous and diverse actions through its ability to block, interfere, and/or stimulate the major cellular targets responsible for several disorders.

Chemical Compounds of Berry-Derived Polyphenols and Their Effects on Gut Microbiota, Inflammation, and Cancer.

Berry-derived polyphenols are bioactive compounds synthesized and secreted by several berry fruits. These polyphenols feature a diversity of chemical compounds, including phenolic acids and flavonoids. Here, we report the beneficial health effects of berry-derived polyphenols and their therapeutical application on gut-microbiota-related diseases, including inflammation and cancer. Pharmacokinetic investigations have confirmed the absorption, availability, and metabolism of berry-derived polyphenols. In vitro and in vivo tests, as well as clinical trials, showed that berry-derived polyphenols can positively modulate the gut microbiota, inhibiting inflammation and cancer development. Indeed, these compounds inhibit the growth of pathogenic bacteria and also promote beneficial bacteria. Moreover, berry-derived polyphenols exhibit therapeutic effects against different gut-microbiota-related disorders such as inflammation, cancer, and metabolic disorders. Moreover, these polyphenols can manage the inflammation via various mechanisms, in particular the inhibition of the transcriptional factor Nf-κB. Berry-derived polyphenols have also shown remarkable effects on different types of cancer, including colorectal, breast, esophageal, and prostate cancer. Moreover, certain metabolic disorders such as diabetes and atherosclerosis were also managed by berry-derived polyphenols through different mechanisms. These data showed that polyphenols from berries are a promising source of bioactive compounds capable of modulating the intestinal microbiota, and therefore managing cancer and associated metabolic diseases. However, further investigations should be carried out to determine the mechanisms of action of berry-derived polyphenol bioactive compounds to validate their safety and examinate their clinical uses.

Health Benefits and Pharmacological Properties of Carvone.

Carvone is a monoterpene ketone contained in the essential oils of several aromatic and medicinal plants of the Lamiaceae and Asteraceae families. From aromatic plants, this monoterpene is secreted at different concentrations depending on the species, the parts used, and the extraction methods. Currently, pharmacological investigations showed that carvone exhibits multiple pharmacological properties such as antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, antineuraminidase, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer activities. These studies were carried out in vitro and in vivo and involved a great deal of knowledge on the mechanisms of action. Indeed, the antimicrobial effects are related to the action of carvone on the cell membrane and to ultrastructural changes, while the anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, and anticancer effects involve the action on cellular and molecular targets such as inducing of apoptosis, autophagy, and senescence. With its multiple mechanisms, carvone can be considered as natural compounds to develop therapeutic drugs. However, other investigations regarding its precise mechanisms of action as well as its acute and chronic toxicities are needed to validate its applications. Therefore, this review discusses the principal studies investigating the pharmacological properties of carvone, and the mechanism of action underlying some of these properties. Moreover, further investigations of major pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic studies were also suggested.