Essential Oil Composition of Three Globularia Species.

The chemical composition of the essential oils obtained by hydrodistillation from the aerial parts of Globularia cordifolia L., G. meridionalis (Podp.) O.Schwarz, and G. punctata Lapeyr. was characterized by GC-FID and GC/MS analyses. Among the 33 identified compounds, the most abundant present in all investigated samples were oct-1-en-3-ol (2.9-47.0%), 6-(1,5-dimethylhex-4-enyl)-3-methylcyclohex-2-enone (8.2-40.9%), and fukinanolid (7.4-31.6%). Multivariate statistical analyses (PCA and HCA) of the hitherto studied Globularia volatile compounds confirmed to some extent the assumed phylogenetic relationships of the Globularia species studied, including the close relationship between the morphologically similar species G. cordifolia and G. meridionalis, but also evidenced several discrepancies in the current classification of Globularia species.

Evaluation of the cytotoxic activity of Hypericum spp. on human glioblastoma A1235 and breast cancer MDA MB-231 cells.

Cytotoxic activity of 16 Hypericum ethanolic extracts was evaluated by MTT assay on two human cancer cell lines: glioblastoma A1235 and breast cancer MDA MB-231. Morphology and the type of induced cell death were determined using light and fluorescence microscopy. The majority of Hypericum extracts had no significant cytotoxic effect on MDA MB-231 cells. Eight extracts exhibited mild cytotoxic effect on A1235 cells after 24 h incubation, ranging from 8.0% (H. patulum) to 21.7% (H. oblongifolium). After 72 h of treatment, the strongest inhibition of A1235 viability was observed for extracts of H. androsaemum (26.4-43.9%), H. balearicum (25.8-36.3%), H. delphicum (14.8-27.4%) and H. densiflorum (11.2-24.1%). Micro-scopic examination of cells showed apoptosis as the dominant type of cell death. Due to observed high viability of treated cells, we propose that cytotoxic effects of Hypericum extracts could be related to alternations/interruptions in the cell cycle.

Comparative phytochemical and antimicrobial investigations of Hypericum perforatum L. subsp. perforatum and H. perforatum subsp. angustifolium (DC.) Gaudin.

The aerial parts of H. perforatum subsp. perforatum and H. perforatum subsp. angustifolium were investigated for their chemical composition and antimicrobial activity. Spectrophotometric analysis indicated that H. perforatum subsp. perforatum is richer in flavonoids and tannins than the other subspecies. HPLC analysis confirmed the higher yield of flavonoids in H. perforatum subsp. perforatum and gave also a higher content of phenolic acids. H. perforatum subsp. angustifolium contained more hypericin. The presence of rutin was proven only in H. perforatum subsp. perforatum. The antimicrobial activity of the extracts of both subspecies was evaluated based on the inhibition zone diameters using the hole-plate diffusion method. The MeOH extracts, dichloromethane and petroleum ether fractions were effective against Staphylococcus aureus, S. epidermidis, Enterococcus faecalis and Bacillus subtilis. The results indicate that H. perforatum subsp. angustifolium had a stronger antimicrobial effect than the other subspecies.

Quantitative analysis of total flavonoids and total phenolic acids in thirty Hypericum taxa.

The content of total flavonoids and total phenolic acids in the aerial parts of thirty Hypericum taxa collected over two consecutive seasons was investigated by spectrophotometric methods. All taxa examined contained flavonoids and phenolic acids in different quantities, although the differences between species and year's harvest were not found to be significant. The quantity of total flavonoids ranged from 0.1 to 1.6%. The highest content of flavonoids was found in the samples of H. japonicum (1.6%) and H. perforatum (1.5%), while the samples of H. androsaemum and H. balearicum comprised the lowest flavonoid amount (0.13%). The content of total phenolic acids in the investigated samples was found to be between 1.1-10.4%. The samples of H. perforatum were found to contain the highest quantity of phenolic acids (10.4% and 10.2%), whereas the sample ofH. linarifolium showed the lowest amount of phenolic acids (1.1%).

Chemical composition of Hypericum richeri subsp. grisebachii essential oil from Croatia.

The aerial parts of Hypericum richeri Vill. subsp. grisebachii (Boiss.) Nyman were collected from two different locations in Croatia and subjected to hydrodistillation. GC/FID and GC/MS analysis of the isolated essential oils revealed 64 compounds representing 94.7% and 98.2% of the total oils. Predominant constituents in both samples were: germacrene D (10.90%; 6.0%), bicyclogermacrene (4.7%; 3.5%), alpha-pinene (6.8%; 6.9%), beta-pinene (8.1%; 5.1%), decanoic acid (4.5%; 6.8%), beta-caryophyllene (3.3%; 7.5%), delta-cadinene (7.0%; 4.4%), spathulenol (6.0%; 9.5%) and tetracosane (3.1%; 5.8%). Comparison of both samples revealed similarity in the chemical composition with minor fluctuations of constituent percentages. The chemical profile of Croatian oils was in general similar to those reported for other geographic areas regarding major mono- and sesquiterpene constituents. However, spathulenol, delta-cadinene and bicyclogermacrene were more abundant in Croatian oils. The presence of decanoic acid (4.5%; 6.8%) in Croatian oils was the major difference between acids and fatty acids derivatives. Higher abundance of alkanes (particularly tetracosane and docosane) was also noticed.

Essential oil composition of Prasium majus from Croatia.

The essential oils from the aerial parts of Prasium majus L., collected during two years in Croatia, were analysed by GC and GC/MS. Fifty-two compounds were identified, representing 90.3-91.8% of the total oils. The major constituents in both samples were fatty acids (particularly hexadecanoic acid and (Z)-octadec-9-enoic acid), lower aliphatic alcohols, aldehydes and acids (major ones oct-1-en-3-ol and (E,E)-hepta-2,4-dienal) and phenylpropane derivatives (e.g. eugenol). Beta-Caryophyllene was the most abundant terpene and (E)-beta-ionone was the major norisoprenoid.