Ana Alimpić

The in vitro antioxidative and cytotoxic effects of selected Salvia species water extracts

The current paper presents antioxidant and cytotoxic activities and total phenolic and flavonoid content of the selected species of genus Salvia (Lamiaceae) growing wild in Macedonia ( S. jurisicii Kosanin, S. amplexicaulis Lam . , S. ringens Sibth. & Sm.) and Libya ( S. fruticosa Mill. and S. lanigera Poir.). Crude water extracts, obtained from aerial parts, were yielded from 6.50 to 14.32%. Total phenolic content was the highest in water extracts of S. amplexicaulis and S. ringens (226.30 and 189.01 mg GAE/g, respectively), while the flavonoids were the most abundant in S. jurisicii extract (32.36 mg QE/g). Antioxidant activities of extracts were measured using DPPH, ABTS and FRAP assays. S. amplexicaulis and S. ringens extracts showed the strongest antioxidant activity, measured using DPPH (14.21 and 23.44 μg/mL, respectively) and ABTS assays (2.91 and 2.42 mg AAE/g, respectively). In FRAP assay, S. amplexicaulis and S. fruticosa extracts exhibited strongest activity (1406.73 and 1191.51 µmol Fe(II)/g). Water extract of S. amplexicaulis and S. ringens performed the strongest cytotoxic activity against K562 cells (151.07 and 173.06 μg/mL, respectively). Based on these findings, it can be concluded that S. amplexicaulis and S. ringens water extracts could be considered as possible source of antioxidant and cytotoxic agents.

Composition and biological activities of different extracts of Salvia jurisicii, a rare and endemic Macedonian species

Abstract This is the first report on the phenolic composition and biological activities of endemic species Salvia jurisicii Košanin (Lamiaceae) originating from Macedonia. Aerial parts of S. jurisicii were extracted with dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, methanol, ethanol and water. All extracts were tested spectrophotometrically for total phenolic and flavonoid contents, while their phenolic composition was analyzed using HPLC-DAD. The antioxidant activity of extracts was studied using 2,2-dyphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl, 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid), ferric reducing ability of plasma and ß-carotene bleaching assays. Being the most frequently used solvents for extraction of bioactive ingredients from medicinal plants, water and ethanol extracts were chosen for further testing of antimicrobial, cytotoxic and antineurodegenerative activities. More polar solvent extracts showed higher total phenolic content and lower flavonoid content. Ethanol and methanol extracts, followed by water extract exhibited the strongest antioxidant activity. Extracts showed antimicrobial activity against certain bacteria and micromycetes. The cytotoxicity assay showed slight toxicity to HCT-116 cell line. In the antineurodegenerative assays, the extracts performed lower inhibition of acetylcholinesterase and tyrosinase than standards. According to the results of this study, it can be inferred that more polar extracts of S. jurisicii were quantitatively richer in total phenolics, showing stronger antioxidant activity. Ethanol extract showed stronger biological activities comparing to water extract.

Chemical profiling and assessment of antineurodegenerative and antioxidant properties of Veronica teucrium L. and Veronica jacquinii Baumg

Neuroprotective potential of V. teucrium and V. jacquinii methanol extracts was analyzed. Chemical analysis of investigated extracts showed the presence of phenolic acid derivatives, flavonoids and one secoiridoid. The detected flavonoids derived from flavones (luteolin and isoscutellarein in V. jacquinii; apigenin, isoscutellarein and luteolin in V. teucrium) and flavonol (quercetin in V. jacquinii). Acteoside was the dominant compound in V. jacquinii, while plantamajoside and isoscutellarein 7‐O‐(6‴‐O‐acetyl)‐β‐allosyl (1‴→2‴)‐β‐glucoside were the major phenolics in V. teucrium. Additionally, the antineurodegenerative activity was tested at concentrations of 25, 50, and 100 μg/ml using acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and tyrosinase (TYR) assays. The inhibition of both enzymes was achieved with the investigated extracts, ranging from 22.78 to 35.40% for AChE and from 9.57 to 16.38% for TYR. There was no statistical difference between the activities of the analyzed extracts. Our data indicate that V. teucrium and V. jacquinii may have beneficial effects against Alzheimers and Parkinsons disease.

Antineurodegenerative, antioxidant and antibacterial activities and phenolic components of Origanum majorana L. (Lamiaceae) extracts of different origin

The aim of this study was to examine chemical composition, as well as antineurodegenerative, antioxidant and antibacterial activity of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of Origanum majorana L. (Lamiaceae) originating from Serbia, Greece, Egypt and Libya. Total phenolics and flavonoids, antioxidant activities, and acetylcholinesterase and tyrosinase inhibitory activities were measured spectrophotometrically. Determination of phenolic compounds in extracts was done using HPLC-DAD technique. Antibacterial activity included determination of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) using the microdilution method. The highest phenolic and flavonoid contents were recorded in the ethanolic extract of the Egyptian sample and in aqueous extract of Serbian sample. The HPLC analysis showed high content of rosmarinic acid, with the highest amount found in the ethanolic extract of the plants from Egypt. Water extracts showed prevalently better antioxidant and antineurodegenerative activity in applied tests than the ethanolic extracts. Gram-positive bacterial strains showed higher sensitivity to tested extracts. According to the obtained results, sweet marjoram samples from Serbia and Egypt can be marked as more promising, due to the highest content of total phenolics and flavonoids and the best antioxidant, antibacterial and tyrosinase inhibitory activity.

Polyphenolic Content and Biological Activities of Post-Distillation Waste of Three Sage Species from the Republic of Macedonia

This research was aimed at investigating polyphenolic content, antioxidant and anti-neurodegenerative activities of post-distillation waste extracts of Macedonian Salvia amplexicaulis, S. jurisicii and S. ringens, for the first time. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents varied in a broad range (3.92-146.49 mg GAE/g and 7.11-67.51 mg QE/g, respectively), with the highest values obtained for S. amplexicaulis and S. ringens extracts. Certain S. amplexicaulis and S. ringens extracts neutralized more than 80% of DPPH radicals at the highest concentration, while S. amplexicaulis extracts showed up to ≈50% inhibition of β-carotene oxidation in β-carotene/linoleic acid assay. Post-distillation waste extracts inhibited acetylcholinesterase (25.94-38.15%) and tyrosinase (18.84-59.52%), with the strongest inhibition of S. amplexicaulis extracts. The obtained results suggest that post-distillation waste of tested species, especially of S. amplexicaulis, show antioxidant and anti-neurodegenerative activities and could be considered as potential raw material rich in polyphenols.