Fernanda Bay Hurtado

Screening of the in vitro antileishmanial activities of compounds and secondary metabolites isolated from Maytenus guianensis Klotzsch ex Reissek (Celastraceae) chichuá Amazon

INTRODUCTION Maytenus guianensis is a member of the Celastraceae family that is used in traditional medicine, particularly for its anti-parasitic and anti-cancer effects. To explore the ethnopharmacological potential of this plant, the present study was designed to screen the in vitro antileishmanial activities of extracts and compounds isolated from M. guianensis. METHODS Maytenus guianensis stems and leaves were extracted in acetone, followed by the preparation of eluates and isolation of secondary metabolites using chromatography on a glass column with silica gel as the fixed phase. The chemical components were identified using spectroscopic methods, including one- and two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance of hydrogen-1 and carbon-13, mass spectroscopy, and infrared spectroscopy. The anti-Leishmania amazonensis activities of these eluates and compounds were evaluated by direct promastigote counting and viability assays. RESULTS It was found that the hexane bark eluate produced the strongest anti-L. amazonensis effect, with 90-100% inhibition of the promastigote form. The isolated metabolite that produced the best result was tingenone B, followed by a compound formed by the union of tingenone and tingenone B (80-90% inhibition). CONCLUSIONS Maytenus guianensis shows anti-parasite activity that warrants further investigation to determine the mechanisms underlying this antileishmanial effect and to evaluate the pharmacological potential of these eluates and isolated secondary metabolites, while minimizing any adverse effects.

MAYTENUS GUIANENSIS KLOTZSCH EX REISSEK (CELASTRACEAE): ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL ASPECTS AND ISOLATED CONSTITUENTS

This study consists of a literature review on the traditional use of the medicinal plant Maytenus guianensis , which was carried out using the databases: LILACS, SciELO, and PubMed. M. guianensis is popularly known as xixua and occurs throughout the tropical and subtropical band of the world. In Brazil, its leaves, bark, and roots are used as tea or macerated for the treatment of inflammation and infections in general. It is also popularly used to treat rheumatism and worm infections. These medicinal uses which have experimental support seem to be mainly associated with the presence of triterpenes.