Milica Drobac

Composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oils of Laserpitium latifolium L. and L. ochridanum Micevski (Apiaceae).

The chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of essential oils of Laserpitium latifolium and L. ochridanum were investigated. The essential oils were isolated by steam distillation and characterized by GC‐FID and GC/MS analyses. All essential oils were distinguished by high contents of monoterpenes, and α‐pinene was the most abundant compound in the essential oils of L. latifolium underground parts and fruits (contents of 44.4 and 44.0%, resp.). The fruit essential oil was also rich in sabinene (26.8%). Regarding the L. ochridanum essential oils, the main constituents were limonene in the fruit oil (57.7%) and sabinene in the herb oil (25.9%). The antimicrobial activity of these essential oils as well as that of L. ochridanum underground parts, whose composition was reported previously, was tested by the broth‐microdilution method against four Gram‐positive and three Gram‐negative bacteria and two Candida albicans strains. Except the L. latifolium underground‐parts essential oil, the other investigated oils showed a high antimicrobial potential against Staphylococcus aureus, S. epidermidis, Micrococcus luteus, or Candida albicans (minimal inhibitory concentrations of 13.0–73.0 μg/ml), comparable to or even higher than that of thymol, which was used as reference compound.

Chemical Composition, Antimicrobial and Cytotoxic Activity of Heracleum verticillatum Pančić and H. ternatum Velen. (Apiaceae) Essential Oils

In this work, the chemical composition, antimicrobial and cytotoxic activity of Heracleum verticillatum Pančić and H. ternatum Velen. root, leaf, and fruit essential oils were investigated. The composition was analyzed by GC and GC/MS. Heracleum verticillatum and H. ternatum root oils were dominated by monoterpenes, mostly β‐pinene (23.5% and 47.3%, respectively). Heracleum verticillatum leaf oil was characterized by monoterpenes, mainly limonene (20.3%), and sesquiterpenes, mostly (E)‐caryophyllene (19.1%), while H. ternatum leaf oil by the high percentage of phenylpropanoids, with (Z)‐isoelemicin (35.1%) being dominant constituent. Both fruit oils contained the majority of aliphatic esters, mostly octyl acetate (42.3% in H. verticillatum oil and 49.0% in H. ternatum oil). The antimicrobial activity of the oils was determined by microdilution method against eight bacterial and eight fungal strains. The strongest effect was exhibited by H. verticillatum root oil, particularly against Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhimurium (MICs = 0.14 mg/ml, MBCs = 0.28 mg/ml), and Trichoderma viride (MIC = 0.05 mg/ml, MFC = 0.11 mg/ml). Cytotoxic effect was determined by MTT test against malignant HeLa, LS174, and A549 cells (IC50 = 5.9 – 146.0 μg/ml), and against normal MRC‐5 cells (IC50 > 120.1 μg/ml). The best effect was exhibited by H. verticillatum root oil on A549 cells (IC50 = 5.9 μg/ml), and H. ternatum root oil against LS174 cells (IC50 = 6.7 μg/ml).

Compounds of the Methanolic Leaf Extract as Chemotaxonomic Markers for the Campanula Pyramidalis Complex (Campanulaceae)

Abstract During the past few years, the isophylloid Campanula pyramidalis complex has been the subject of studies aimed at an improved understanding of the relationships within it. The center of distribution of the C. pyramidalis complex is in the Balkan Peninsula with some smaller parts of the area located in the south Apennines. Although 21 taxa of the C. pyramidalis complex were described, only four species are accepted: C. pyramidalis, C. versicolor, C. secundiflora and C. austroadriatica. In the present study, we propose compounds of the methanolic leaf extract as possible chemotaxonomic markers for the C. pyramidalis complex. Eleven flavonoids and two phenolic acids were detected in leaf extract using high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection analysis. The investigated taxa of the C. pyramidalis complex differ in terms of the composition of the methanolic leaf extract. clustering of investigated taxa is not completely consistent with the previously reported molecular and morphometric data.

Chemosystematic Significance of Essential Oil Constituents and Furanocoumarins of Underground Parts and Fruits of Nine Heracleum L. Taxa from Southeastern Europe

The composition of the essential oils and the furanocoumarin profiles of CH2Cl2 extracts from underground parts and fruits of nine Heracleum taxa (Apiaceae) from Southeastern Europe were statistically analyzed to evaluate their chemosystematic significance. Eight investigated taxa (H. orphanidis and members of H. sphondylium group: H. sphondylium, H. sibiricum, H. montanum, H. ternatum, H. pyrenaicum subsp. pollinianum, H. pyrenaicum subsp. orsinii and H. verticillatum) belong to the type section of the genus. Additionally analyzed taxon, H. austriacum subsp. siifolium, belongs to H. sect. Wendia. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of the essential oils was performed by GC‐FID and GC/MS, and of the furanocoumarins by LC/MS. Furanocoumarins were identified using standards and/or based on UV, MS, 1H‐ and ROESY NMR spectra. Multivariate statistics (PCA, nMDS, UPGMA) of analyzed metabolites showed that the investigated taxa were grouped according to their taxonomic classification. PCA revealed the significance of some monoterpenes and (Z)‐falcarinol of the underground parts oils, octyl esters of the fruit oils, and most of the total of 12 identified furanocoumarins.

Chemical composition and spasmolytic activity of Cymbopogon schoenanthus (L.) Spreng. (Poaceae) essential oil from Sudan

The plants of genus Cymbopogon are well known for their use in traditional medicine and for their high content of essential oils that are widely used as flavoring agents, fragrances, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. Essential oils isolated from the dried stems and inflorescence of cultivated Cymbopogon schoenanthus (L.) Spreng. (Poaceae) collected from Khartoum state (Sudan) in two periods were studied. The results of chemical analysis of C. schoenanthus revealed that this plant is rich in essential oil which is a valuable source of the commercially important monoterpene, piperitone (47.7-71.5%). Other abundant constituents of the oils were intermedeol (6.1-17.3%), δ -2-carene (4.5-10.0%) and elemol (2.7-9.0%). The essential oil from the inflorescence was tested for spasmolytic activity using three different experimental models: against spontaneous contractions, contractions induced with acetylcholine and contractions induced with potassium chloride. The oil exhibited strong, significant and dose-dependent spasmolytic activity, indicating the possibility for further investigations of this essential oil for its medicinal purposes or application in food industry. https://doi.org/10.2298/ABS160506113P Received: May 6, 2016; Revised: July 6, 2016; Accepted: July 6, 2016; Published online: November 11, 2016 How to cite: Pavlovic I, Omar E, Drobac M, Radenkovic M, Brankovic S, Kovacevic N. Chemical composition and spasmolytic activity of Cymbopogon schoenanthus (L.) Spreng. (Poaceae) essential oil from Sudan. Arch Biol Sci. 2017;69(3):409-15.