Phytochemical Properties of Satureja kitaibelii, Potential Natural Antioxidants: a New Insight

Chilean papaya (Vasconcellea pubescens A. DC.) residues as a source of bioactive compounds: Chemical composition, antioxidant capacity, and antiglycation effects

The Chilean papaya (Vasconcellea pubescens A.DC.) is a climacteric fruit that grows in the north and center of Chile. During its processing, residues formed mainly by mucilage and seeds are produced and mostly discarded, despite being a potential source of bioactive metabolites. This work aimed to apply untargeted metabolic analysis by HPLC-DAD-QToF to study the chemical composition of ethyl acetate and methanol extracts from Chilean papaya residues and evaluate their antioxidant and antiglycation capacities. Twenty-three metabolites were tentatively identified in papaya residues, including one carboxylic acid, one glycosylated hydroquinone, four flavan-3-ols, three proanthocyanidins, twelve glycosylated flavonols, one carbohydrate, and one alkaloid reported for the first time. The antioxidant capacity measured as the scavenging of DPPH• and ABTS•+ radicals was comparable with that of ascorbic acid. Chilean papaya extracts decreased fluorescent Advanced Glycation End (AGE) products and oxidative modifications in proteins induced by glucose.

Chemical profile, in vitro pharmacological activity and Satureja cuneifolia Ten. evaluation of essential oil based on distillation time

The medicinal plant Satureja cuneifolia Ten. was widely utilized as spice, tea and traditional medicine. The objective of the current study was to examine the chemical composition and in vitro biological activities (LOX, MMP-1, and MMP-12 enzyme inhibition activity and cytotoxicity on A549 cell line) of Satureja cuneifolia extracts and essential oils. The essential oils of the flowering aerial parts were hydro-distilled at four different distillation times (5, 30, 60, and 180 min) using the Clevenger apparatus. The total essential oil and four fragments were compared in terms of the major component, yield, and distillation time. Volatile compounds of the infusion were extracted by using HS-SPME. Ethanolic extract had the strongest inhibition activity on the LOX enzyme (84.50%), while the essential oils exhibited more cytotoxic activity on the A549 cell line than the extracts. The oils and the infusion were analyzed using GC-MS and the primary chemicals identified by LC-MS/MS.

New Facts on the Antimicrobial Essential Oil of Satureja kitaibelii

The objective of the present study was to assess the difference in antimicrobial activity of Satureja kitaibelii Wierzb. ex Heuff. essential oil at three growth stages. In addition, using statistical and chemometric tools, we tried to explain why the essential oil from a certain vegetation stage shows the highest antimicrobial activity. S. kitaibelii essential oils demonstrated minimum inhibitory concentration values from 160 to 10000 μg mL-1 , and minimum microbicidal concentration values from 630 to 20000 μg mL-1 . Geraniol, borneol, limonene and p-cymene are the dominant compounds of S. kitaibelii essential oil. The most abundant compound, geraniol, possesses antimicrobial activity in a range of MIC values from 40 to 5000 μg mL-1 and MMC values from 80 to 10000 μg mL-1 . The highest activity of essential oil for all tested strains of microorganisms was recorded in November. Results of statistical analysis indicate that the percentage of dominant compounds of essential oils does not affect the antibacterial activity of essential oils. Chemometric analyses leads to the conclusion that borneol, spathulenol, caryophyllene oxide and limonene can be the main contributors to the antibacterial activity of essential oil from November and that their mutual ratio is important. These results may represent a new methodological approach for future research on essential oils.

HPLC- and NMR-Based Chemical Profiling, Wound-Healing Potential, Anti-Inflammatory and Antibacterial Activities of Satureja pilosa (Lamiaceae), a Neglected Medicinal-Aromatic Herb

Satureja pilosa Velen. (Lamiaceae) is a perennial and melliferous aromatic-medicinal subshrub which is range-restricted in adjacent parts of Greece and Bulgaria and locally in Italy, known in Northern Greece as wild oregano ("agriorigani") and traditionally collected from the wild for culinary purposes. Since the ethnopharmacological data and modern biological activities of Satureja spp. suggest promising applications in skin conditions, the present study aimed to investigate the hitherto unknown phenolic content of cultivated S. pilosa and its potential biological activities, focusing mainly on wound-healing and anti-inflammatory effects. An HPLC-PDA-MS-targeted phytochemical investigation, along with NMR, allowed for the isolation and characterization of the main constituents, resulting in 18 compounds. Representative extracts and purified compounds were tested for wound-healing activity on NIH/3T3 fibroblasts. The butanol extract exhibited a significantly higher cell migration rate (73.4%) compared to aqueous (50.6%) and methanolic (49.6%) ones, enhancing the cell migration more rapidly at both concentration levels, whilst rosmarinic acid was the most potent among the isolated compounds, with a migration rate of 64.0% at the concentration level of 10-5 mg/mL, followed by 3,4-dihydrophenyllactic acid (54.7%). Moreover, potential effects on endothelial activation processes were explored, including the leukocyte-endothelial cell interaction during inflammatory processes and the migratory capacity during angiogenic actions, since these processes are commonly associated with skin diseases. Finally, extracts and purified compounds demonstrated weak antibacterial potential against two important pathogens (Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa), suggesting that further investigation is warrented.

Bioactivity and phenolics profile of aqueous and ethyl acetate extracts of Satureja kitaibelii Wierzb. ex Heuff. obtained by ultrasound-assisted extraction

The aim of the study was to investigate the biological activity and chemical composition of Satureja kitaibelii Wierzb. ex Heuff. LC-PDA/MS analyses for the aqueous extracts (A1-stem, leaves and flowers, A2-leaves and flowers) and ethyl-acetate extracts (E1-stem, leaves and flowers, E2-leaves and flowers) obtained by ultrasound-assisted extraction enabled the identification of thirty-four compounds. Quantitative analysis revealed that the aqueous extract obtained from leaves and flowers was the richest in total phenolic acids (65.36 mg/g) and flavonoids (21.17 mg/g). The total polyphenol content was the highest in the aqueous extract obtained from leaves and flowers (274 ± 2.4 mg Gallic Acid equivalents/g). The best antioxidant activity was observed for the same extract using the DPPH (SC50 20 ± 10 µg/mL), ABTS (2.834 ± 0.02 mg Ascorbic Acid/g), FRAP (1.922 ± 0.03 mmol Fe²⁺/mg), and total reducing power tests (16.4 ± 1.0 mg Ascorbic Acid/g). Both ethyl acetate extracts were the most active against strains of Bacillus cereus and Micrococcus flavus (MIC 1.70-1.99 mg/mL and 1.99-3.41 mg/mL, respectively). They were more efficient against Aspergillus ochraceus (MFC 0.86 mg/mL) and towards HeLa cell lines. All the obtained results implied the good potential of the investigated extracts to be used as effective preservatives and functional ingredients in food products and dietary supplements.

Preliminary in vitro study of anti-oxidant activity and anti-diabetic potential of plant extracts from 4 herbal substances not traditionally used for treatment of diabetes mellitus

The focus of the presented study is the in vitro anti-oxidant activity and anti-diabetic potential of water extracts from the following four herbal substances, not traditionally used for treatment of diabetes mellitus – leaves of Sambucus ebulus L. and Prunus mahaleb L., and flowering stems of Cichorium intybus L. and Satureja kitaibelii Wierzb. ex Heuff. The water extracts are obtained through ultrasonication. The extract of S. kitaibelii stands out due to its highest values in all studied indicators – total phenolic content, scavenging potential (DPPH, ABTS) and α-glucosidase inhibitory activity which was six times higher than acarbose. The extract of C. intybus also showed significant α-glucosidase inhibitory activity compared to acarbose. The flowering stems of both species are promising sources of biologically active substances for blood sugar control in diabetes mellitus.