Importancia medicinal del género Croton (euphorbiaceae) / Medicinal importance of Croton genus (euphorbiaceae)

Introducción: el género Croton que pertenece a la familia Euphorbiaceae, se caracteriza porque sus especies poseen una gran cantidad de usos a nivel etnobotánico. Esta información ha sido validada por los relatos ancestrales y los reportes bibliográficos que se han encontrado en los últimos cuarenta años. Se ubican muy cerca de la región del trópico y se encuentran distribuidas en Centroamérica, Suramérica, Asía y norte de África, de allí que se pueden observar los innumerables usos que tiene y que han llevado a profundizar en el estudio de las especies del género en estudio. Objetivos: realizar una búsqueda organizada, que permita reconocer el valor etnobotánico de especies del género Croton a nivel mundial, con el fín de determinar su valor e importancia medicinal. Métodos: fueron revisadas varias bases de datos, libros especializados y demás reportes bibliográficos relacionados con el uso tradicional de especies del género Croton y composición química. Resultados: la información de esta revisión, puede servir como base preliminar y como justificación en investigaciones relacionadas con la búsqueda de compuestos químicos del tipo flavonoide y diterpeno. Conclusiones: se evidenció de acuerdo al análisis de los datos obtenidos y la información obtenida en la presente revisión, que las especies del género Croton se caracterizan porque poseen un sinnúmero de usos en la medicina tradicional y popular(AU)

Introduction: The genus Croton Euphorbiaceae belonging to the family, is characterized by its species have a lot of uses ethnobotanical level, this information has been validated by the ancestral stories and bibliographic reports have been found in the last forty years, these species are located very close to the tropics and are distributed mainly in Central America, South America, Asia and north Africa, from there you can observe the many uses it has and which have led to further study of the genus study. Objectives: Perform an organized search, which allows recognizing the value ethnobotanical species of Croton worldwide, in order to determine its value and medicinal importance. Methods: Were revised several databases, specialized books and other bibliographic reports related to the traditional uses of species of Croton and chemical composition. Results: The information presented in this review may serve as a preliminary basis and as justification in research related to the search for chemical compounds specifically flavonoids and diterpenes. Conclusions: The results obtained in this review showed the evidence according to the analysis of the data and total information presented, that the genus Croton are characterized by has a wide use in traditional and folk medicine(AU)

Chemical Composition of the Leaf Essential Oils of Croton zambesicus Müll.-Arg. Grown in Lagos, South-West Nigeria.

The chemical composition of the leaf essential oil of Croton zambesicus Müll.-Arg., collected from Agbara-Lagos, Nigeria, was analysed by means of Gas chromatography flame ionization detector (GC-FID) and Gas chromatography coupled with Mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Sixty constituents accounting for 98.9% of the total oil contents were identified from the oil sample. The classes of compounds identified in the oil were monoterpene hydrocarbons (35.3%), oxygenated monoterpenes (22.9%), sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (32.4%) and oxygenated sesquiterpenes (5.6%). The oil was dominated by β-pinene (15.1%), β-caryophyllene (12.6%), germacrene D (10.9%), camphor (7.3%), linalool (7.0%), sabinene (6.4%) and α-pinene (5.2%). Aims: The aim of the research is to investigate the volatile constituents from C. zambesicus harvested in Lagos, Nigeria. Study Design: Extraction of essential oil from the air-dried leaf samples of C. zambesicus and investigation of its chemical constituents. Place and Duration of Study: Leaf samples of C. zambesicus were collected from Agbara, Lagos, on April 2011. Methodology: Air-dried and pulverized leaves were hydrodistilled in a Clevenger-type apparatus to obtained pale yellow volatile oil whose chemical constituents was analyzed by GC and GC/MS. Results: A total of sixty compounds were identified, amounting to 98.9%of the total oil contents. The major were compounds β-pinene (15.1%), β-caryophyllene (12.6%), germacrene D (10.9%) and camphor (7.3%). Variations in compositional pattern were observed between this result and the previous studies. Conclusion: The literature about the C. zambesicus indicates a high variability in the chemical composition of the essential oils.