ABSTRACT
Limonium socotranum and Peperomia blanda are used in ethnomedicine to treat several diseases, such as infection, cancer, and inflammation. P. blanda (family: Piperaceae) is from the genus Peperomia, and mostly found in Madagascar, Yemen, USA to South America, while L. socotranum (family: Plumbaginaceae) from the genus Limonium and this species is found only on Socotra Island, Yemen. These plants have attracted great interest in recent years because of their phytochemical contents. Consequently, the current study is aimed to investigate the phytochemical constituents, the cytotoxic and antimicrobial activities of L. socotranum (leaves and stem) and P. blanda extracts. Successive extraction had been performed which resulted in nine crude extracts. Phytochemical screening of the extracts was then conducted using qualitative chemical analysis. The antimicrobial activity of the plant extracts was determined using the well diffusion method against eleven selected pathogenic microbes and the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were measured. The cytotoxic activities of the plant extracts against MCF-7 and HepG2 cell lines were investigated using sulforhodamine B assay. It was noted that methanol leaves extract from L. socotranum exhibited higher antibacterial activity against Micrococcus luteus (MIC 15.6 µg/mL), Staphylococcus aureus (MIC 125 µg/mL) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MIC 125 µg/mL), than stem parts, while petroleum ether extract displayed stronger antifungal activity, with MIC of 125 µg/mL. On the other hand, petroleum ether extract of P. blanda was effective against Gram-positive bacteria and exhibited moderate antifungal activity. Petroleum ether extract of P. blanda displayed cytotoxic activity against MCF-7 cells, with an IC50 of 4.60 ± 0.02 µg/mL, while the methanol extracts showed higher activity against the HepG2 cell line, with an IC50 of 13.90 ± 0.14 µg/mL. Phytochemical findings confirmed the presence of flavonoids, alkaloids and terpenoids. The promising obtained results suggest the potential use of these plants in cancer and antimicrobial therapies.
ABSTRACT
@#Limonium socotranum and Peperomia blanda are used in ethnomedicine to treat several diseases, such as infection, cancer, and inflammation. P. blanda (family: Piperaceae) is from the genus Peperomia, and mostly found in Madagascar, Yemen, USA to South America, while L. socotranum (family: Plumbaginaceae) from the genus Limonium and this species is found only on Socotra Island, Yemen. These plants have attracted great interest in recent years because of their phytochemical contents. Consequently, the current study is aimed to investigate the phytochemical constituents, the cytotoxic and antimicrobial activities of L. socotranum (leaves and stem) and P. blanda extracts. Successive extraction had been performed which resulted in nine crude extracts. Phytochemical screening of the extracts was then conducted using qualitative chemical analysis. The antimicrobial activity of the plant extracts was determined using the well diffusion method against eleven selected pathogenic microbes and the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were measured. The cytotoxic activities of the plant extracts against MCF-7 and HepG2 cell lines were investigated using sulforhodamine B assay. It was noted that methanol leaves extract from L. socotranum exhibited higher antibacterial activity against Micrococcus luteus (MIC 15.6 μg/mL), Staphylococcus aureus (MIC 125 μg/mL) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MIC 125 μg/mL), than stem parts, while petroleum ether extract displayed stronger antifungal activity, with MIC of 125 μg/mL. On the other hand, petroleum ether extract of P. blanda was effective against Gram-positive bacteria and exhibited moderate antifungal activity. Petroleum ether extract of P. blanda displayed cytotoxic activity against MCF-7 cells, with an IC50 of 4.60 ± 0.02 μg/mL, while the methanol extracts showed higher activity against the HepG2 cell line, with an IC50 of 13.90 ± 0.14 μg/mL. Phytochemical findings confirmed the presence of flavonoids, alkaloids and terpenoids. The promising obtained results suggest the potential use of these plants in cancer and antimicrobial therapies.
ABSTRACT
Hydnora abyssinica A.Br. (Hydnoraceae), a holoparasitic herb, is for the first time recorded for Abyan governorate of South Yemen. Flowers of this species were studied for their ethnobotanical, biological and chemical properties for the first time. In South Yemen, they are traditionally used as wild food and to cure stomach diseases, gastric ulcer and cancer. Phytochemical analysis of the extracts showed the presence of terpenes, tannins, phenols, and flavonoids. The volatile components of the air-dried powdered flowers were identified using a static headspace GC/MS analysis as acetic acid, ethyl acetate, sabinene, α-terpinene, (+)-D-limonene and γ-terpinene. These volatile compounds that characterize the odor and taste of the flowers were detected for the first time in a species of the family Hydnoraceae. The flowers were extracted by n-hexane, dichlormethane, ethyl acetate, ethanol, methanol and water. With exception of the water extract all extracts demonstrated activities against Gram-positive bacteria as well as remarkable radical scavenging activities in DPPH assay. Ethyl acetate, methanol and water extracts exhibited good antifungal activities. The cytotoxic activity of the extracts against FL cells, measured in neutral red assay, was only weak (IC50 > 500 µg/mL). The results justify the traditional use of the flowers of Hydnora abyssinica in South Yemen.
