Inhibitory Effects of Brassicaceae Cover Crop on Ambrosia artemisiifolia Germination and Early Growth

Several cover crops (CCs) exert allelopathic effects that suppress weed growth. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of aqueous extracts containing different concentrations [0, 0.5, 1, 2.5, 5, 7.5 and 10% (w/v)] of Brassicaceae CCs (Sinapis alba, Raphanus sativus, Camellina sativa) and of the CCs Fagopyrum esculentum and Guizotia abyssinica on germination and early growth of Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. The allelopathic effects were species and concentration-dependent. C. sativa, for example, caused the greatest potential to inhibit germination, shoot, radicle length and fresh seedling weight, whereas S. alba and R. sativus inhibited germination and early growth of A. artemisiifolia only at concentrations ≥7.5%. In contrast, no inhibition was observed when aqueous extracts of F. escultneum and G. abyssinica were added at any of tested concentration. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry detected 15 phenolic compounds in Brassicaceae CCs with the highest content (µg/g) of vanillin (48.8), chlorogenic acid (1057), vanilic acid (79), caffeic acid (102.5) and syringic acid (27.3) in C. sativa. Our results suggest that C. sativa is the most allelopathic CCs and that the fruits of C. sativa are the plant organs richest in allelochemicals.

Technological prospection of anti-inflammatory vanilic acid activity, with emphasis on its semisynthetic derivative Isopropyl Vanilate

Inflammation is the body's response to harmful stimuli such as infections, trauma, or injury. The inflammatory cascade can lead to the development of numerous diseases, and the current drug-therapeutic intervention consists of the use of corticosteroids and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. However, the use of these is associated with several serious side effects, so it is necessary to search for new alternatives that can minimize this effect. In this prospecting, the objective was to conduct a study on biological activities already described for vanillic acid, with special emphasis on its semi-synthetic derivative of isopropyl vanylate as an anti-inflammatory agent. For this, information was obtained on patent documents based on the INPI, USPTO and EPO databases, using the keywords: vanillic acid, anti-inflammatory agents, isopropyl vanylate, always used in the search field related to the summary of works. As results obtained in the present technological prospection study, it was found that in the international patent databases the documents related to the theme were very scarce and some had a higher number of patents, on vanillic acid, few refer to its anti- inflammatory, and no documents were found on the use of isopropyl vanillate as an anti-inflammatory agent, reinforcing the innovative character of research involving its use in this technology.

Phenolic Compounds in Cambodian Leaves and Flowers (Plumeria acuminata Ait.) at Various Times Decomposition

Phenol compounds are secondary metabolic compounds produced by plants and can cause the surrounding environment to change. This study aims to find out the content of phenolic compounds in cambodian leaves and flowers (Plumeria acuminata Ait.) that are decomposition at different times. The experiment used a complete Randomized Design of factorial patterns consisting of the source factor of old leaf extract, deciduous leaves and flowers and decomposition period (0,1,2, and 3 weeks) with 3 repeats, so that there were 12 combinations of treatments. Data analysis using ANOVA and continued with DMRT. The results showed that cambodian leaves and flowers contained phenol compounds identified as benzoate acid, salicylic acid, vanilic acid and coumarin.

Phenolic Content and Enzyme Inhibition Activities Barbarea auriculata var. paludosa, B. integrifolia and B. plantaginea (Brassicaceae)'s

Barbarea genus has been presented about 12 species, 9 taxon are endemic, in Turkey. In this sudy, enzyme inhibition was carried out on methanolic extract, chloroform extract, ethyl acetate extract, and the remaining aqueous phases from the aerial parts of B. auriculata var paludosa, B. integrifolia, and B. plantaginea species and HPLC studies were carried on their methanolic extract in the present study for the first time. Phenolic compounds were determined using reverse phase-high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). p-OH benzoic acid, vanilic acid, syringaldehyde, coumaric acid, synapic acid and benzoic acid were detected as major phenolic compounds in the species. Assay of enzyme inhibition activities were done using spectrophotometric methods. Results of these studies reveal that the extracts from these species have moderate tyrosinase, AChE and BuChE inhibitory activity. In the biological activity studies, it was observed that B. integrifolia was the highest activity.

Regulation of Inflammatory Response in Human Osteoarthritic Chondrocytes by Novel Herbal Small Molecules

In this study, 34 Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) compounds were screened for potential anabolic and anti-inflammatory properties on human osteoarthritic (OA) chondrocytes. The anabolic effects were assessed by measuring the glycosaminoglycan (GAG) relative to the DNA content using a 3D pellet culture model. The most chondrogenic compounds were tested in an inflammatory model consisting of 3 days of treatment with cytokines (IL-1β/TNF-α) with or without supplementation of TCM compounds. The anti-inflammatory effects were assessed transcriptionally, biochemically and histologically. From the 34 compounds, Vanilic acid (VA), Epimedin A (Epi A) and C (Epi C), 2′′-O-rhamnosylicariside II (2-O-rhs II), Icariin, Psoralidin (PS), Protocatechuicaldehyde (PCA), 4-Hydroxybenzoic acid (4-HBA) and 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF) showed the most profound anabolic effects. After induction of inflammation, pro-inflammatory and catabolic genes were upregulated, and GAG/DNA was decreased. VA, Epi C, PS, PCA, 4-HBA and 5-HMF exhibited anti-catabolic and anti-inflammatory effects and prevented the up-regulation of pro-inflammatory markers including metalloproteinases and cyclooxygenase 2. After two weeks of treatment with TCM compounds, the GAG/DNA ratio was restored compared with the negative control group. Immunohistochemistry and Safranin-O staining confirmed superior amounts of cartilaginous matrix in treated pellets. In conclusion, VA, Epi C, PS, PCA, 4-HBA and 5-HMF showed promising anabolic and anti-inflammatory effects.

Proximate and Phytochemical Profile of Melanthera biflora Leaves

The proximate and phytochemical composition of Melanthera biflora was investigated, using standard methods. From the obtained results the leaves had high moisture contents (71.1± 0.2%) and crude fiber (3.91 ± 0.5) while containing moderate protein (7.0 ± 0.03%), while containing lipid (1.10 ± 4%), ash (2.8 ± 0.2%), total carbohydrate (6.09 ± 0.2%) and caloric value (62.26±0.14 kcal/100g). Eleven Phytochemical families were detected with tannin as the most abundant (27.82%) consisting 100% tannic acid. Thirteen alkaloids (13.65%) were detected consisting mainly of morphine (28.05%), methylmorphine (16.22%), dephnoline (12.02%) biflorin, (20.63%), aromoline (12.61%) homoaromaline (7.79%). Twenty-three flavonoid (5.71%) chief among which were quercetin (44.21%), kaemferol (28.94%), dandzein (7.20%), letuolin (10.17%), salvagenin (6.76%), sinensetin 8.20% were detected. The most prominent of the ten carotenoids (2.48%), is lutein (40.76%), followed by carotene (17.90%), malvidin 5.63%, zeaxanthin (16.5%), viola-xanthin (9.5%). Sixty one terpenoid including linalool (40.98%), germacrene (12.74%), Alpha-terpineal 6.40%, terpinen – 4-01 (5.62%), and Gamma terpine were found in the leaves Of the six phenolic acids (16.26%) the highest was ferulic acid (53.94%), followed closely by vanilic acid (45.8%). Seven phytosterol (2.25%), consisting of sitosterol (65.3%), savenasterol (14.19%) stigmasterol (12.70%), and others were detected. The leaves had very a low hydroxycinnamic acid content (8.93x10-4%) content, consisting of eight known compounds of which caffeic acid (71.93%) and p-coumaric acid (27.91%) were the most abundant. They also had very a low allicins (1.94x10-4%) content, consisting of daillylthiosulphunate (97.05%), and methyl thiosulphinate (2.6%) and allylthiosulphin and allylthiosulphinate (0.3%). The leaves had a very low content of glycosides consisting of eight known compounds of which quabain (78.54%) were detected and they include gitogenin (22.04%), diosgenin (20.02), neohegen (20.79%). Their rich contents of nutrients and many bioactive molecules suggest strong nutraceutical potential of these leaves, further suggesting their likely use as functional a food and therapeutic uses in the management and prevention of diseases.

Variation in Organic Acid, Sugar and Phenolic Compounds in Fruits of Historical Apple Cultivars

Knowledge about diversity of local apple cultivars is particularly important and helps to ensure that specific cultivars are available when and where farmers need them. The phenolic content, organic acids and sugars were investigated in the four historical apple cultivars (‘Aslik’, ‘Cebegirmez’, ‘Bey Elmasi’ and ‘Arapkizi’) grown in Van province, located in Eastern Anatolia, Turkey. In the study, ellagic acid (63.034 mg per 100 ml) was found to be higher than other phenolic compounds and followed by vanilic acid, caffeic acid and routine, respectively. When examined the apple cultivars, it has been found that the ‘Bey Elmasi’ cultivar has the highest content of six phenolic acids (chlorogenic, ferulic, o-coumaric, p-coumaric, catechin and quercetin). The organic acid contents were as follows: malic>fumaric>succinic>citric>tartaric among cultivars. ‘Arapkizi’ cultivar possessed the highest value of four organic acids except of tartaric acid. It was determined that fructose was the major sugar for all apple cultivars. There was a positive correlation among gallic, ellagic acid and routine. Similarly, the positive correlation was observed among malic, fumaric and succinic acid. However the negative correlation between citric acid and all sugars was observed. As a result, ‘Bey Elmasi’ and ‘Arapkizi’ cultivars with higher phenolic content, ‘Arapkizi’ cultivar with higher organic acid content and ‘Aslik’ cultivar with higher sugar content comes to the foreground. Results indicated the importance of local apple germplasm to use of them for future apple breeding activities to increase inner quality.

Ege Bölgesi Zeytinyağlarının Fenolik Bileşenleri

In this study the domestic monocultivar (Gemlik, Memecik, Ayvalık, Uslu and Domat cv.) virgin olive oil samples obtained from some provinces (Muğla, Aydın, İzmir ve Manisa) of the Aegean region with the main olive growing zones in Turkey during two harvest periods (2007–2008 and 2008-2009) were investigated. The total phenols and phenolic composition of the oils were determined. The total phenol compound content of olive oils were determined to be 23.69-153.64 mg caffeic acid/kg oil for the 2007-2008 harvest period and 16.18-136.22 mg caffeic acid/kg oil for the 2008-2009 harvest period. Tyrosol, oleuropein, 4-hidroksifenil acetic acid, luteolin, vanilic acid, hydroxtyrosol, rutin, cinnamic acid, verbascoside, hidroksifenil carboxylic acid, syringic acid, 3,4-dihidroksibenzoic acid, cafeic acid, ferulic acid, p-coumaric acid, taxifolin, apigenin were detected in all the olive oil samples. In the olive oil samples, tyrosol and oleuropein were determined to be the maximum amounts of compounds changing between 1.80-13.39 mg/kg, 1.26-19.50 mg/kg for the 2007-2008 harvest period and 1.76-11.66 mg/kg, 0.20-13.12 mg/kg for the 2008-2009 harvest year, respectively.

ANALISIS KANDUNGAN FENOLIK EKSTRAK DAUN JATI (Tectona grandis L.) DENGAN WAKTU DEKOMPOSISI YANG BERBEDA

Teak (Tectona grandis L.) is a plant with strong wood and is resistant to pests and diseases. In addition, its leaf extract is widely used by public as an additive in foods both as a preservative and as an alternative food coloring. The objective of this research was to determine phenolic compounds of teak leaves extracted with three different decomposition times (one, two and three weeks of decomposition). Extraction was conducted by using maceration method in which water was used as solvent. Identification of Phenolics was done by using Gas Chromatography. The results showed that the compounds of vanilic acid, salicylic acid, ferulic acid, cumaric acid, gallic acid, benzoic acid and cafeic acid were identified in the analysis. The concentration and composition of phenolic compounds in the extract was determined by decomposition.