Liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry profiling of compounds from the infusion of Byrsonima fagifolia Niedenzu

A potential antiviral against COVID-19 obtained from Byrsonima coccolobifolia leaves extract

In this study, we specifically focused on the crude methanolic leaf extract of Byrsonima coccolobifolia, investigating its antifungal potential against human pathogenic fungi and its antiviral activity against COVID-19. Through the use of high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization ion trap tandem mass spectrometry, direct infusion electrospray ionization ion trap tandem mass spectrometry, and chromatographic dereplication procedures, we identified galloyl quinic acid derivatives, catechin derivatives, proanthocyanidins, and flavonoid glycosides. The broth dilution assay revealed that the methanolic leaf extract of B. coccolobifolia exhibits antifungal activity against Cryptococcus neoformans (IC50 = 4 μg/mL). Additionally, docking studies were conducted to elucidate the interactions between the identified compounds and the central residues at the binding site of biological targets associated with COVID-19. Furthermore, the extract demonstrated an in vitro half-maximum effective concentration (EC50 = 7 μg/mL) and exhibited significant selectivity (>90%) toward SARS-CoV-2.

Chemical characterization of Brazilian savannah Byrsonima species (muricis) and their impact on genomic instability and chemopreventive effects

The identification of new drugs with few or no adverse effects is of great interest worldwide. In cancer therapy, natural products have been used as chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic agents. Plants from the Brazilian savannah belonging to the Byrsonima genus are popularly known as muricis and have attracted much attention due to their various pharmacological activities. However, there are currently no data on these plants concerning their use as chemopreventive or chemotherapeutic agents in human cell lines. The present study assessed the potential of B. correifolia, B. verbascifolia, B. crassifolia, and B. intermedia extracts as natural alternatives in the prevention and/or treatment of cancer. The chemical constituents present in each extract were analyzed by electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (ESI-MSN). The mutagenic/antimutagenic (micronucleus assay), genotoxic/antigenotoxic (comet assay), apoptotic/necrotic (acridine orange/ethidium bromide uptake), and oxidative/antioxidative (CM-H₂DCFDA) effects of the extracts and their influence on gene expression (RTqPCR) were investigated in nonmetabolizing gastric (MNP01) and metabolizing hepatocarcinoma (HepG2) epithelial cells to evaluate the effects of metabolism on the biological activities of the extracts. The genotoxicity, mutagenicity, and apoptotic effects observed in HepG2 cells with B. correifolia and B. verbascifolia extracts are probably associated with the presence of proanthocyanidins and amentoflavone. In MNP01 cells, none of the four extracts showed mutagenic effects. B. crassifolia and B. intermedia extracts exhibited strong antimutagenicity and enhanced detoxification in HepG2 cells and antioxidant capacities in both types of cells, possibly due to the presence of gallic and quinic acids, which possess chemopreventive properties. This study identifies for the first time B. correifolia and B. verbascifolia extracts as potential agents against hepatocarcinoma and B. crassifolia and B. intermedia extracts as putative chemopreventive agents.

Galloylquinic acid derivatives from Byrsonima fagifolia leaf extract and potential antifungal activity

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Byrsonima fagifolia Niedenzu (Malpighiaceae) and other Byrsonima species are popularly employed in Brazilian traditional medicine in the form of preparations as cicatrizing, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial.

AIM OF THE STUDY

To characterize the phytochemical profile of the hydromethanolic extract obtained from B. fagifolia leaves (BF extract) and to evaluate the toxicity and the antifungal activity.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The compounds from BF extract were isolated by HPLC and the structures were elucidated based on extensive analyses of 1D and 2D NMR spectra (HMQC, HMBC and COSY) data. The antifungal effect was determined by the broth microdilution method and the toxicity was evaluated on erythrocytes from sheep's blood and Galleria mellonella larvae.

RESULTS

Phytochemical investigation of the BF extract led to the isolation and characterization of pyrogallol, n-butyl gallate, 3,4-di-O-galloylquinic acid, 3,5-di-O-galloylquinic acid, 3,4,5-tri-O-galloylquinic acid, and 1,3,4,5-tetra-O-galloylquinic acid. The BF extract showed high content of galloylquinic acid derivatives reaching more than twenty-times the quercetin derivatives content, according to the quantification by HPLC. These galloylquinic acid derivatives, obtained during this study, and quercetin derivatives, previously isolated, were submitted to the antifungal assays. The BF extract inhibited yeast growth mainly against Cryptococcus spp., at concentrations of 1-16 μg/mL, comparable to isolated compounds galloylquinic acid derivatives. However, the quercetin derivatives as well as quinic acid, gallic acid, and methyl gallate showed lower antifungal effect compared with galloylquinic derivatives. In addition, the BF extract had no hemolytic effect and no toxicity on G. mellonella.

CONCLUSION

The phytochemical analysis revealed that galloylquinic acid derivatives are the major compounds in the leaves of B. fagifolia and they are associated to anti-cryptococcal activity and presented reduced toxicity.

LDH, proliferation curves and cell cycle analysis are the most suitable assays to identify and characterize new phytotherapeutic compounds

Brazilian flora biodiversity has been widely investigated to identify effective and safe phytotherapeutic compounds. Among the investigated plant species, the Byrsonima genus exhibits promising biological activities. This study aimed at evaluating the cytotoxicity of B. correifolia, B. verbascifolia, B. fagifolia and B. intermedia extracts using different assays in two cell lines (primary gastric and HepG2 cells). The different extract concentrations effects on cell viability were assayed using the MTT, aquabluer, neutral red and LDH assays. Non-cytotoxic concentrations were selected to generate cell proliferation curves and to assess cell cycle kinetics by flow cytometry. Byrsonima extracts differentially affected cell viability depending on the metabolic cellular state and the biological parameter evaluated. B. fagifolia and B. intermedia extracts exhibited lower cytotoxic effects than B. correifolia and B. verbascifolia in all assays. The results obtained with LDH and flow cytometry assays were more reliable, suggesting that they can be useful in the screening for herbal medicine and to further characterize these extracts as phytotherapeutic compounds.

LC-ESI-MS/MS profile of phenolic and glucosinolate compounds in samh flour (Mesembryanthemum forsskalei Hochst. ex Boiss) and the inhibition of oxidative stress by these compounds in human plasma

Samh flour (Mesembryanthemum forsskalei) is a foodstuff with high protein content, which can be used as a replacement for wheat flour. It is often consumed by Bedouin tribes of northern Saudi Arabia. Very little is known about bioactive molecules present in samh flour, therefore we analyzed its extracts to evaluate the contents of secondary metabolites. A total of 43 secondary metabolites present in 60% MeOH extract of samh flour were tentatively identified using LC-ESI-MS/MS. These compounds represented five major categories: glucosinolates, sinapic acid and sinapoylglycosides, acylated flavonoids, flavonoids, and amide derivatives. Their effect on oxidative damage of proteins and lipids was determined in vitro by assessing levels of protein thiol groups and concentrations of thiobarbituric acid reactive species (TBARS) in human plasma. Obtained results indicated that samh flour is a rich source of compounds with antioxidant activity.

Identification and quantitative determination of the polar constituents in Helichrysum italicum flowers and derived food supplements

Helichrysum italicum is widely used in traditional medicine, in cosmetic, in food and pharmaceutical field. In spite of this, very little is known about the chemical composition of its polar extracts. Therefore this study was addressed to the determination of the metabolite profile of the methanol extract of H. italicum flowers, by using LC-ESI(IT)MSMS. This approach oriented the isolation of 14 compounds, whose structures were unambiguously elucidated by NMR as belonging to flavonoid, phenylpropanoid and acylbenzofuran classes. In addition, one novel drimane sesquiterpene was identified. The quantitative determination of the main compounds occurring in the methanol extract of H. italicum flowers was carried out and their content was compared with that of three selected commercial food supplements based on H. italicum, by using LC-ESI(QqQ)MS. In conclusion the wide occurrence, in high amounts, of quinic acid derivatives in all the analyzed samples was highlighted, showing these compounds as chemical markers of the species for standardization procedures.

Antioxidant capacity and HPLC-DAD-MS profiling of Chilean peumo (Cryptocarya alba) fruits and comparison with German peumo (Crataegus monogyna) from southern Chile

Liquid chromatography (LC) coupled with UV detection and electrospray ionization (ESI) tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) was used for the generation of chemical fingerprints and the identification of phenolic compounds in peumo fruits and aerial parts from southern Chile. Thirty three compounds (19 of these detected in C. alba and 23 in C. monogyna) were identified, mainly flavonoid glycosides, phenolic acids, anthocyanins and flavonoid aglycons. Total phenolic content and total flavonoid content was measured for both species, and were higher in the extracts from C. monogyna fruits and aerial parts than extracts from C. alba. The fruits of Cryptocarya alba (Chilean peumo) presented high antioxidant capacity (9.12 ± 0.01 mg/mL in the DPPH assay), but was three times lower to that of Crataegus monogyna (German peumo) (3.61 ± 0.01 mg/mL in the DPPH assay).

Liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry based fingerprinting analysis and mass profiling of Euterpe oleracea (açaí) dietary supplement raw materials

Chemical fingerprinting and mass profiling methods to identify biologically active compounds in botanical dietary supplements is gaining much attention in recent years. Euterpe oleracea (açaí) has been reported to be rich in health-beneficial chemical constituents. We have developed LC/MS based fingerprinting and mass profiling methods to identify fatty acids, anthocyanins and non-anthocyanin polyphenols in three processed raw materials; non-organic açaí powder (ADSR-1), raw-organic açaí powder (ADSR-2) and freeze-dried açaí powder (ADSR-3) that are used in the preparation of botanical dietary supplements. For LC/MS analysis of fatty acids and non-anthocyanin polyphenols, the açaí samples were extracted sequentially with dichloromethane followed by methanol. To study fingerprinting analysis of anthocyanins, açaí samples were extracted with acidic methanol-water. The LC separation of fatty acids, non-anthocyanin polyphenols and anthocyanins in açaí raw materials was achieved using a C18 column with a gradient mobile phase consisting of solvents A (0.1% formic acid in water), and B (0.1% formic acid in methanol). MS experiments were carried out with negative and positive mode electrospray ionization. LC/MS analysis of dichloromethane extracts of (ADSR-1), (ADSR-2) and (ADSR-3) açaí powders have shown to contain fatty acids, γ-linolenic acid, linoleic acid, palmitic acid, and oleic acid. Whereas, the fingerprinting analysis of methanol extracts of ADSR-1, ADSR-2 and ADSR-3 led to the identification of phenolic acids, anthocyanin and non-anthocyanin polyphenols. The results from our study may be useful for the authentication and quality assessment of açaí dietary supplement raw materials.

Analysis of phenolic compounds from different morphological parts of Helichrysum devium by liquid chromatography with on-line UV and electrospray ionization mass spectrometric detection

A simple and rapid method has been used for the screening and identification of the main phenolic compounds from Helichrysum devium using high-performance liquid chromatography with on-line UV and electrospray ionization mass spectrometric detection (LC-DAD/ESI-MS(n)). The total aerial parts and different morphological parts of the plant, namely leaves, flowers and stems, were analyzed separately. A total of 34 compounds present in the methanolic extract from Helichrysum devium were identified or tentatively characterized based on their UV and mass spectra and retention times. Three of these compounds were positively identified by comparison with reference standards. The phenolic compounds included derivatives of quinic acid, O-glycosylated flavonoids, a caffeic acid derivative and a protocatechuic acid derivative. The characteristic loss of 206 Da from malonylcaffeoyl quinic acid was used to confirm the malonyl linkage to the caffeoyl group. This contribution presents one of the first reports on the analysis of phenolic compounds from Helichrysum devium using LC-DAD/ESI-MS(n) and highlights the prominence of quinic acid derivatives as the main group of phenolic compounds present in these extracts. We also provide evidence that the methanolic extract from the flowers was significantly more complex when compared to that of other morphological parts.