The use of herbs against neglected diseases: Evaluation of in vitro leishmanicidal and trypanocidal activity of Stryphnodendron rotundifolium Mart

Synergistic activity of Stryphnodendron adstringens and potassium sorbate against foodborne bacteria

Stryphnodendron adstringens is a medicinal plant that has a broad spectrum of action, including antibacterial activity. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of S. adstringens alone and in combination with potassium sorbate (PS) against foodborne bacteria. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) were determined and, for most of the bacteria tested, the crude extract (CE), aqueous fraction (AQF), and ethyl-acetate fraction (EAF) of S. adstringens had a MIC and MBC ranging from 500 to ≥ 1000 µg/mL. The AQF and EAF showed greater activity against S. aureus strains (MIC = 125 to 250 µg/mL; MBC = 500 to 1000 µg/m). Quantitative cell viability was determined and was observed reductions ranging from 3.0 to 5.8 log10 CFU/ml.The combination of S. adstringens and PS against seven S. aureus isolates was determined by the checkerboard method at neutral and acid pH. In a neutral medium, the AQF + PS combination presented synergistic or additive interactions against six S. aureus strains. The combination of EAF + PS resulted in additive interactions against four bacterial isolates. In an acidic medium, the AQF + PS combination was synergistic or additive against all S. aureus, while EAF + PS presented the same effect against six S. aureus strains S. adstringens showed important antibacterial effects against foodborne S. aureus strains. Moreover, the combination of S. adstringens fractions and PS improved the antibacterial activity compared to the compounds utilized individually. The combined use of these compounds may be an alternative to reduce bacterial food contamination and improve food safety.

Feature-Based Molecular Network-Guided Dereplication of Natural Bioactive Products from Leaves of Stryphnodendron pulcherrimum (Willd.) Hochr

Stryphnodendron pulcherrimum is a species known to have a high content of tannins. Accordingly, its preparations are used in southern Pará, Brazil, for their anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activities, but so far, its chemical profile composition remains essentially unknown. We herein describe the compounds present in a hydro-acetonic extract from S. pulcherrimum leaves as revealed by dereplication via ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry. The data were combined with spectral organization, spectral matching through the Global Natural Products Social platform, in silico annotation and taxonomical ponderation. Several types of phenolic compounds were identified such as gallic acids, flavan-3-ols and flavone-like compounds. From these, 5 have been recently reported by our group, whereas 44 are reported here for the first time in this tree species, and 41 (out of 49) for this genus. The results highlight the possible role of Stryphnodendron pulcherrimum as a renewable source for natural bioactive products with potential pharmaceutical applications.

In Vitro Anti-Leishmanial Assessment of Some Medicinal Plants Collected from Al Qassim, Saudi Arabia

PURPOSE

In the present work, a group of nine medicinal plants (Sonchus oleraceus, Echinops spinosissimus, Trichodesma africana, Pergularia tomentosa, Teucrium oliverianum, Blepharis ciliaris, Citrllus colocynthis, Cleome amblyocarpa and Aerva javanica) from eight different families were investigated for their in vitro anti-leishmanial activity against the promastigote and amastigote stages of Leishmania major. L. major is the causative agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) which is one of the major health problems in Saudi Arabia and neighboring countries such as Iraq and Iran. However, the commonly available commercial therapeutics still come with multiple unwanted side effects in addition to parasite resistance, so medicinal plants have attracted attention due to their affordability and beneficial effects.

METHODS

The selected plants were collected from Al Qassim region in the middle of Saudi Arabia, and then extracts were prepared with methanol using overnight soaking for the whole plants. RPMI 1640 was used to culture L. major to obtain promastigotes and intramacrophage amastigotes, which were used later for evaluation of extract activity in vitro via spectrophotometric and microscopic techniques. The MTT assay was used for cytotoxic evaluation of plant extracts against macrophage cells. Data were expressed in mean ± SD. Linear regression was used for IC₅₀ and CC₅₀ calculation. T test was used for significant differences at P ≤ 0.05.

RESULTS

All the plants revealed anti-leishmanial activity against the L. major amastigote stage with IC₅₀ values less than 91 µg/mL. The three most potent were T. oliverianum, P. tomentosa and C. amblyocarpa with IC₅₀ values of 7.8, 13.7 and 21.5 µg/mL, respectively. The L. major promastigote stage was more tolerant, so only T. oliverianum extract showed an IC₅₀ less than 30 (26.6 µg/mL). P. tomentosa is the most toxic plant with CC₅₀ 3.1 µg/mL followed by T. africana CC₅₀ 9.5 µg/mL, the other plants possess CC₅₀ over 40 µg/mL. The best SI values were obtained from the C. amblyocarpa and T. oliverianum extracts against the L. major amastigote stages with 5.7 and 5.3, respectively.

CONCLUSION

We can conclude that T. oliverianum, P. tomentosa and C. amblyocarpa are the best anti-leishmanial plants, so further phytochemical studies for isolation of active ingredients are highly recommended.

In vitro anthelmintic activity and safety of different plant species against the ovine gastrointestinal nematode Teladorsagia circumcincta

The present study was conducted to evaluate the in vitro anthelmintic activity and safety of methanolic and aqueous extracts of 9 plants against the ovine GIN Teladorsagia circumcincta. Initially the ovicidal efficacy of all extracts was tested at 50 mg/ml and at 1%, this last concentration for the methanolic extract of Elettaria cardamomum, by the Egg Hatch Assay. In those extracts with efficacy higher than 95%, the effective concentration required to inhibit 50% of egg hatching (EC₅₀) and their cytotoxicity, as the lethal dose 50 (LC₅₀), was also measured. The aqueous extracts of Aesculus hippocastanum, Isatis tinctoria, Chelidonium majus, E. cardamomum and Sisymbrium irio, with EC₅₀ values ranging 1.30-2.88 mg/ml, and the aqueous extract of Jasminum polyanthum with a value of 6.41 mg/ml, showed the highest activities. The aqueous extract of J. polyanthum was the safest extract, followed by methanolic extract of E. cardamomum and aqueous extract of S. irio, all of them with a Selective Index higher than 1. According to our results, there is no correlation between the amount of total phenols or total tannins with the anthelmintic activity of the plants tested. Although results need to be interpreted with caution, as in vitro activity may not automatically translate into in vivo efficacy, those extracts with SI equal or higher than 1 and EC₅₀ equal or lower than 6 mg/ml, could be taken into account for being used subsequently as feed or food additives in infected sheep.

Analysis of the Variability of Therapeutic Indications of Medicinal Species in the Northeast of Brazil: Comparative Study

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

This study aims to evaluate the versatility of these species and their agreement of use and/or the informants' knowledge and verify the variability of the information on the indicated medicinal species in comparison to other species from northeastern Brazilian areas.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Ethnobotanical information was acquired through interviews with 23 residents of the Quincuncá community, northeastern Brazil. From the obtained data, a comparative analysis of the therapeutic indications with other 40 areas in different biomes was conducted. For that, the relative importance index and informant consensus factor were calculated and compared to other indices evaluated in the literature.

RESULTS

A total of 39 medicinal species were cited and twenty-six species showed similarities among their therapeutic indications; however, species as Geoffroea spinosa, Lantana camara, and others can be highlighted, present in community disease indications that were not verified for other areas. Myracrodruon urundeuva, Mimosa tenuiflora, Stryphnodendron rotundifolium, and Amburana cearensis had the greatest versatility. In the Quincuncá community, medicinal species were indicated for 49 diseases, which were grouped into 15 categories of body systems.

CONCLUSION

This study shows the presented divergence in relation to their therapeutic use; in this point, these divergences reinforce the importance of pharmacological research.

Stryphnodendron Species Known as "Barbatimão": A Comprehensive Report

Stryphnodendron spp., popularly known as "barbatimão", is the native Brazilian tree most often employed to treat wounds and infections. The aim of the present study was to highlight the importance of S. adstringens, as well as other Stryphnodendron species recognized as "barbatimão", to human health, depicting the relevance of ethnopharmacological knowledge to scientific evidence for uses, related chemical compounds, development of pharmaceutical formulations, and the establishment of toxicity parameters. For this purpose, the literature databases PubMed, Scielo, Lilacs, CAPES Thesis and Google Scholar were searched until 2017. It was observed that stem bark was the primary part of the plant used, mainly as a decoction, for wound healing and treatment of infectious and inflammatory disorders. Confirmed biological activities, including wound healing, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antimicrobial activities, were related to the presence of compounds from tannin class, mostly proanthocyanidins. Toxicity parameters for stem bark were inconclusive, but toxicity was observed to a significant extent when seeds were ingested by cattle or other animals. Due to these important and confirmed biological activities, government policy encourages the phytotherapic use of S. adstringens, and some formulations with stem bark extracts were developed and patented. Furthermore, antiprotozoal, hypoglycemic and antiviral activities were identified as promising.