A new triterpenoid from Sapium baccatum (Euphorbiaceae)

The Biosynthesis and Medicinal Properties of Taraxerol

Taraxerol is a pentacyclic triterpenoid that is actively produced by some higher plants as part of a defense mechanism. The biosynthesis of taraxerol in plants occurs through the mevalonate pathway in the cytosol, in which dimethylallyl diphosphate (DMAPP) and isopentyl pyrophosphate (IPP) are first produced, followed by squalene. Squalene is the primary precursor for the synthesis of triterpenoids, including taraxerol, β-amyrin, and lupeol, which are catalyzed by taraxerol synthase. Taraxerol has been extensively investigated for its medicinal and pharmacological properties, and various biotechnological approaches have been established to produce this compound using in vitro techniques. This review provides an in-depth summary of the hypothesized taraxerol biosynthetic pathway, the medicinal properties of taraxerol, and recent developments on tissue culture for the in vitro production of taraxerol.

Genus Sapium (Euphorbiaceae): A review on traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Genus Sapium, belonging to Euphorbiaceae family, has a wide distribution in Asia and in temperate and tropical regions of Africa and America. The various parts of Sapium species have been used in traditional Chinese herbal medicine for the treatment of edema, skin-related diseases, bacterial infections, cancers, diabetes, and other ailments.

AIM OF THE STUDY

A comprehensive and updated review on the phytochemistry, pharmacology, and traditional medicinal uses of Sapium has been summarized and discussed to facilitate further exploitation of the therapeutic values of Sapium species.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The relevant information of Sapium species was collected by scientific search engines including Elsevier, Google Scholar, Scifinder, and CNKI (China national knowledge infrastructure), and Master's dissertations and Summon from Shandong University Library.

RESULTS

Phytochemical studies revealed that approximately 259 compounds including terpenoids, phenylpropanoids, flavonoids, tannins, steroids, alkaloids, etc. have been isolated and identified from Sapium species, among which terpenoids, phenylpropanoids and tannins are the main constituents. Pharmacological in vitro and in vivo studies revealed that the extracts and pure compounds possessed significant antibacterial, antiinflammatory, antioxidant, antihypertensive effects, cytotoxicity, antidiabetic, molluscicidal effects. Terpenoids, phenylpropanoids, tannins, flavonoids, and alkaloids may be responsible for these activities.

CONCLUSIONS

The traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology described in this article demonstrated that the plants of Sapium genus possess many different types of compounds exhibiting wide range of biological activities, and they have high medicinal value and potential in the treatment of a variety of diseases. Detailed phytochemical studies have been conducted on only twelve species in the literature. More wide-ranging studies are still needed to explore this genus. Most of the existing bioactivity-related studies were implemented on crude extracts. More in-depth studies are necessary to reveal the links between the traditional uses and bioactivity in the future.

Chemophenetic Significance of Anomalocalyx uleanus Metabolites are Revealed by Dereplication Using Molecular Networking Tools

Anomalocalyx uleanus (Pax & K. Hoffm.) Ducke (Euphorbiaceae) is a singular species in the genus and is restricted and exclusive to the Brazilian Amazon. A phytochemical study of A. uleanus leaves was performed, yielding the isolation of five major compounds: catechin/epicatechin, afzelin, quercetin 3-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside, and astilbin. The phytochemical compositions of the methanolic extracts of leaves, roots, bark, and stem bark were determined using a dereplication approach. Forty-six compounds were annotated from the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) data, while four lipids were identified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). In total, fifty compounds were detected, and they belonged to the primary metabolism and several classes of natural products such as flavonoids, flavonoids O-glycosides, flavonoids C-glycosides, biflavonoids, procyanidin, triterpene, triterpenes esterified with phenylpropanoids, phenylpropanoid derivatives, flavonolignans, coumarins, quinic acid derivatives, and benzoic acid derivatives. This is the first report on the phytochemical data of the genus Anomalocalyx, and the results of this study will contribute to the chemosystematic knowledge of the Euphorbiaceae family and justify the need for investigation of the pharmacological potential of the species A. uleanus.

Triterpenoids

Covering 2014. Previous review: Nat. Prod. Rep., 2017, 34, 90-122 This review covers the isolation and structure determination of triterpenoids reported during 2014 including squalene derivatives, lanostanes, holostanes, cycloartanes, cucurbitanes, dammaranes, euphanes, tirucallanes, tetranortriterpenoids, quassinoids, lupanes, oleananes, friedelanes, ursanes, hopanes, serratanes, isomalabaricanes and saponins; 374 references are cited.

Ethnobotany, phytochemistry and pharmacology of Arctotis arctotoides (L.f.) O. Hoffm.: A review

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Arctotis arctotoides (Asteraceae) is part of the genus Arctotis. Arctotis is an African genus of approximately 70 species that occur widely in the African continent with diverse medicinal values. This plant is used for the treatment of indigestion and catarrh of the stomach, epilepsy, topical wounds and skin disorders among the ethnic groups in South Africa and reported to have a wide spectrum of pharmacological properties.

AIM OF THE REVIEW

The aim of the present review is to appraise the botany, traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacological potential, analytical methods and safety issues of A. arctotoides. Additionally, this review will help to fill the existing gaps in knowledge and highlight further research prospects in the field of phytochemistry and pharmacology.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Information on A. arctotoides was collected from various resources, including books on African medicinal herbs and Zulu medicinal plants, theses, reports and the internet databases such as SciFinder, Google Scholar, Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Mendeley by using a combination of various meaningful keywords. This review surveys the available literature of the species from 1962 to April 2017.

RESULTS

In vitro and in vivo studies of the medicinal properties of A. arctotoides were reviewed. The main isolated and identified compounds were reported as sesquiterpenes, farnesol derivatives, germacranolide, guaianolides and some steroids, of which, nine were reported as antimicrobial. Monoterpenoids and sesquiterpenoids were the predominant essential oil compound classes of the leaves, flowers, stems and roots. The present review revealed potential pharmacological properties such as anti-oxidant, antibacterial, antifungal and anticancer activities of plant extracts as well as isolated compounds. Moreover, the review reports the safety profile (toxicity) of the crude extracts that had been screened on brine shrimps, rats and human cell lines.

CONCLUSIONS

The present review has focused on the phytochemistry, botany, ethnopharmacology, biological activities and toxicological information of A. arctotoides. On the basis of reported data, A. arctotoides has emerged as a good source of natural medicine for the treatment of microbial infections, skin diseases, anti-inflammatory and anticancer agents and also provides new insights for further isolation of new bioactive compounds, especially the discovery of antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and anticancer novel therapeutic lead drug molecules. Additionally, intensive investigations regarding pharmacological properties, safety assessment and efficacy with their mechanism of action could be future research interests before starting clinical trials for medicinal practices.