Chemical Composition of Lipophilic Bark Extracts from Pinus pinaster and Pinus pinea Cultivated in Portugal

Diterpenes of Pinus pinaster aiton with anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and antibacterial activities

ETHNO-PHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

The P. pinaster species, known as 'Pino nigral or rodeno', is used in the treatment of colds, asthma, flu, and tuberculosis.

AIM OF THE STUDY

This study determined the anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and antibacterial activities of the P. pinaster resin, identifying the compounds with higher biological activity.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A bio-guided isolation of the compounds of P. pinaster was carried out by selecting the most active extracts with anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects in the HBEC3-KT, MRC-5, and THP-1 cell lines. The antibacterial activity was determined against the S. aureus, S. pneumoniae, K. pneumoniae and P. aeruginosa strains.

RESULTS

The following compounds were identified by NMR: dehydroabietic acid (1), ( + )-cis-abienol (2), pimaric acid (3), isopimaric acid (4), 7α-hydroxy-dehydroabietic acid (5), 7-oxo-dehydroabietic acid (6), 15-hydroxy-abietic acid (7), 7-oxo-15-hydroxy-dehydroabietic acid (8), 13-oxo-8 (14)-podocarpen-18-oic acid (9), and pinyunin A (10). Regarding their anti-inflammatory activity, all compounds inhibited NF-κB. Compound 9 was the most active (IC50 = 3.90-12.06 μM). Concerning the analgesic activity, all the compounds inhibited NK-1, yet compound 9 was the most active (IC50 = 0.28-0.33 μM). Finally, compounds 6 (MIC = 12.80-25.55 μM) and 9 (MIC = 9.80-24.31 μM) were the most promising antibacterial compounds in all strains.

CONCLUSION

This study managed to identify, for the first time, six diterpenes from the resin of P. pinaster, with anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and antibacterial activity. Among the identified compounds, compound 9 was the most active, being considered a promising candidate as an antagonist of the tachykinin NK-1 receptor and as an analgesic agent against inflammation and neuropathic pain. It also had an antibacterial effect against Gram negative bacteria.

Rosin from Pinus pinaster Portuguese forests shows a regular profile of resin acids

Pinus pinaster forestry occupies >20% of the forest ecosystem area in the continental territory of Portugal with a high impact on the national economy. This species' major derived non-wood product is oleoresin, the raw material for rosin production. Rosin comprises mainly a blend of resin acids and has broad industrial and pharmaceutical applications. Oleoresin production in Portugal has been progressively reduced due to low-cost producers in other countries; currently, it reaches only 2% of the existing P. pinaster trees. To support this value chain, the chemical fingerprint of rosin derived from the national forest requires focused analysis. In the present study, we collected oleoresin within seven geographically distinct pure P. pinaster forests in two consecutive collection years. A high-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) method was used to quantify the diversity of resin acids in the corresponding rosin samples. Overall, the acquired data highlighted that the profile of resin acids in P. pinaster rosin produced in Portugal is highly regular, regardless of the forest location, having as the major constituents abietic acid and dehydroabietic acid. The diversity of resin acids is possibly influenced, to a minor extent, by some edaphoclimatic factors.

Chemical Characterisation, Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activities of Pinus pinaster Ait. and Pinus pinea L. Bark Polar Extracts: Prospecting Forestry By-Products as Renewable Sources of Bioactive Compounds

Agroforestry by-products have gained rising attention in recent years as they represent inexpensive and abundant raw materials that are a source of added-value chemicals, e.g., for food and pharmaceutical applications, as well as for bioenergy generation. Pinus pinaster Ait. bark extracts are consumed worldwide for their cardiovascular benefits, whilst the health potential of Pinus pinea L. bark has not yet been deeply exploited. Therefore, this study highlights the chemical characterisation of Portuguese P. pinaster Ait. and P. pinea L. bark polar extracts, via ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detection-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-DAD-MSn) analysis, and their antioxidant and antibacterial activities. Quinic acid, an A-type procyanidin dimer isomer, protocatechuic acid, and quercetin were identified for the first time as P. pinea L. bark components. Moreover, this bark demonstrated a higher total content of identified polar compounds than P. pinaster Ait. bark, with quinic acid being the most abundant compound identified. Regarding antioxidant activity, the pine bark polar extracts exhibited strong reducing power and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2-azinobis-(3-ethyl-benzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) radical scavenging effects compared to natural antioxidants. Moreover, the bactericidal actions of pine bark extracts were shown against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli at a 3.13–25 mg mL−1 range. Globally, these promising insights can boost the sustainable exploitation of P. pinea L. bark, as already occurs with P. pinaster Ait. bark, for the food and biomedical fields.

Tannin extract from maritime pine bark exhibits anticancer properties by targeting the epigenetic UHRF1/DNMT1 tandem leading to the re-expression of TP73

Maritime pine bark is a rich source of polyphenolic compounds and is commonly employed as a herbal supplement worldwide. This study was designed to check the potential of maritime pine tannin extract (MPTE) in anticancer therapy and to determine the underlying mechanism of action. Our results showed that MPTE, containing procyanidin oligomers and lanostane type terpenoids, has an inhibitory effect on cancer cell proliferation through cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase. Treatment with MPTE also induced apoptosis in a concentration-dependent manner in human cancer cell lines (HeLa and U2OS), as evidenced by the enhanced activation of caspase 3 and the cleavage of PARP along with the downregulation of the antiapoptotic protein Bcl-2. Interestingly, human non-cancerous fibroblasts are much less sensitive to MPTE, suggesting that it preferentially targets cancer cells. MPTE played a pro-oxidant role in cancer cells and promoted the expression of the p73 tumor suppressor gene in p53-deficient cells. It also downregulated the protooncogenic proteins UHRF1 and DNMT1, mediators of the DNA methylation machinery, and reduced the global methylation levels in HeLa cells. Overall, our results show that maritime pine tannin extract can play a favorable role in cancer treatment, and can be further explored by the pharmaceutical industry.

Phytochemical characterization of phloem in maritime pine and stone pine in three sites in Portugal

This study analyzes the content and chemical profile of extractives present in the young phloem of mature trees of maritime pine (Pinus pinaster) and stone pine (P. pinea) in three sites in Portugal located in different climatic environments.

The cross-sites average of extractives was similar in both pines with 38.5% in P. pinea and 37.7% in P. pinaster phloem. The hydrophilic fraction represented 82% and 70% of P. pinea and P. pinaster total extractives respectively, with large contents of phenolic compounds, flavonoids and tannins, and showed very high oxygen scavenging and reducing ability. Lipophilic extractives were present in higher proportion in P. pinaster phloem than in P. pinea phloem, and showed a large content of resin acids, with the predominance of abietic acid in P. pinaster, and dehydroabietic acid in P. pinea phloems, and of alkanoic acids.

P. pinaster and P. pinea have specific defences related to phloem production of resin and phenolic compounds with the ratio phenolic-to-oleoresin compounds higher for P. pinea (4.7 vs 2.3 for P. pinaster) and constant in the three sites. The phytochemical content and composition of the young phloem of P. pinaster and P. pinea showed site differences highlighting the relationship between environment and metabolic production.

Chemical, Nutritional and Antioxidant Characteristics of Different Food Seeds

The objective of this study was to determine the chemical composition of five different food seeds (sunflower, poppy, hemp, flax and sesame) regarding fatty acid, mineral (Fe, Cu, Zn, Na, Mg, K, Ca, Al) and protein content. In addition, the total antioxidant capacity of the seeds was evaluated using the photochemiluminescent assay. The food seeds were subjected to lipid extraction and converted into fatty acid methyl esters before the gas chromatography analysis. In all food seeds, the saturated (SFAs), monounsaturated (MUFAs) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) were identified, respectively. PUFAs were the most abundant fatty acids (61.2% ± 0.07% and 84.8% ± 0.08% of total fatty acids), with the highest content in flax and hemp seed oil. Also, high amounts of omega-3 from PUFAs were determined in flax and hempseed oil. Based on the obtained results the sunflower, sesame and poppy seeds are good sources of omega-6, while flax and hemp seeds are good sources of omega-3. All samples are rich in minerals (Na, K, Ca, Mg) and have more than 20% protein content.