Hyperoside and anthocyanin content of ten different pomegranate cultivars

Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) is native to the Mediterranean region and has been used extensively as a medicine in many counties. Hyperoside is known as an important flavonoid with antioxidant activity and anti hypertension effect. Anthocyanins are the active component in several herbal medicines, thus accurate measurement of hyperoside and anthocyanins, along with their degradation indices, is very useful to food technologists and horticulturists. The aim of the current study was to determine the antioxidant capacity as hyperoside and anthocyanin content of ten different Iranian pomegranate cultivars. Spectroscopic analyses of the pomegranate showed Black peel cultivar had the highest hyperoside content (25.93 +/- 2.87, 620.41 +/- 30.32 mg/100 g) in its pulp and peel, respectively. Based on this study, the amounts of anthocyanin in pulp ranged between 1.56 +/- 0.05 and 3.89 +/- 0.07 mg g(-1) which related to Sweet white peel and Sweet alac cultivars, respectively. More over the highest and also the lowest peel anthocyanin contents related to these cultivars. The results revealed that the hyperoside and also anthocyanin peel content of each variety is higher than its pulp content. In addition the potency of black peel (Medicinal pomegranate) and Sweet alac cultivars for prevention of coronary heart disease and hypertension were presented.

Antioxidant and burn healing potential of Galium odoratum extracts

This study was conducted to evaluate the burn wound healing and antioxidant activity of methanolic and aqueous extracts of Galium odoratum (L.) Scop. in rats. Second degree burn wounds were induced in six groups of six rats each. Groups 1 and 2 received eucerin and silver sulfadiazine as control and reference standard and groups 3, 4, 5 and 6 were given methanolic and aqueous extracts of 15% and 30% (w/w in eucerin base) respectively. The topical treatment was done daily for 14 days. The percentage of wound contraction and histology parameters of healed wounds were observed. The antioxidant potential of both extracts was assessed by 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) assay. There was statistically significant improvement in wound contraction of animals treated with extracts in comparison to control (p < 0.001). The healed wounds in extracts-treated animals contained less inflammatory cells and had better reepithelialization. Wound contraction and histology parameters were relatively better in aqueous extract (90.68 ± 6.13% and 97.18 ± 4.37% for aqueous extracts of 15% and 30% in comparison to 79.29 ± 9.16% and 91.94 ± 4.14% for methanolic extracts of 15% and 30% respectively). In DPPH assay, both methanolic and aqueous extracts displayed significant antioxidant activity with IC50 values of 148 μg/ml and 83 μg/ml, respectively. In conclusion, both extracts had desirable antioxidant potential plus experimentally and histologically ascertained burn wound healing activity, relatively better for aqueous extract.

A validated high performance liquid chromatography method for the analysis of thymol and carvacrol in Thymus vulgaris L. volatile oil

Thymus vulgaris L. (Lamiaceae) is a well-known medicinal plant that contains important compounds such as thymol and carvacrol and it has been used in many pharmaceutical dosage forms. Thymol and carvacrol in essential oils are often quantified by gas chromatography (GC) technique but in this work, a validated and reliable high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method has been developed for the analysis of these two components in T. vulgaris essential oil. The essential oil of the plant was analyzed by HPLC and GC techniques. The HPLC system consisted of ACE C₁₈ column and an isocratic acetonitrile:water (50:50) as the mobile phase which was kept at a flow rate of 1 ml/min. The method was validated for selectivity, linearity (r² > 0.997 for both thymol and carvacrol), precision (intra-day 0.8-1.9, 1.7-2.6; and inter-day 3.5-4.5, 3.6-4.7) and recovery (97.7%, 97.6%) for thymol and carvacrol, respectively. The limits of detection (LODs) and limits of quantization (LOQs) were calculated to be 2.8, 0.6 µg/ml and 8.6, 1.8 µg/ml for thymol and carvacrol, respectively. The GC system consisted of flame ionization detector (FID) and CP-SIL 8 column. The concentrations of thymol and carvacrol in essential oil obtained by HPLC (41.2%, 4.3%) and GC (40.7%, 4.2%) were compared by statistical methods and they showed good agreement.

A validated method for analysis of Swerchirin in Swertia longifolia Boiss. by high performance liquid chromatography

Swertia spp. (Gentianaceae) grow widely in the eastern and southern Asian countries and are used as traditional medicine for gastrointestinal disorders. Swerchirin, one of the xanthones in Swertia spp., has many pharmacological properties, such as, antimalarial, antihepatotoxic, and hypoglycemic effects. Because of the pharmacological importance of Swerchirin in this investigation, it was purified from Swertia longifolia Boiss. as one of the main components and quantified by means of a validated high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) technique. Aerial parts of the plant were extracted with acetone 80%. Phenolic and non-phenolic constituents of the extract were separated from each other during several processes. The phenolic fraction was injected into the semi-preparative HPLC system, which consisted of a C₁₈ column and a gradient methanol: 0.1% formic acid mode. Using this method, we were able to purify six xanthones from the plant, in order to use them as standard materials. The analytical method was validated for Swerchirin as one of the most important components of the plant, with more pharmacological activities according to the validation parameters, such as, selectivity, linearity (r² > 0.9998), precision (≤3.3), and accuracy, which were measured by the determination of recovery (98-107%). The limits of detection and quantization were found to be 2.1 and 6.3 μg/mL, respectively. On account of the speed and accuracy, the UV-HPLC method may be used for quantitative analysis of Swerchirin.