Phytochemistry (extraction, identification and measurement of active components)
Fatemeh Nejad-Alimoradi; Mansoureh Khodashenas; Farkhondeh Rezanejad
Abstract
Background and objectives: Nepeta, with 300 species, is one of the largest genera in the Lamiaceae family. Seventy-five species of this genus are distributed in Iran, many of which are endemic. Due to the medicinal importance and traditional uses of its various species, much research has been conducted ...
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Background and objectives: Nepeta, with 300 species, is one of the largest genera in the Lamiaceae family. Seventy-five species of this genus are distributed in Iran, many of which are endemic. Due to the medicinal importance and traditional uses of its various species, much research has been conducted to identify their secondary metabolites. Nepetalactone, cineole, and phenolic compounds have been reported as their main compounds, and most have medicinal, antimicrobial, and industrial properties. The amount of these compounds varies in different parts of the plant and different species and populations. Nepeta bornmulleriHausskn. ex Bornm. is endemic to Iran and is a type specimen from Kerman province. Although secondary metabolites have been studied in many species of this genus, more research is needed on N. bornmulleri. Therefore, the morphology, quantity, and quality of antioxidant compounds and essential oils were investigated in the plant's two vegetative and generative parts.Methodology: Vegetative (stem and leaf) and generative (flower and fruit) parts of N. bornmulleri were collected in May 2023 from Rayen city (Kerman province) at an altitude of 2450 meters. The used generative parts were 80% flowers and 20% unripe fruits. The size of the plant, its vegetative form, and the structure of the inflorescence and flower were examined and photographed with the naked eye or stereomicroscope so that researchers could identify them quickly. Biochemical compounds, including phenolic compounds and essential oil, were studied in vegetative and generative parts. Total phenolic compounds, including total phenols, flavonoids, and anthocyanins from fresh samples, were studied by spectrophotometric method. The phenolic compounds and anthocyanins profile were investigated using dried samples with HPLC. The analysis of essential oil was done using dry samples with gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography coupled to a mass spectrometer (GC/MS). Essential oil extraction was done by distillation with water using Clevenger. The experiment was conducted in a completely random design, including two types of vegetative (stem and leaf) and generative (flower and fruit) organs with three replications.Results: Morphological studies of N. bornmulleri showed that in the studied area, the height of the species is about 10-25 cm with hairy basal (rosette) leaves, apical and dense head-like inflorescence, purple-blue synpetal corolla with bilobate apex, synsepal calyx. The Androecium comprises four purple stamens of equal length (didynamous stamens) and an upper pistil with tetra-achene schizocarp fruit surrounded by persistent sepals. The total content of phenols, flavonoids, and anthocyanins in flowering branches (generative) was significantly higher than in leaves and stems (vegetative parts). The profile of phenolic and anthocyanin compounds by HPLC showed that ten phenolic compounds and three anthocyanin compounds were identified in the generative part, and six phenolic compounds and two anthocyanin compounds were identified in the vegetative part. The most phenolic compound observed in both vegetative and generative parts was luteolin, while malvidin-glucoside was recorded as the most anthocyanin compound. The amount of malvidin-glucoside in the generative part was twice that of the vegetative part. The percentage of essential oil in vegetative and generative parts was observed at 0.2 and 0.1, respectively. In the essential oils of vegetative and reproductive parts, respectively, 10 (69.41%) and 16 (89.29%) identified compounds and 9 (14.59%) and 4 (6.21%) unidentified compounds were reported, which in total 84% and 95.5% constituted the essential oil.The main components of the essential oil of the vegetative part include spatholenol (31.2%), 1,8-cineole (14.5%), hexadecanoic acid (10.6%), myrtenol (9.7%), caryophyllene oxide (6.4%). ) and trans-pinocarveol (4.4%). In the generative part, 1,8-cineole (31.7%), spatholenol (16.2%), myrtenol (14.14%), dihydro nepetalactone (6.92%), trans-pinocarveol (6.7%), pinocarovone (5.2%) and caryophyllene oxide (4.5%) were the main components of the essential oil.Conclusion: Based on the results, the quantity and quality of phenolic compounds, anthocyanin, and essential oil in the generative part were higher than in the vegetative part of the studied species. So, it is suggested that the generative parts of the plant be used to obtain antioxidant compounds. The amount of nepetalactone, which is significant in most species of Nepeta, was relatively low in this species, while spatholenol and 1, 8-cineole were the main compounds. Considering the numerous medicinal and industrial applications of the two dominant species combinations on the one hand and the exclusivity and limited distribution of the species on the other hand, it is essential to preserve its different populations.
Biotechnology
Seyedeh Mohaddeseh Hosseini; Seyed Ali Andi; Amir Sahraroo; Mohammad Bagher Farhangi
Abstract
Background and objectives: Adventitious root cultures of medicinal plants represent a bountiful reservoir of valuable secondary metabolites. The esteemed medicinal plant Echinacea purpurea (L.) Monech is highly sought after for its phytochemical properties, with a traditional ...
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Background and objectives: Adventitious root cultures of medicinal plants represent a bountiful reservoir of valuable secondary metabolites. The esteemed medicinal plant Echinacea purpurea (L.) Monech is highly sought after for its phytochemical properties, with a traditional use of its roots in herbal medicines and dietary supplements as an immune system stimulant for treating inflammatory, viral, and respiratory diseases. However, the heterogeneous synthesis of bioactive compounds in natural environments and the limitations of conventional plant production methods necessitate exploring alternative approaches for obtaining active plant substances and organs. Among various in vitro cultivation techniques, the cultivation of differentiated tissues, specifically roots, consistently demonstrates the ability to yield higher quantities of metabolites than undifferentiated tissues such as callus and suspension cells. Methodology: The primary aim of this study was to accurately determine the ideal combination of plant explants and plant growth regulators that would facilitate the successful establishment of adventitious root suspension cultures. Three distinct plant explants, namely leaf, petiole, and root, were carefully evaluated in this study. These explants were subjected to varying concentrations (0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2 mg.L-1) of two types of plant growth regulators: indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) and 1-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA). After six weeks, the number of adventitious roots developed by the explants under different concentrations of plant growth regulators was measured. The impact of different sucrose concentrations (10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 grams per liter) in the culture medium was investigated over a four-week cultivation period. Various dynamic characteristics of root growth, including fresh weight, dry weight, volume of the remaining medium, electrical conductivity, and pH, were closely examined. Furthermore, phytochemical properties such as total phenol, total flavonoid, and antioxidant activity were assessed. To administer the sucrose treatments, 0.35 grams of adventitious roots were placed inside 250 ml Erlenmeyer flasks containing 50 ml of half MS culture medium, 1 mg.L-1IBA, and varying concentrations of sucrose, maintaining a pH of 5.8. Measurements were taken from three flasks of each treatment weekly. The experiments followed a Completely Randomized Factorial Design, with statistical analysis conducted using SPSS software.Results: Leaf explants exhibited superior root formation to root and petiole explants. The average number of adventitious roots in leaf explants reached 3.37, while petiole and root explants produced only 0.23 and no adventitious roots, respectively. The most effective root formation occurred in MS medium with 1 mg.L-1 IBA, resulting in an average of 4 roots per explant. Hormone concentrations of 0 and 2 mg.L-1 did not induce root formation. In the fourth week of cultivation, the highest fresh weight recorded was 29.8 grams per liter, marking a remarkable 3.4-fold increase from the initial inoculation weight. The culture medium's electrical conductivity and pH decreased as the cultivation progressed. Cultivation weeks did not significantly impact total flavonoid production and related antioxidant activity in adventitious roots. However, the cultivation period significantly affected the total phenol content at 57.56 mg of gallic acid per gram of dry weight. Altogether, lower sucrose concentrations proved more efficient for biomass production, bioactive compound content, and antioxidant activity. The highest biomass accumulation and total phenol content occurred at 3% sucrose. In comparison, in the fourth week of cultivation, the highest total flavonoid content and the highest free radical inhibition percentage were observed at 2% and 1% sucrose, respectively. Notably, a negative correlation was observed between the electrical conductivity of the remaining culture medium and root biomass in lower sucrose concentrations as the culture duration increased.Conclusion: In light of the immense potential harbored by adventitious root suspension cultures of E. purpurea as an alternative source for the production of secondary metabolites, particularly caffeic acid derivatives, the discoveries made in this research have the potential to advance the field of mass production for active root organs, thereby facilitating the synthesis of these precious compounds through the implementation of appropriate laboratory bioreactor systems.
Biological effects of essential oils and extracts
N. Khaliliaqdam; Sh. Saeidian; S. Bashirpor
Abstract
Background and objectives: Plants have many defense systems to overcome stresses, especially heavy metals. Some heavy metals are part of pigments and enzyme compounds and are also essential elements. In concentrations higher than plants' physiological needs, they are toxic ...
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Background and objectives: Plants have many defense systems to overcome stresses, especially heavy metals. Some heavy metals are part of pigments and enzyme compounds and are also essential elements. In concentrations higher than plants' physiological needs, they are toxic for plants, but some heavy metals such as cadmium and lead are even unnecessary. At low concentrations, they harm plants, and for this reason, heavy metals are considered stressors. Based on this, it is imperative to investigate these metals' effects on plant oxidizing enzymes' activities.Methodology: In this research, in order to investigate the reaction of oxidizing enzymes and non-oxidizing factors against the stress caused by cadmium (Cd), the required artichoke after being prepared from the mountains of Kurdistan in the presence of phosphate buffer, pH 7 and PMSF 0.02 solution as Protease inhibitor was homogenized and after centrifugation at 3000 g and 15000 g, the upper clear solution was used as a crude extract and for subsequent measurements. In the performed tests, the effect of different concentrations of cadmium chloride (CdCl2) were measured on the content of proline (Pro), phenolic compounds (Ph.C) and the activity of antioxidant enzymes such as phenyl-alanine-ammonialyse (PAL), catalase CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), guaiacol peroxidase (GPX) and polyphenol oxidase (PPO) of artichoke root. This project was carried out in the form of a completely randomized design in three replications in vials containing three milliliters of artichoke root extract with seven treatments, in which the first group was treated as a control in the presence of distilled water only. The second group was exposed to 0.25 mM CdCl2, the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh groups were exposed to 0.5, 1, 2, 5, and 10 mM CdCl2, respectively, for 10 minutes. The samples were treated at room temperature of 20 to 25 degrees and 10 minutes of natural light. Then, the activity level of each antioxidant enzyme and the level of Pro and Ph.C was measured separately. In this research, at first, the distribution diagram of the data (enzyme or protein activity against different levels of Cd) was drawn, and then various linear and non-linear regression equations were used to fit the data. In the next step, according to the best type of equation and analysis of the response type of GPX, SOD, APX, protein, Pro and Ph.C was used from nonlinear regression analysis (power, hyperbolic, asymptotic exponential and asymptotic growth models) and to express the response of enzyme activity of PPO, CAT and PAL to different levels of Cd were used from the beta model.Results: All models indicated Cd's stimulating effect on the studied enzymes. The research results showed that the activity of all SOD, APX, CAT, PPO, GPX, and PAL enzymes as well as the content of Pro and Ph. C increased significantly after Cd treatment. Using five non-linear regression models, the highest activity of APX enzyme at a concentration of 4.6 mM (asymptotic exponential model), GPX enzyme at a concentration of 12.3 mM (asymptotic exponential and asymptotic growth models), SOD enzyme at 14.3 mM (asymptotic growth model) was interpolated. In addition, the most production of Pro and Ph. C was obtained at concentrations of 13.6 and 14.3 mM Cd using the asymptotic and asymptotic growth models, respectively. The highest activity of the PPO enzyme was at 8 mM, CAT at 4.8 mM, and the maximum activity of PAL was at 1.4 mM. The results showed that Cd, due to the induction of oxidative stress and the increase in free radical production, leads to an increase in the content of proline, phenolic compounds, and the activity of antioxidant enzymes in artichoke roots. Further changes in the activity of these enzymes during growth indicate the presence of enzymatic regulatory mechanisms in artichoke roots against heavy metals such as cadmium. Enzymatic antioxidant defense systems, Pro and Ph. C play a crucial role in the response of artichoke roots to heavy metal cadmium stress.Conclusion: In general, results showed that Cd, due to the induction of oxidative stress and the increase in free radical production, leads to an increase in the content of proline, phenolic compounds, and the activity of antioxidant enzymes in artichoke roots. Further changes in the activity of these enzymes during growth indicate the presence of enzymatic regulatory mechanisms in artichoke roots against heavy metals such as cadmium. Enzymatic antioxidant defense systems and Pro and Ph. C are crucial in the response to heavy metal cadmium stress of artichoke roots.
Agriculture and horticulture
M. Layeghhaghighi; B. Abaszadeh
Abstract
Olive (Olea europaea L.) is a valuable medicinal tree in addition to being used as a food. Olive leaf, as an organ containing active ingredients, is of great value in various industries. Use of olive leaves extract as a natural antioxidant is one of the most common applications of this plant. Oleuropein ...
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Olive (Olea europaea L.) is a valuable medicinal tree in addition to being used as a food. Olive leaf, as an organ containing active ingredients, is of great value in various industries. Use of olive leaves extract as a natural antioxidant is one of the most common applications of this plant. Oleuropein is the most important phenolic compound in olive species that plays an important role in health. Oleuropein and quercetin are used as effective compounds in anti-cancer, anti-virus, and anti-inflammatory drugs. To investigate the effects of vermicompost (0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 tons per hectare) application on morphological traits, leaf yield, and oleuropein, quercetin, macro and micro elements of the olive leaf extract under field conditions, an experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design with three replications (nine shrubs in each replicate) at the Alborz Research Station, Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands in two years. Three-year-old shrubs were planted at a distance of 5 m on the row and 5 m between the rows at a depth of 50 cm. Vermicompost affected fresh and dry leaf yield per hectare and quercetin and oleuropein amounts of the leaves significantly (at the level of 1% probability) in both years. The highest dry leaf yield per hectare was obtained in the 4 tons of vermicompost treatment (55.573 kg in the first year and 63.047 kg in the second one). The amount of quercetin increased from 18.48 and 18.7 µg.mg-1 dry matter in the control treatment (in the first and second years, respectively) to 34.67 and 37.7 µg.mg-1 dry matter in the 4 tons vermicompost per hectare treatment (in the first and second years, respectively). Also, the use of 2 tons of vermicompost per hectare increased the leaf oleuropein in both years. Different vermicompost treatments increased the uptake of most macro and micro elements including phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese, zinc, and copper in both years. The results showed that the appropriate amounts of vermicompostcould be used to produce a plant with high quercetin and oleuropein.
Biological effects of essential oils and extracts
S. Esfandyari; M. Mazhari; O. Esmaeilipour; H. Doumari
Abstract
To investigate the antioxidant properties of Oxalis corniculata L. leaves powder and compare the effects of its addition with vitamin C on the performance and meat quality of broilers under heat stress conditions, an experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design with four treatments, five ...
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To investigate the antioxidant properties of Oxalis corniculata L. leaves powder and compare the effects of its addition with vitamin C on the performance and meat quality of broilers under heat stress conditions, an experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design with four treatments, five replications, and 10 birds per replication. The experimental treatments included the corn-soybean diet as a basal diet (control), basal diet + 250 mg kg-1 vitamin C, basal diet + 0.5% O. corniculata leaves powder, and basal diet + 1% O. corniculata leaves powder. To apply heat stress, the chickens from 25 to 42 days of their age were exposed to 34 ± 2 °C for eight hours a day. The performance traits including feed intake, weight gain, and feed conversion ratio were recorded at the end of the experiment. Also, at the end of the experiment, two birds per replicates were randomly selected and slaughtered to measure the meat quality traits. The total phenolic compounds content in the methanolic extract of O. corniculata was 11.73 mg of gallic acid / g of dry matter. The free radical scavenging activity (DPPH assay) percentage and the amount of vitamin C of this plant were obtained 46.63% and 88 mg/g of dry matter, respectively. The consumption of 1% leaves powder of the plant increased the feed intake and weight of broilers compared to the control (p < /em><0.05). The lowest feed conversion ratio was observed in the group of 1% leaves powder of the plant and vitamin C (p < /em><0.05). The highest water holding capacity and meat moisture was observed in the broilers fed with O. corniculata leaves powder compared to the control (p < /em><0.05). All the treatments reduced the cooking loss and dripping loss of meat compared to the control (p < /em><0.05). According to the results of this experiment, the basal diet + 250 mg kg-1 vitamin C and basal diet + 1% O. corniculata leaves powder treatments could improve the growth performance and some meat quality parameters of broilers under heat stress conditions.
S. Amini; A. Hassani; A. Alirezalu; R. Maleki
Abstract
Mullein (Verbascum L.) is a biennial herbaceous medicinal plant belonging to the Scrophulariaceae family. The flowers of this plant are used to treat respiratory disorders. In this study, the genetic diversity of different mullein species from different regions of West Azerbaijan province was investigated ...
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Mullein (Verbascum L.) is a biennial herbaceous medicinal plant belonging to the Scrophulariaceae family. The flowers of this plant are used to treat respiratory disorders. In this study, the genetic diversity of different mullein species from different regions of West Azerbaijan province was investigated based on some phytochemical markers to domesticate this valuable plant. Phytochemical diversity among different species of mullein was evaluated based on the content of carotenoid, beta-carotene, total phenol, total flavonoid, and antioxidant activity (by FRAP and DPPH methods), and identification of phenolic compounds (gallic acid, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, rutin, coumaric acid, quercetin, cinnamic acid, and apigenin) by HPLC in leaf. The results showed that all phytochemical characteristics studied were significantly different among species (P<0.01). The highest content of carotenoid (76.27 mg g-1 DW), beta-carotene (5.88 mg 100g-1 DW), total phenol (32.83 mg GAE g-1 DW), total flavonoid (7.13 mg QE g-1 DW) and antioxidant activity by DPPH method (34.66 µg AA mL-1) was observed in V. sinuatum. The results showed that V. erianthum leaves had the highest content of chlorogenic acid, quercetin, cinnamic acid, and apigenin, while the highest content of gallic acid and caffeic acid was observed in V. saccatum. In general, the findings of this research showed that there was a wide variation of mullein species in West Azerbaijan province. Species V. erianthum and V. saccatum had unique phytochemical properties that can be used to design breeding programs and use them in the pharmaceutical industry.
B. Soltanian; P. Rezvani Moghaddam; J. Asili
Abstract
The experiment was conducted to study the effects of water deficit stress and fertilizer sources on characteristics of Echinacea purpurea L., in a split plots design with three replications at the research farm of Faculty of Agriculture, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran during two years of 2016 and ...
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The experiment was conducted to study the effects of water deficit stress and fertilizer sources on characteristics of Echinacea purpurea L., in a split plots design with three replications at the research farm of Faculty of Agriculture, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran during two years of 2016 and 2017. Irrigation consisted of three levels of non-stress (control), moderate, and severe moisture stress and fertilizer consisted of eight levels of complete fertilizer (NPK), vermicompost, humic acid, humic acid+NPK, humic acid+vermicompost, NPK+vermicompost, NPK+vermicompost+humic acid, and non-use of fertilizer (control). The single effects of deficit irrigation and fertilizer treatments were significant (p≤0.01) on the stem height, number of stems and flowers plant-1, biomass dry weight, total chlorophylls a and b, and proline content; however, their interaction effects were only significant (p≤0.01) on phenolic compounds of the leaves. In relation to the single effects of irrigation treatments, the highest height and number of stems, number of flowers plant-1, and biomass dry weight was observed in non-water stress treatments and the lowest amount of these characteristics was observed in severe water stress treatments. The highest and lowest proline content was shown in severe and non-stress treatments, respectively, and the highest and lowest total chlorophylls a and b were obtained in non-stress and severe moisture stress, respectively. Regarding the single effects of fertilizer treatments, there was no significant difference in plant height between fertilizer levels; however, all of them had a significant difference with control treatment (no fertilization). The difference between fertilizer treatments was significant in the number of stems and flowers plant-1 and biomass dry weight. The highest number of stems and flowers was obtained in humic acid+vermicompost treatment and the highest amounts of biomass dry weight were obtained in vermicompost+NPK treatment. The lowest values of these traits were observed in control (non-fertilization). The highest and lowest amounts of total chlorophylls a and b were obtained in vermicompost+NPK and control treatments, respectively, and the highest and lowest proline values were obtained in control and vermicompost treatments, respectively. The highest phenolic compounds were observed in humic acid+vermicompost+NPK and humic acid+NPK treatments, both of which under severe moisture stress, and the lowest one in non-stress and non-fertilization (control) treatment.
A. Khakpoor; M. Zolfaghari; K. Sorkheh
Abstract
Medicinal plant licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra L.) has been used by the pharmaceutical industries for its important secondary metabolites. This study was carried out to determine the best harvest time for obtaining the highest content of extract, glycyrrhizin, total phenols, total flavonoids, and phenolic ...
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Medicinal plant licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra L.) has been used by the pharmaceutical industries for its important secondary metabolites. This study was carried out to determine the best harvest time for obtaining the highest content of extract, glycyrrhizin, total phenols, total flavonoids, and phenolic compounds of licorice rhizome of the Behbahan area in Khuzestan province in two seasons of autumn and spring. The results of this study showed that the extract content of rhizomes and also glycyrrhizin, total phenols, and flavonoids content in autumn were higher than those in spring. The results of the independent T-test for glycyrrhizin, as an important and valuable secondary metabolite of licorice, showed a significant difference between autumn and spring seasons. Among the phenolic compounds studied, the highest amount was given to ferulic and coumaric acids in autumn, and the lowest one to caffeic acid in spring. Considering the importance of these secondary metabolites in the pharmaceutical, health and food industries, as well as the widespread use of phenolics, glycyrrhizin, and flavonoids of licorice in herbal drugs, it is necessary to determine the best time for the highest production and accumulation of these metabolites in the licorice rhizomes to take an effective step to enrich the industries mentioned.
S. Syadat Jamian; M. Aghaalikhani; A. Mokhtassi-Bidgoli
Abstract
To investigate the effect of planting density on quantitative and qualitative characteristics of globe artichoke (Cynara cardunculus L. var. Scolymus (L.) Fiori) under weedy and weed-free conditions, a field experiment was conducted at Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran in 2016 growing season. A factorial ...
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To investigate the effect of planting density on quantitative and qualitative characteristics of globe artichoke (Cynara cardunculus L. var. Scolymus (L.) Fiori) under weedy and weed-free conditions, a field experiment was conducted at Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran in 2016 growing season. A factorial arrangement of the experimental treatments was studied in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The factors included four crop planting densities (2, 4, 6 and 8 plants m-2) under two conditions of presence and absence of weeds. Different traits including leaf number per plant, leaf area index, total dry weight, chlorophylls a, b and total chlorophyll, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid and total polyphenol contents were measured. The results showed that leaf number and dry weight were significantly affected by plant density and weed competition in artichoke, so that the weed competition reduced the artichoke dry weight by 22.4%. The highest leaf area index (2.29) and dry weight of artichoke (253.44 g m-2) were observed at 6 plants m-2, while the highest number of leaves per plant (16.33) belonged to the density of 2 plants m-2. Among qualitative traits chlorophylls a, b and total chlorophyll were only affected by weed presence while caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid and total polyphenol contents were only affected by plant density. The effect of crop plant density on weed leaf area and dry weight was also significant. Overall, the highest performance of the main secondary metabolites in artichoke including caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid and total polyphenol (5.99, 9.55 and 5.89 g m-2, respectively) were obtained at 6 plants m-2, completely affected by crop dry matter yield.
E. Rahmati; F. Sharifian; M. Fattahi
Abstract
Drying is one of the main stages after harvesting of medicinal plants, playing an important role in the quantity and quality of their active ingredients. In order to investigate the effects of different drying methods such as oven drying (40°C and 80°C) and spray drying (in the presence of maltodextrin, ...
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Drying is one of the main stages after harvesting of medicinal plants, playing an important role in the quantity and quality of their active ingredients. In order to investigate the effects of different drying methods such as oven drying (40°C and 80°C) and spray drying (in the presence of maltodextrin, maltodextrin with apple pectin and without carrier), the experiments were carried out on a plant extract of Moldavian balm (Dracocephalum moldavica L.) in a completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. After drying of the samples, the properties of powders such as flowability, color parameters including brightness (L*), redness (a*), yellowing (b*), chroma, hue angle, and some chemical properties including phenolic compounds, total flavonoid, and antioxidant activity were evaluated. The results indicated significant effects of different drying methods on physiochemical properties of the powders. The oven-dried powders in air temperature (40 and 80°C) had more desirable flowability in comparison to spray dried samples. The highest amount of L* was observed in spray dried samples in presence of maltodextrin, and the lowest value was observed in oven dried samples at the air temperature of 80°C (76.61 and 24.36, respectively). The highest total phenol content and antioxidant activity were observed in spray dried samples in the presence of maltodextrin and apple pectin (19.72 mg/g DW, %73.16, respectively). The lowest total phenol content and antioxidant activity were observed in spray dried samples without carrier (4.11 mg/g DW, %10.41, respectively). The highest amount of flavonoid was observed in spray dried samples in the presence of maltodextrin (1.487 mg/g DW).
S.M. Razavi Nia; M. Aghaalikhani; H.A. Naghdi Badi
Abstract
The main objective of this research was to investigate the effects of different application rates of vermicompost and chemical fertilizer on qualitative and quantitative performance of purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea L.). A field experiment was conducted at Research Field of Tarbiat Modares University ...
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The main objective of this research was to investigate the effects of different application rates of vermicompost and chemical fertilizer on qualitative and quantitative performance of purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea L.). A field experiment was conducted at Research Field of Tarbiat Modares University during the growing season of 2009-2010. The experiment was arranged as a factorial in a randomized complete block design with three replicates. There were 12 treatments consisting of three chemical fertilizer levels (no fertilizer application, 75 kg nitrogen/ha as urea form + 3000ppm micronutrient fertilizer/ha, and 150kg nitrogen/ha as urea form + 6000ppm micronutrient fertilizer/ha) and four vermicompost levels (0, 2, 4, and 6 ton ha-1). Results showed that vermicompost had significant effects on dry weights of stem, flower, root, total biological yield, number of flowers per plant and SPAD value. In addition, the interaction between chemical fertilizer and vermicompost was significant for root dry weight, 100 flowers dry weight and plant height. The application of 4 ton vermicompost ha-1 without chemical fertilizer resulted in the highest values of stem dry weight, flower dry weight, number of flowers per plant and plant height. The highest root dry weight and total biological yield was obtained by applying 2.94 and 3.59 ton vermicompost ha-1, respectively. There were not significant chemical fertilizer differences on all measured traits. None of the experimental factors showed significant influences on total phenolic compounds in different plant organs. According to results of this experiment, organic fertilizer (vermicompost) could be introduced as a suitable alternative to the use of chemical fertilizer in purple coneflower cultivation.
S. Zare Dehabadi; Z. Asrar; A. Shoushtari; M. Mehrabani
Abstract
Enhancing antioxidant pool especially phenolic compounds accumulation is one of the most important non enzymatic tools of plants to resist environmental stresses. In this investigation, basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) seedlings, grown in a control condition and irrigated with Hoagland nutrient solution, ...
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Enhancing antioxidant pool especially phenolic compounds accumulation is one of the most important non enzymatic tools of plants to resist environmental stresses. In this investigation, basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) seedlings, grown in a control condition and irrigated with Hoagland nutrient solution, were treated withcoronatine (COR) at 0 (Control), 50 and 100 nM and different concentrations of As (V) at 0 (Control), 150 and 300 µM. Then some parameters in treated plants were measured. Increasing of lipid peroxidation and electrolyte leakage and H2O2 accumulation in basil leaves were the symptoms of arsenate toxicity that were ameliorated by COR pretreatment. Increasing phenolic compound contents, flavonoid and anthocyanin content and enhancing PAL and PPO activity indicate that COR as a jasmonates analogue may ameliorate arsenic toxicity in O. basilicum seedlings by improving antioxidative defense system.
F. Raouf Fard; M. Sharifi; R. Omidbaigi; F. Sefidkon; M. Behmanesh; N. Ahmadi
Abstract
The effect of methyl jasmonate (MeJa) upon Agastache foeniculum [Pursh] Kuntze was investigated in aspects of enzymatic activities of phenylalanine ammonialyase (PAL) and 4-coumarate:CoA ligase (4CL), total phenolic content and total protein. The experiments were carried out based on a completely randomized ...
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The effect of methyl jasmonate (MeJa) upon Agastache foeniculum [Pursh] Kuntze was investigated in aspects of enzymatic activities of phenylalanine ammonialyase (PAL) and 4-coumarate:CoA ligase (4CL), total phenolic content and total protein. The experiments were carried out based on a completely randomized design under a hydroponic system. The plants were subjected to different concentrations of MeJa (0, 0.1 and 1 mM). The PAL activity significantly increased in plants treated with 1 mM MeJa for 24 h compared with 0.1mM MeJa and control. In addition, 4CL activity also significantly increased at 24 h after 1mM MeJa treatment compared with 0.1mM MeJa treatment and control. However, MeJa treatments did not have any significant effect on total phenolic compounds after 8, 12 or 24 h of treatment compared with controls of those times. Total protein content significantly increased with 1 or 0.1 mM MeJa treatments after 24h of treatment compared with control plants.
M. Babalar; S. Mohtashami; S.M. Ebrahimzadeh Musavi; M.H. Mirjalili
Abstract
In this research, in order to study the effect of different packaging on essential oil content, antioxidant activity, phenolic compounds, total flavonoid, flavone and flavonol content, microbial load and color characteristics of Dracocephalum moldavica L., an experiment in a randomized complete design ...
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In this research, in order to study the effect of different packaging on essential oil content, antioxidant activity, phenolic compounds, total flavonoid, flavone and flavonol content, microbial load and color characteristics of Dracocephalum moldavica L., an experiment in a randomized complete design (RCD) with nine treatments and three replications was carried out. The packaging treatments were P1: control (without definite packaging), P2: polyethylene packaging with ambient gas combination exposed in light conditions P3: Polyethylene-polyamide package with ambient gas combination exposed in light conditions, P4: polyethylene-polyamide packaging with ambient gas combination exposed in dark conditions, P5: polyethylene-polyamide packaging with 5% O2 and 95% N2 gas combination exposed in light conditions, P6: polyethylene-polyamide packaging with 5% O2 and 95% N2 gas combination exposed in dark conditions, P7: polyethylene-polyamide packaging and vacuum gas combination exposed in light conditions, P8: polyethylene-polyamide packaging and vacuum gas combination exposed in dark conditions, P9: dried material before of packaging. All packages were stored at room temperature for three months. Results showed that packaging treatments had significant effects on some factors. The maximum essential oil content (0.73 and 0.72%, respectively v/w) was related to pre-packaged sample and P8 treatments and minimum essential oil content belonged to control, P2 and P5 treatments (0.28, 0.37 and 0.39%, respectively). Maximum antioxidant activity was obtained in pre-packaged, P1 and P5 treatments while P2 and P4 treatments showed minimum antioxidant activity. The highest (188.8) and the lowest (72/8) content of phenolic compounds (mg Quercitin/g DW) were measured in P9 and P2 treatments respectively. The maximum (78.6) and the minimum (14.1) content of flavonoids (mg Quercitin/g DW) were detected in P9 and P7 treatments, respectively. Fungal colony in P9 treatment (4× 103 Cfu) was higher than other packaging methods while the quantity of this contamination was not significantly different among other packaging treatments.
Z. Rafiei; S.M. Jafari; M. Alami; M. Khomeiri
Abstract
The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of extraction through two methods of maceration and microwave-assisted extraction on phenolic compounds of olive leaves (Mishen cultivar) with solvents of water, 80% methanol and acetone. The highest total phenolic content (211.385±0.13 mg tannic ...
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The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of extraction through two methods of maceration and microwave-assisted extraction on phenolic compounds of olive leaves (Mishen cultivar) with solvents of water, 80% methanol and acetone. The highest total phenolic content (211.385±0.13 mg tannic acid/g extract) was related to the methanol extract produced by microwave-assisted extraction but acetone extracts gave the lowest amount for both methods. Comparing the extraction methods showed that MAE had higher extraction efficiency in all three tested solvents. Regarding antimicrobial activity of olive leaf extracts, we evaluated the bactericidal effects of different solvent extracts on Staphilococcus aureus, Salmonella typhi and Escherishia coli. In terms of S. aureus, the lowest minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC= 315 µg/ml) and. minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC= 2500 µg/ml) were observed with acetone extract in MAE and methanol extracts in both methods, respectively. As for E.coli the lowest MIC was 625 µg/ml and the lowest MBC (5000 µg/ml) was associated with water and methanol extracts in microwave-assisted extraction. In terms of S. typhi, the lowest MIC and MBC were 315 and 10000 µg/ml, respectively. To conclude, it was found that S. typhi was the most resistant bacteria against the extracts; in most cases MAE-produced extracts showed more antimicrobial activity compared to traditional-produced extracts.
M. Rahimipanah; M. Hamedi; M. Mirzapour
Abstract
Walnut green husk contains phenolic compounds which reduce cardiovascular diseases, prevent the risk of many cancers and LDL oxidation. Also they have antimutagenic, antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. In this research, effects of different parameters including blanching, solvent concentration, ...
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Walnut green husk contains phenolic compounds which reduce cardiovascular diseases, prevent the risk of many cancers and LDL oxidation. Also they have antimutagenic, antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. In this research, effects of different parameters including blanching, solvent concentration, harvest time, extraction time and method were examined on amount of extraction and phenolic compound of walnut green husk. Walnuts were picked at three times (June, July and August) and half of them were blanched. Phenolic compounds of this sample were extracted with different concentrations of methanol (100%, 80%, and 60%) and different extraction methods (maceration, soxhlet, ultrasound, and microwave). Results showed that blanching treatments significantly affected the total phenolics (p < 0.05), and the blanched samples obtained in June and were extracted with 60% methanol in microwave had the highest phenolics.
Z. Pouri; M.H. Givianrad; S.M. Seyedeyn Ardebili; K. Larijani
Abstract
After water, tea is the most consumed beverage around the world. Phenolic compounds constitute 50-70 % of tea water extract that Theaflavins (TF) and Thearubigins (TR) among them are of most important polyphenols as quality parameters of black tea. Agroclimatic conditions, tea variety and geographical ...
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After water, tea is the most consumed beverage around the world. Phenolic compounds constitute 50-70 % of tea water extract that Theaflavins (TF) and Thearubigins (TR) among them are of most important polyphenols as quality parameters of black tea. Agroclimatic conditions, tea variety and geographical origin are of effective factors on tea quality. This study was undertaken to quantify seasonal variations in quality- related, biochemical, and sensory parameters in manufactured orthodox Iranian tea over various months (June, July, August, September and October). TF, TR, TRSI and TRSII, total color, total polyphenols and brightness were measured by spectrophotometer method and the tea quality was estimated and scored by professional tea tasters. According to the results of ANOVA, phenolic compounds significantly differed in different tea plucking seasons (P<0.05). Drink obtained from green leaves in July tea plucking season had the highest total polyphenols (15.83%), Theaflavins (22.33 µmol/g), total color (3.01%) and brightness (28.85). Results of Pearson's correlation coefficients showed that correlation of total TR and TRSII with brightness was not significant while other measured parameters showed a significant correlation to each other. In view point of tea tasters, tea obtained from July and August had the highest total sensory scores while tea obtained from June received the highest tea aroma score. Spearman rank correlation coefficients indicated that there was no significant correlation between tea aroma and other sensory attributes while mutual correlation of other sensory attributes was positive and significant. This suggests that tea with high chemical quality should have good individual tea sensory attributes.
M. Gharekhani; M. Ghorbani; M.A. Ebrahimzadeh; S.M. Jaafari; A.R. Sadeghi Mahoonak
Abstract
The present study was conducted to examine the efficiency of the traditional soaking extraction, Ultrasound-assisted extraction(UAE) and Microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) methods on the content of phenolic and flavonoid compounds extracted from nettle (Urtica dioica L.) leaves with three different ...
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The present study was conducted to examine the efficiency of the traditional soaking extraction, Ultrasound-assisted extraction(UAE) and Microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) methods on the content of phenolic and flavonoid compounds extracted from nettle (Urtica dioica L.) leaves with three different solvents (water, 80% methanol and chloroform). In traditional method, water and chloroform solvents extracted the maximum phenolic and flavonoid contents, respectively. In UAE and MAE methods, the effect of different extraction times, with used solvent type were examined. In UAE method, the water-90 min and chloroform-90 min treatments had extracted the highest phenolic and flavonoid contents, respectively. Also, between the times 60 and 90 minutes, no significant difference were observed (p<0.05). The best solvent-time treatments with maximum extraction contents of phenolic and flavonoid compounds in MAE method were water-9 min and methanol-9 min treatments. In MAE method, chloroform solvent had the lowest extraction contents of phenolic and flavonoid compounds, and the extraction times were not significant. A comparison among the three methods revealed that the MAE method with water-9 min treatment (11.57±0.41) and traditional method (24 h) with chloroform solvent (13.64±0.53) had the highest extraction power of phenolic and flavonoid compounds, respectively.
