PRELIMINARY RESEARCH REGARDING THE THERAPEUTIC USES OF URTICA DIOICA L. NOTE I. THE POLYPHENOLS EVALUATION
The use of stinging nettle leaves for the treatment of diabetes mellitus without a scientific evaluation, persuaded us to study them, in order to obtain pharmacological active extracts. According to scientific data, polyphenols are known as HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors and have potent anti-glycation activity. These compounds are the main active principles in the Urticae folium. The aim of this study was to evaluate the polyphenols’content (polyphenolcarboxilic acids = PPCA, and flavonoids) of stinging nettle leaves, harvested from culture and wild flora, originated from Racari, Dambovita district, Romania. Spectrophotometric and chromatographic methods were used. A new HPLC method for the identification and quantification of caffeic and chlorogenic acids from Urticae folium was also developed. The highest contents of polyphenolcarboxilic acids (expressed as % of chlorogenic acid) and flavonoids (expressed as % of rutin) were found in the leaves of wild nettles harvested in the month of March (4.2295% chlorogenic acid and 0.6237% rutin). The polyphenols’ content is slightly lower than the ones mentioned in the scientific literature. The content of PPCA decreases from March till September, both in wild and cultivated samples. The variation of the flavonoids’content differs with the origin of raw material (culture or spontaneus flora). The new HPLC method for polyphenols’analysis is reproductible. Rezumat Utilizarea tradiţională a produsului Urticae folium in diabet, fără o justificare stiintifica a acţiunii precum si menţionarea flavonelor si acizilor fenolcarboxilici (compusii majoritari) ca inhibitori ai HMG-CoA reductazei si ai proceselor de glicozilare si lipoxidare avansată, ne‐au determinat să abordăm cercetarea acestora, in vederea valorificării terapeutice sub formă de extracte selective. In acest scop am derulat o cercetare spectrofotometrică si cromatografică (HPLC) pentru a pune in evidenţă polifenolii prezenţi in frunzele de urzică recoltate din flora spontană si de cultură, din localitatea Răcari, judeţul Dâmboviţa. De asemenea, ne-am propus să separăm acizii cafeic si clorogenic si să-i determinăm cantitativ printr-o nouă metodă HPLC/UV.
EVALUATION OF ANTIVIRAL AND CYTOTOXIC ACTIVITIES OF TAMARIX GALLICA AND SILYBUM MARIANUM EXTRACTS
The aim of this study was to investigate the virucid and cytotoxic activity of two hydroalcoholic extracts from French tamarisk (Tamarix gallica) and Milk thistle (Silybum marianum), plants that have been used for their therapeutic effects from ancient times. Each of these extracts was extensively studied for their hepatoprotective and stimulant effects, sometimes with contradictory results. The present study investigates for the first time the antiviral effect and cytoxicity of these extracts using a set of European standardized procedures for the virucidal activity testing in human medicine. Antiviral activity demonstrated by the two extracts complete and sustain our previous results on the hepatoprotective effect of a pharmaceutical product that has both extracts in its composition. Rezumat Scopul prezentului studiu a fost acela de a investiga activitatea virucidă și citotoxică a două extracte hidroalcoolice obținute din cătină roșie (Tamarix gallica) și armurariu (Silybum marianum), plante utilizate in scopuri terapeutice incă din vechime. Fiecare dintre aceste extracte a fost intens studiat pentru efectele hepatoprotectoare și stimulatoare cu rezultate uneori contradictorii. Acest studiu investighează pentru prima dată efectul virucid și citotoxicitatea acestor extracte, utilizând un set de proceduri standardizate la nivel european pentru testarea efectului virucid in medicina umană. Activitatea antivirală demonstrată de cele două extracte in acest studiu susține rezultatele noastre anterioare privind activitatea hepatoprotectoare a unui produs terapeutic care are ambele extracte in compoziția sa.
Determination of phenolic compounds in modern and old varieties of durum wheat using liquid chromatography coupled with time-of-flight mass spectrometry.
An evaluation of the grain functional components of Italian durum wheat cultivars was conducted. The raw material was obtained from the field trial performed in 2006-2007 at the Experimental Farm of the University of Bologna, (Bologna, Italy). The aim of this study was to define the phytochemical profile of ten varieties, comprised of old and modern durum wheat genotypes, including quantitative and qualitative phenolic and flavonoid content (free and bound forms). The results showed that mean values of total phenolic compound and total flavonoid content in old wheat varieties (878.2+/-19.0 micromol gallic acid equivalent/100g of grain and 122.6+/-25.4 micromol catechin equivalent/100g of grain, respectively) did not differ significantly from those detected in modern genotypes (865.9+/-128.9 micromol gallic acid equivalent/100g and 123.5+/-20.6 micromol catechin equivalent/100g, respectively). However, the HPLC-ESI-TOF-MS analysis highlighted remarkable differences between modern and old cultivars. The interpretation of the mass spectra allowed the identification of 70 phenolic compounds, including coumarins, phenolic acids, anthocyanins, flavones, isoflavones, proanthocyanidins, stilbenes and lignans. The free extracts of ancient wheat varieties showed the presence of a mean number of phenolic compounds and isomer forms (8.7+/-2.5 and 7.7+/-4.7 respectively) significantly higher than in modern genotypes (4.4+/-2.9 and 2.0+/-2.4, respectively). A similar trend was observed also for the bound phenolic fraction. Moreover, the phytochemical profiles showed the presence of unique phenolic compounds in both free and bound fractions of some of the investigated wheat genotypes. Results highlighted that investigated old wheat cultivars may offer unique nutraceutical values for their peculiar contents in bioactive phytochemicals, suggesting their uses into a wide range of regular and specialty products naturally enriched with health-promoting compounds.