Volume10,Issue4

Chemical composition of Rosmarinus officinalis L. and Ocimum basilicum L. ssp. basilicum essential oils as well as their phytotoxic effects against seed germination and seedling growth of Portulaca oleracea, Lolium multiflorum and Echinochloa crus-galli has been investigated. Seventy-eight compounds accounting between 98.10-99.15% of the total commercial oils were identified by GC/MS analysis. The oxygenated monoterpenes 1,8-cineole (24.95±0.11%) and camphor (20.45±0.05%) were the main compounds of rosemary essential oil, whereas large amounts of the aromatic compound methyl chavicol (79.09±0.29%) was found in basil essential oil. Rosemary essential oil significantly inhibited the seed germination of L. multiflorum and E. crus-galli and the seedling growth of the three weed, whereas basil essential oil only showed significant effects in hypocotyl and/or radicle length depending of the weed and dose.

Gallic acid is a naturally occurring polyphenolic compound found in processed beverages such as red wines and green teas. It occurs in plants in the form of free acids, esters, catechin derivatives and hydrolysable tannins. The interest in these compounds is due to its pharmacological activity as radical scavengers. It has been proved to have potential preventive and therapeutic effects in many diseases, where the oxidative stress has been implicated, including cardiovascular diseases, cancer, neurodegenerative disorders and in aging. Thus, it is imperative to promote more credible research on exploring medicinal properties of gallic acid and its congeners. The present review is an attempt to summarize the medicinal and toxicological properties of the gallic acid and its derivatives in various forms for different purpose.

The intension of the present study was to evaluate the total phenolic, flavonoid and in vitro antioxidant activity of different extracts of Saraca asoca flower. The petroleum ether, benzene, ethyl acetate, methanol and ethanol extracts of Saraca asoca flower were screened for in vitro antioxidant potential using models viz, 1,1-diphenly-2-picryl hydrazine (DPPH), hydroxyl, superoxide, 2,2’-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid (ABTS) radical cation scavenging activity and reducing power ability using standard procedures. Methanol extract of Saraca asoca flower extract exhibited strong antioxidant activity with DPPH (121.84%), hydroxyl (126.22%), superoxide (128.27%) and ABTS (99.22%) assays. The radical scavenging effect was found to increase with increasing concentrations. The IC₅₀ values in all models viz, hydroxyl, DPPH, superoxide and ABTS were found to be 43.88, 42.83, 41.66 and 26.18μg/mL respectively in the methanol extracts. The results show that there was an increase in the reducing power of the plant extract as the concentration of the extract increases. Among those solvent extracts, ethanol extract of Saraca asoca flower exhibited maximum reducing ability. It can be accomplished that the methanol extracts of Saraca asoca flower is a potential source of natural antioxidants.

The conventional system of medicine requires the bioactive constituents from the extracts of different plants. From time immemorial India is mostly rely on conventional medicine. In fact the modern medicine was evolved from the base herbal medicine. Echinops echinatusRoxb, (Ee) belonging to family Asteraceae and commonly known as Bramhadandi, is widely used in traditional system of medicines for treatment of ophthalmic, chronic fever, pains in the joints, inflammations and used in brain disorders. The plant is bitter, pungent, stomachic, analgesic, antipyretic, increases the appetite and stimulates the liver. The root is abortifacient and aphrodisiac. Pharmacological activities of the plant reported are antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, analgesic, anthelmintic, anti-fertility, hypoglycaemic, hepatoprotective and diuretic, effect. The present review highlighted the various traditional uses as well as phytochemical and pharmacological activities outlined from Echinops echinatus Roxb.

This work examines the antimicrobial activity of methanolic seed extract of Cola nitida on microorganism isolated from the oral cavity. The various microorganisms of the oral cavity were obtained by taking mouth swabs from various human donors. The organism isolated and identified using biochemical tests were Klebsiella pneumonia, staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumonia, Escherichia coli and candida albicans, occurring in percentages of 5.0%, 75%, 11.7%, 5.0% and 3.3% respectively. When a twenty-four hour old culture of the isolated organisms at a concentration of 1×10⁸ CFU/ml, was exposed to concentration of 100mg/ml, 150mg/ml and 200mg/ml of the methanolic seed extract of Cola nitida, by agar diffusion method, Staphylococcus aureus showed an inhibition zone diameter (IZD) of 13.00 ± 0.57mm, 14.00 ± 0.28 and 15.00 ± 0.57mm respectively and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) OF 12.5mg/ml. when used against Escherichia coli, an IZD of 5.00 ± 0.28mm was seen at 200mg/ml concentration, with an MIC value of 200mg/ml. The extract also showed activity against Klebsiella pneumonia and Streptococcus pneumonia at all concentrations used, with MIC values of 6.25mg/ml and 50mg/ml respectively. The extract had no antimicrobial activity against Candida albicans at concentration of 100mg/ml but showed an IZD of 12 ± 1.1mm and 13.00 ± 57mm at concentration of 150mg/ml and 200mg/ml and an MIC of 100mg/ml. The standard antibiotics susceptibility test was also carried out against the test microorganism using the agar disc diffusion method and the result was compared with that of the extract. Statistical analysis is significant with (P<0.05). Therefore, the methanolic seeds extract of Cola nitida showed varying antimicrobial activity on different test organisms at different concentrations of the extract.

Eupatorium glandulosum (Asteraceae) is used as a folk medicines to treat various disease. This review article presents the main phytochemical and pharmacological activities of Eupatorium glandulosum. The Eupatorium glandulosum is mainly containing flavanoids, alkaloids, phenolic, glycosides, tannins, saponins and glycosides. These phytochemical constituents which are responsible for various medicinal and pharmacological activities  like anti oxidant, anti proliferative, antibacterial, wound healing, antimicrobial, antifungal and also making them promising for the development of new drugs.

Microalgae are a good source of bioactive substances from aquatic origin. Algae have accounted for almost 3,000 natural products, representing ~20% of the chemicals reported from the marine realm. Majority of the compounds extracted from microalgae possess antioxidant and antibacterial properties. Present study was under taken to analyse the total phenolic content and antioxidant properties of the microalgae Nannochloropsis salina. There was a positive correlation between the total antioxidant activity and total phenolic content of N. salina. The highest phenolic content was detected in the acetone extracts. These acetone extracts also had the maximum antioxidant activity, ferric-reducing power (FRAP), DPPH scavenging activity and hydrogen peroxide radical scavenging activity.

Gastrointestinal infections among livestock are gaining much importance not merely due to its occurrence, but also due to wide spread anthelmintic resistance. Phytochemicals are ideal alternatives to combat the infection and resistance. The present study was aimed to assess the in vitro adulticidal activity of methanolic extract and its n-hexane, chloroform, n-butanol and aqueous fractions from fruits of Duranta erecta and Piper longum against adult amphistomes. Fresh fruits were collected, identified, shade dried, pulverised and extracted with methanol and the extracts were successively fractionated. The qualitative phytochemical analysis was done to detect phytoconstituents.  The extracts and fractions were diluted serially in distilled water/tween 80 to obtain concentrations of 500, 250, 125, 62.5, 31.25, 15.63, 7.81, 3.91 and 1.95 mg/mL. Thiabendazole at 10 µg/mL acted as positive control and the solvents as negative control. The adulticidal activity and histopathology of treated amphistomes were performed. IC₅₀ was calculated to identify the potent extract/fraction. The fruits of both plants were identified and accession numbers 005 (D. erecta) and 006 (P. longum) were obtained. The phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of flavonoids in all the extracts and fractions while tannins, glycosides and diterpenes were absent in hexane fraction of D. erecta. Saponins were absent in P. longum extract and fractions. Amphistomes were highly sensitive for chloroform fraction of D. erecta and methanolic extract of P. longum with IC₅₀ of 1.354 mg/mL and 5.493 mg/mL respectively while all other extract/ fractions exhibited moderate anthelmintic activity. The histopathology revealed morphological changes in tegument, syncytium and parenchyma.  From the present study it could be concluded that fruits of both plants possessed activity against amphistomes and further isolation of the active compounds from potent extract/fraction can provide a base for the development of a novel, safe anthelmintic which may have a novel mechanism of action.

Natural drugs always play vital role in the modern medicine due to less dangerous than artificial drugs and provide deep restorative benefits. In some cases, it is generally used to cure some ailments which may not be treated by conventional medicine and that may be due to availability of biological active compounds. In this regard, Clerodendrum philippinum plant was evaluated for its secondary metabolites and antibacterial activity. Phytochemical screening revealed the presence of alkaloids, terpenoids, flavonoids, saponins, tannins, phenolics and glycosides as major components. The ethanolic extracts of leaves were subjected for high performance thin layer chromatography (HTPLC) towards develop the chemical fingerprints. The profile confirms the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, glycosides and terpenoids in various degrees of leaf extracts. The antibacterial activity was determined against pathogenic bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Streptococcus pneumonia, Bacillus subtilis, Corynibacterium kroppenstedtii and Vibrio cholerae by disc diffusion method. C. philippinum showed potent antibacterial activity against both Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria which provide evidence to support traditional medicinal uses of this plant or to develop new pharmaceutical research activities.