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Bioactive Compounds Derived from Medicinal Plants and Their Phytotherapeutic Applications

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Special Issue Information
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Published Papers

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Phytochemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 6394

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Milan Stankovic

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Guest Editor

Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science, University of Kragujevac, Str. Radoja Domanovića No. 12, 34000 Kragujevac, Serbia
Interests: plant science; plant biology; plant ecology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Christophe Hano

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Guest Editor

Institut de Chimie Organique et Analytique, Université d’Orléans-CNRS, UMR 7311 BP 6759, CEDEX 2, 45067 Orléans, France
Interests: chemistry of natural products; analytical methods; HPLC; LC-MS; polyphenols; ethnopharmacology; history of pharmacy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Medicinal plants play a valuable and important role in the development of phytotherapeutic products and represent an important global resource in terms of healthcare. Also, more than 50,000 plant species are used as a natural source of bioactive compounds and represent important economic resources of local communities the world over. The natural products obtained from medicinal plants are of greater benefit in comparison to synthetic ones. In addition to their role in the process of environmental interaction, secondary metabolites from plants express their biological activity in both in vivo and in vitro conditions. Bioactive compounds from medicinal plants possess a wide range of biological activities such as anticancer, antiviral, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antihyperglycemic, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, etc. Therefore, most medicinal plants show positive effects against various health disorders. Medicinal plant species can be found in natural habitats of different climatic areas, also in cultivated conditions, grown using numerous modern technological methods. Based on these facts, complex studies of medicinal plants, from habitats to the validation of bioactive compounds and their phytotherapeutic applications, are interesting for more scientific and practical disciplines. This Special Issue of Plants will contribute to the knowledge of medicinal plants from several aspects, such as:

Medicinal plants in traditional and modern folk medicine
Diversity of plant bioactive compounds
Methods for quantitative and qualitative analysis of plant bioactive compounds
Isolation and purification of plant bioactive compounds
Methods for chemical modification of the active substances from medicinal plants
In vitro and in vivo biological activity of plant bioactive compounds
Current knowledge and future perspectives of phytotherapeutic application

Dr. Milan S. Stankovic
Dr. Christophe Hano
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

medicinal plants
phytochemicals
pharmaceuticals
nutraceuticals
cosmeceuticals
traditional usages
pharmacopoeia
cosmetopoeia

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 2094 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Pimpinella anisum L. Essential Oil a Valuable Antibacterial and Antifungal Alternative

by Eugenia Dumitrescu, Florin Muselin, Emil Tîrziu, Mihai Folescu, Carmen S. Dumitrescu, Dora M. Orboi and Romeo T. Cristina

Plants 2023, 12(13), 2428; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/plants12132428 - 23 Jun 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2165

Abstract

Anise (Pimpinella anisum L.) essential oils are intensely investigated worldwide for the beneficial properties, due to the specific bioactive compound’s structure. (1) Background: This study characterized the structure of the Pimpinella anisum essential oil and evaluated its antimicrobial properties. (2) Methods: An evaluation of the antibacterial and antifungal activity targeted strains of Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853), Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), Streptococcus pyogenes (ATCC 19615), and levure Candida albicans (ATCC 10231). Gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS) was used for structure identification, and the optical density mass loss was applied for the analysis of different dilutions of aniseed essential oils antimicrobial activity. (3) Results: A total of 13 compounds were identified, of which trans-anethole was in the highest proportion (72.49%), followed by limonene (10.01%), anisole (5%), and α-pinene (3.26%). The results obtained and statistically analyzed, utilizing one-way ANOVA with Bonferroni’s multiple comparison test, indicated the antimicrobial activity (p < 0.001) of anise essential oil. (4) Conclusion: Anise essential oil is a promising phyto-remedy with important antimicrobial activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative pathogens. Inhibition high percentages were found for the p. aeruginosa and S. aureus strains, but also excellent antifungal activity against C. albicans was ascertained. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioactive Compounds Derived from Medicinal Plants and Their Phytotherapeutic Applications)

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13 pages, 2294 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Screening of Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors from Seeds of Nigella glandulifera Freyn et Sint. by Ligand Fishing and Their Neuroprotective Activity

by Emmanuel Ayodeji Ayeni, Chao Ma, Yikao Hu, Xiaolin Bai, Yongmei Zhang and Xun Liao

Plants 2023, 12(4), 882; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/plants12040882 - 15 Feb 2023

Viewed by 1901

Abstract

Nigella glandulifera is a traditional medicinal plant used to treat seizures, insomnia, and mental disorders among the Tibetan and Xinjiang people of China. Recent pharmacological research indicates that the seeds of this plant have a neuroprotective effect; however, the chemical components responsible for this effect are unknown. Monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B) has been recognized as a target for developing anti-Parkinson’s disease drugs. In this work, MAO-B functionalized magnetic nanoparticles were used to enrich the enzyme’s ligands in extracts of N. glandulifera seeds for rapid screening of MAO-B inhibitors coupled with HPLC-MS. Tauroside E and thymoquinone were found to inhibit the enzyme with IC₅₀ values of 35.85 μM and 25.54 μM, respectively. Both compounds exhibited neuroprotective effects on 6-OHDA-induced PC-12 cells by increasing the cell viability to 52% and 58%, respectively, compared to 50% of the injured cells. Finally, molecular docking indicated strong interactions of both inhibitors with the enzyme. This work shows that MAO-B functionalized magnetic nanoparticles are effective for rapid screening of anti-PD inhibitors from complex herbal mixtures and, at the same time, shows the promising potential of this plant’s seeds in developing anti-PD drugs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioactive Compounds Derived from Medicinal Plants and Their Phytotherapeutic Applications)

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Graphical abstract

15 pages, 994 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Bioprospecting of Helichrysum Species: Chemical Profile, Phytochemical Properties, and Antifungal Efficacy against Botrytis cinerea

by Neliswa A Matrose, Zinash A Belay, Kenechukwu Obikeze, Lucky Mokwena and Oluwafemi James Caleb

Plants 2023, 12(1), 58; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/plants12010058 - 22 Dec 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1285

Abstract

Variation in plant species and extraction solvents play a crucial role in the recovery of their bioactive compounds and antifungal efficacy. Thus, in this study, a comparative investigation was carried out using extraction solvents: 70% acetone and 95% ethanol to obtain crude aqueous extracts from Helichrysum odoratissimum and H. patulum. Crude aqueous extracts were screened using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS), to gain insight into their chemical composition. Phytochemical properties (total polyphenols (TP) and radical scavenging capacity via 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH)), and antifungal activity against Botrytis cinerea of the crude extracts were evaluated. Fungicide (Rovral^® WP) and extraction solvents were used as controls. Variation in Helichrysum spp. and extraction solvent had influence on the chemical composition, phytochemicals, and antifungal activities. Metabolites such as γ-terpinene (≈0.1%), α-amorphene (≈0.6%) α-gurjunene (≈1.4%), β-selinene (2.2–3.2%), γ-gurjunene (≈3.3%), and methyl cinnamate (≈20%) were detected only in extracts of H. patulum. Crude extract of H. odoratissimum using 70% acetone had the highest TP (19.3 ± 0.76 g GA 100 g⁻¹), and DPPH capacity (13,251.5 ± 700.55 µmol Trolox g⁻¹) compared to H. patulum (p ≤ 0.05). Ethanolic extracts of H. patulum showed highest antifungal efficacy (≈65%) against B. cinerea (p ≤ 0.05) compared to other crude extracts. This study showed that Helichrysum spp. differ in their potential as a source for bioactive compounds and antifungal treatments/formulations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioactive Compounds Derived from Medicinal Plants and Their Phytotherapeutic Applications)

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