There were performed quantitative analyses of the 5,3'-dihydroxy-4',6,7-trimethoxyflavone and 5-hidroxi-3',4',6,7-tetrametoxiflavone in native and cultivated plants of Baccharis trimera. Six harvests were done in both dry and humid seasons. The flavone 5,3'-dihydroxy-4',6,7-trimethoxyflavone showed more content in plants harvested in humid season. There were no differences when comparing cultivated and native plants from both seasons. The flavone 5-hydroxy-3',4',6,7-tetramethoxyflavone showed more content in native than cultivated plants in humid season. And there was no difference in the dry season when comparing native and cultivated plants.
The objective of this work was to evaluate the effects of aqueous extracts from leaves and fruits of Chenopodium ambrosioides L. on the percentage and rate of speed germination of tomato seeds. The treatments consisted of concentrated (100%) or diluted (25, 50 and 75% v/v) aqueous extracts. The lesser percentage of accumulated germination was verified in the boxes that received 100% and 75% v/v extract, which also required greater average time and showed minor average speed of germination.
Conocarpus erectus, popularly known as button mangrove, is one of the most common species found in mangroves and it is widely used in folk medicine for anemia, phlegm and diabetes prevention. The present study aimed to evaluate the methanolic extract of leaves of Conocarpus erectus (MELCe) to unravel its phytochemical constituents. The botanical material was collected in Itamaracá,PE, Brazil, mangrove. The extract was obtained by infusion with methanol and characterized by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and high-performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC). Analysis on HPTLC showed the presence of phenolic compounds, mainly ellagic acid and p-coumaric acid. In addition, to analyze and to quantify the phenolic compounds, it was performed a flavonoid quantification at concentrations of 1000, 500, and 250 μg/ml. HPLC confirmed the presence of ellagic acid and a quercetin-type compound. Flavonoid quantification assays shows 72.52 ± 5.12, 36.54 ± 1.13, and 17.29 ± 1.45 μg/ml, respectively, obtained as quercetin equivalent. Leaves of C. erectus contain phenolic compounds, and the presence of the flavonoid quercetin is suggested.
Aroeira-do-sertão [Astronium urundeuva (M.Allemão) Engl.] is a plant with medicinal properties useful in the management of vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC). Thus, the objective was to develop gynecological liquid soap with antifungal action from fluid extract of aroeira-do-sertão (EFA). The leaves of the adult tree were collected and processed, and the plant drug was characterized. To obtain the EFA, maceration was used followed by percolation with a hydroalcoholic solution (60%), with phytochemical identification and measurement of active markers, polyphenols (TP) and total tannins (TT). The antifungal action of EFA against Candida strains was also evaluated using the agar diffusion technique and the minimum lethal concentration (MLC) was determined. The liquid soap from aroeira-do-sertão (SLS) was evaluated for its quality and antifungal action, being compared to the results of a commercial intimate soap containing aroeira-da-praia extract (Schinus terebinthifolia Raddi – PLS). An EFA of adequate quality was obtained, with a TP content equal to 189.08 (±0.0306) mg EAG/g of EFA, of which only 9.43% corresponds to TT. EFA proved to be effective against C. albicans ATCC 10231, C. krusei ATCC 6258, C. parapsilosis ATCC 22019, and C. tropicalis ATCC 13803, with MLC of 0.5% (w/v). SLS with 2.5% w/v EFA showed appropriate quality and antifungal effect similar to that found for EFA, while PLS exhibited lower antifungal activity due to its composition.Therefore, the formulated intimate liquid soap demonstrated relevant antifungal activity, confirming its potential as an alternative for the management of vulvovaginal candidiasis.
Effect of luminosity on initial growth, biomass allocation and leaf histochemistry of Cochlospermum regium (Mat. And Schr.) Pilger, medicinal species of the savanna. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of light on the initial growth, biomass allocation and leaf histochemical of Cochlospermum regium (“algodãozinho-do-campo”). The seeds were collected and germinated and the seedlings were placed in full sun and in two sombrites (914 µmol/m2/s and 260 µmol/m2/s). At 30 and 60 days after the start of treatment was measured to shoot height, root length, stem diameter and histochemical analysis of the sheet were made. At 60 days the dry mass of root and shoot were measured. The luminosity did not change any analyzed variables, in the histochemical analysis was observed the presence of compounds with medicinal properties. The production of seedlings of this species was not affected by the luminosities tested.
Essential oils have been used as a natural alternative in the prevention and treatment of diseases that affect human health. The aim of this work was to determine the chemical composition and antibacterial activity of the essential oils of Lavandula angustifolia, Pogostemon cablin, Rosmarinus officinalis, Thymus vulgaris, Hedyosmun brasiliense, Psidium guajava, Baccharis dracunculifolia and Schinus terebinthifolius against bacteria Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella enteritidis, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The essential oils were analyzed by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. The antibacterial activity was determined by microdilution in broth, showing minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC). The chemical composition of the evaluated oils was based on monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes. The essential oil of Thymus vulgaris was highlighted with MIC of 0.195 and MBC of 1.56 µl/ml against S. aureus, 0.195 and 50 µl/ml for S. enteritidis; 0.390 µl/ml and 0.780 µl/ml for E. coli and 0.780 and 12.5 µl/ml against P. aeruginosa, respectively. The variability of specific components of the essential oils is very interesting and of economic importance, due to the therapeutic and aromatizing potential of these oils. The oils of L. angustifólia, T. vulgaris, R. officinalis, B. dracunculifolia, P. guajava and S. terebinthifolius showed activity in vitro against S. aureus, E. coli, S. enteritidis and stronger for P. aeruginosa. The oil of Thymus vulgaris presented the best results when its antibacterial activities were evaluated. The evaluated oils had an inhibitory effect on the microorganisms studied and the gram-positive bacteria were more sensitive to the effects of the essential oils when compared to the gram-negative bacteria. The essential oils evaluated in this study represent an important alternative for controlling bacterial infections.
This study provides a review of the trend of scientific production for Ethnobotany in the brazilian Cerrado. The search without restriction of time and with the keywords searched for: ethnobotanical, biome Cerrado; Ethonobotany, in the databases of Web of Science, Scopus, Scielo and Portal Periodico Capes found scientific production from the year 2000, totaling 93 studies, resulting in significant growth (p <0.05) over the years. When we evaluated the social groups studied, we found urban communities was the most value in this research (43%), followed by rural communities (29%). Quilombola and indigenous communities it was the smallest percentage of works found on the traditional knowledge of the use of the plants. The temporal trend of the ethnocategories showed significant growth (p <0.05) for medicinal plants, being 62% of the researches. In addition, we observed that 13 families were distinguished in species diversity and references of use in the brazilian Cerrado, among them Fabaceae was the most documented, followed by Asteraceae and Lamiaceae. In this sense, ethnobotanical studies in the cerrado hotspot are important for valorization of this traditional knowledge and for awareness of the conservationist role that must exist in this biome, as well as contribute to biodiversity conservation policies.
This study aimed to determine the proximal and mineral composition of the unconventional food plants tupinambor (Helianthus tuberosus), ora-pro-nobis (Pereskia aculeata Miller) and moringa (Moringa oleifera Lam), commercialized as flour in the city of Porto Belo – SC. Proximal composition was determined according to the Association of Official Analytical Chemists and the concentration of minerals Fe, Cu, Zn, P, Ca and Mg by atomic absorption spectrometry and K by flame photometry. The results obtained were: moisture (0.88, 0.88 and 0.86 g 100 g-1), ash (16.34, 7.75 and 5.07 g 100 g-1), lipids (3.27, 5.57 and 0.48 g 100 g-1), protein (22.41, 24.79 and 6.53 g 100 g-1), carbohydrates (57.10, 62.02 and 87.06 g 100 g-1) e food fiber (55.39, 48.21 and 19.68 g 100 g-1). According to ANVISA Ordinance n°27, moringa and ora-pro-nobis flours present high protein content and all evaluated flours have high food fiber content. The average results obtained indicate that, except for iron, all samples show significant differences (p<0.05) in relation to the minerals concentration and with the exception of ora-pro-nobis flour that obtained higher calcium content, potassium was the mineral that obtained higher concentrations in the evaluated flours. According the RDC n°269 from ANVISA, the evaluated flours can be considered minerals sources; thus tupinambor flour a source of Ca and Mg, ora-pro-nobis flour of P, Ca and Mg and moringa flour of Ca and P. Finally, according to the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs), all the evaluated flours are K sources.
Several factors can influence the success of vegetative propagation, such as light intensity, substrate, temperature, humidity, cutting length and the presence of leaves and buds. The substrate should provide good support, moisture retention and sandblasting for the development of roots. The objective of this study was to investigate the length of pegs and ideal substrates for obtaining uniform and vigorous of Piper callosum seedlings. In addition, morfoanatomic study was initiated on the physiological species plasticity. The experiment was held in a randomized block design in a factorial with 3 substrates: 1) sand, 2) soil: sand, 3) soil: sand: organic compost) x 3 stakes sizes: 100 mm, 200 mm, 300 mm, with four replicates per treatment. Growth data analysis of the seedlings were subjected to analysis of variance and Tukey test using the program Sisvar. The results showed that the best long stakes for this species, was 200 mm and the soil substrate: sand: compost offered the best conditions for the development of seedlings.
This study aimed to analyze the initial growth and the harvest time in six carqueia accesses, under the edaphoclimatic conditions in Viçosa-MG. Two experiments were earned out under field conditions dunng the period from October 5, 1996 to July 14, 1997. In expenment 1, from 44 to 149 days after transplanting (DAT), the randomized experimental design with subdivided plots was used with plots consisting of six carqueja accesses (mam treatment) and the subplots of six sampling times (second treatment). In experiment 2, from 117 to 229 DAT, the plots consisted of six accesses and the subplots of five harvesting times. In experiment 1, the accesses presented no significant differences among each other for leaf area, height, node numbers, branch numbers and branch length. In expenment 2, the flowering occurred on the 157th day after transplanting at the beginning of May and there was no precocity in any access. In this expenment the accesses significantly differed to each other for dry matter, fresh matter, branch length, leal area and height The specific leaf area showed continuous decrease as a function of time in all accesses, and this was related Io the photoassimilate consumption by nonproductive structures.
Post-harvest quality of yarrow (Achillea millefolium L.) intercropped with parsley (Petroselinum crispum (Miller) A.W.Hill). The quality of yarrow (Achillea millefolium L.) grown in monocrop and intercropped with parsley (Petroselinum crispum (Miller) A.W.Hill) was evaluated after drying and storage. The microbiological quality was not affected by the cropping pattern.
Duguetia furfuracea (A.St.–Hil.) Saff. has ancient descriptions in traditional medicine in the middle-western region of Brazil for multiple therapeutic uses and it is currently considered an invasive plant. The aim of this manuscript is to provide a review of published studies on botany, traditional uses, phytochemistry, biological effects and toxicology of D. furfuracea. Information was collected from databases Scielo, PubMed, Chemical Abstracts and Web of Science. There are several traditional uses of D. furfuracea, in treatment of rheumatism, menorrhagia, dysmenorrhea, pediculosis, renal colic, and stomachache. Based on a phytochemical investigation, over hundred compounds have been identified from the leaves, twigs, underground stem bark and wood of D. furfuracea, such as alkaloids, terpenes, flavonoids, phenolic acids and phenylpropanoids. This species present a broad spectrum of effects such as trypanocidal, leishmanicidal, larvicidal, antitumoral, anti-inflammatory, antimutagenic and cytoprotective. Data about the toxicity are limited, mainly for in vivo experiments. Phytochemical and pharmacological studies have demonstrated the therapeutic potential of D. furfuracea. However, the study of pharmacological mechanisms of its herbal medicinal product and isolated constituents should be further explored, since capsules containing material of this species have already been developed for renal colic.
Sitophilus zeamais is among the main pests affecting stored maize grains. The aim of the current study is to assess the mortality and repellency of organic extracts from Andira paniculata leaves against maize weevil, Sitophilus zeamais. The experiments were conducted at the Agricultural Entomology Laboratory of Instituto Federal Goiano – Urutaí Campus. A completely randomized experimental design was adopted to assign the mortality and repellency in 17 treatments in four replications. Andira paniculata leaves were oven dried, grounded and subjected to exhaustive extraction using ethanol. Hexane (APFE-H), Dichloromethane (APFE-D), Ethyl Acetate (APFE-A) and Hydroalcoholic (APFE-W) extracts were used at the concentrations 0.01%, 0.1%, 0.5% and 1 %, respectively. BIOMATRIX BM 3061 hybrid grains were treated with the plant extracts and, subsequently, infested with Sitophilus zeamais. The mortality was assessed 24, 48 and 72 hours, as well as 30, 60 and 90 days after exposed to the plant extracts. The ethyl acetate (1.00%) showed the highest mortality (95%). The ethyl acetate (0.01 - 0.5%) also showed the similar performance after 48 hours in the repellency test. Dichloromethane presented the lowest LD50 (0.2115%), and showed a highest mortality of Sitophilus zeamais. Thus, Andira paniculata has potencial for future studies on the control of Sitophilus zeamais in stored maize grains.
Geraniol is the main component of the essential oil of palmarosa (Cymbopogom martinii), used worldwide by the perfumery, condiments, food and cosmetics industries, being the most cultivated species for its production. In 1992, a new chemotype of african alfavaca (Ocimum gratissimum) rich in geraniol was described. The objective of this work was to compare the productive and chemical characteristics of the species, emphasizing geraniol. The experiment was conducted at the Epagri Experimental Station of Itajaí-SC, in a greenhouse with automatic irrigation. A randomized complete block design was used, with 5 replicates and 3 plants per replicate, each species being a treatment. The plants were obtained by vegetative propagation. The harvest was carried out at 75 days after transplanting. The essential oil was extracted by hydrodistillation and chemical characterization determined by gas chromatography coupled to a mass spectrometry detector (GC / MS). Palmarosa presented geraniol (70.23%) and geranyl acetate (26.81%) as major components in the essential oil composition. The african alfavaca showed 86.02% of geraniol followed by other components in smaller amounts. Although the African alfavaca presented a higher concentration of geraniol in the essential oil, it was observed that the palmarosa had a higher biomass useful for the extraction. However, in the effective relationship, in the geraniol production between the two species did not present significant difference. Therefore, because it is a species not studied in Brazil, the african alfavaca quimiotipo geraniol presents an option to obtain an essential oil rich in geraniol, since palmarosa is currently the only source with similar chemical characteristics.
Sambucus australis, popularly known as “sabugueiro”, is a plant used in alternative medicine for its diaphoretic, anti-inflammatory and analgesic actions. To encourage the use of this medicinal species native and also enable cytogenetic characterization to assist subsequently preservation programs and genetic improvement, the objective of this study was to characterize the meiotic behavior and to estimate the pollen viability of different accesses of S. australis from Rio Grande do Sul by different stains. To this end, the floral buds of 15 accesses were collected, fixed in ethanol:acetic acid (3:1) and stored in 70% ethanol until use. Slides were prepared using the squashing technique of the anthers. For meiotic analysis, 2% acetic-orcein staining was used, where all phases were analyzed and the meiotic index determined. Three stains were used to estimate pollen viability: Alexander´s reaction, 2% acetic-orcein, and 2% acetic-carmine. Data were analyzed by the Scott-Knott test at 5% significance level. In the 12 accesses analyzed, meiosis was regular, exhibiting chromosome associations preferably in bivalents, finding n = 19 while meiotic index values exceeded 90%. Regarding pollen viability, the majority of the accesses had a high percentage of viable pollens (over 75%), except for the ERE01 access (44%). On the staining comparison, Alexander´s reaction proved the most suitable method for estimating the pollen viability of the specie. Therefore, it can be concluded that the accesses of S. australis studied exhibited regular meiotic behavior, gametic number n = 19 chromosomes, high meiotic index values and a high percentage of viable pollens.
Aloysia gratissima is well known as “Mimo do Brasil” in the Brazilian folk medicine and the infusion of its branches and twigs is an important analgesic used against stomached and bladder pains. However, few investigations about specific and efficient eluent systems applied for the purification of its essential oil have been reported. Essential oil extracted from dried leaves was obtained by hydrodistillation using a Clevenger apparatus. The isolation of cis-pinocarveyl acetate and trans-pinocamphone compounds were performed by Column Liquid Chromatography (CLC) through a number of appropriate solvent systems used as mobile phase. Results have showed that isolation of cis-pinocarveyl acetate and trans-pinocamphone were possible using, respectively, ethyl acetate/hexane 1:59 (v/v) and 1:5 (v/v) as solvent systems. Therefore, the aims of this work were to provide the ideal solvent systems for the isolation of important compounds from Aloysia gratissima essential oil using Column Liquid Chromatography (CLC) as well as identify them from GC retention indices, relative to C6-C24 n-alkanes, by comparison of their MS spectra with those reported in the literature (Adams 1995) and by computer matching with the NBS-Reve mass spectra library.
This study aimed to explore ways of organizing lay information on medicinal plants that would be specifically relevant for the selection of species with potential anticancer activity. For that matter, a combination of concepts and methods from ethnobotany and ethnopharmacology with chemotaxonomy data was used. A databases was constructed with ethnopharmacological informations about plants used for signs and symptoms frequently related to a variety of cancers associated with cancer cell lines available at the South American Anticancer Drug Development Office (SOAD). Toxic effects of known anticancer drugs reported for plants were also considered The databases has 1.430 records of use for 855 plant species. Taking into account the number of records, number of indications, number of species and degree of conformity in usage, the plant families Compositae, Leguminosae, Apocynaceae, Euphorbiaceae and Rubiaceae, contributed with the greater number of potential plant species. In order to optimize the selection, records of these families were combined with the major therapeutic indications. The species that received the highest importance scores were Bidens pilosa, Achyrocline satureoides, Artemisia absinthyum, Ambrosia tenuifolia, Arnica montana, Artemisia vulgaris, Chaptalia nutans, Spilanthes ocymifolia, Cassia alata, Croton antisyphiliticus, Echites peltala, Parahancomia amapa and Retmiphyllum schomburgkii.
Brazilian medicinal plant species form a very heterogeneous group, which has been very little studied, especially concerning its genetic diversity. There is a growing interest in those species, due to the perspectives of their exploration Through cultivation or sustainable management. Two tree species, called 'espinheira-santa Maytenus aquifolia Mart. and M. ilicifolia Mart ex Reiss are traditionally used in Brazil and contain active principles the efficacy of which has been proved. Most of the leaf material obtained from those species is still collected from wilderness areas. There is a need to understand its ecological and genetic features in order to establish sound measures of conservation and management of their habitats. In this paper the isozymic diversity of five natural populations of Maytenus aquifolia and one of M. ilicifolia are investigated. Some of the genetic diversity indices and the variation in allele frequencies were obtained. Ten isozymic loci were assayed, while eight were polimorphic for at least one population (Pgi1, Pgi2. Prx1, 6-Pgdh2, Mdh1. Mdh2. Acp1. Lap1. X Est1). A total of 32 alleles was found, 31 of which occurred in the populations of M. aquifolia while 22 occurred in the M. ilicifolia population. Polimorphism was from 40% to 70%, and the number of alleles per locus varied between 1.60 to 2.70 in Caetetus and Saibadela, respectively, both extreme populations in terms of the amount of variability. The observed heterozigosity varied between 0.10 to 0.21 in Caetetus and Saibadela, the gene diversity (H) varying between 0.20 and 0.33 in the same conditions. M. ilicifolia population seemed to be philogenetically very close to M. aquifolia, since they share the majority of the alleles. Populations appear to differ significantly in their allele frequencies, there being detected several alleles peculiar to a single population. Because of that, it is suggested that it would be more advisable to conserve a larger number of populations instead of more individuals coming from a smaller number of populations, in order to conserve the genetic diversity for future generations of those species.
Popularly known as "carqueja", the Baccharis trimera A. P. de Candolle is very used by its medicinal effect, being target of irresponsible extraction due to the great demand for the phytotherapeutic industry. The present work had as objective to quantify the influence of liming levels over mass production and shadow over essential oil content of "carqueja", aiming to release information to increase the species cultivation efficiency. The liming experiment was conducted in the greenhouse of the Departamento de Fitotecnia e Fitossaniratismo of the Setor de Ciências Agrárias of UFPR, in Curitiba PR and the shadow experiment was accomplished in the Section of Medicinal Plants of the Estação Experimental do Canguiri, in Pinhais PR. For the liming experiment, Cambissolo Alico of loamy texture, collected from 10 to 30 cm of depth, dry, sifted and chemical analyzed was corrected with fast reaction Füller limestone and placed in vases with capacity of 1L. The correction was calculated to V% 70, being considered 1 dose the amount of limestone necessary to reach this level. The tested treatments were 0 dose; 0,5 dose; 1 dose and 1,5 dose of limestone. The design used was completely randomized, with four repetitions and six vases for experimental unit. Plantlets of "carqueja", with approximately two months, proceeding of cutting propagation were used. The evaluation of the fresh and dry masses of the whole aerial part was accomplished 105 days after the installation. In the experiment of different shadow levels it was made the comparison of three stonemasons of 6,48 m each, contends 72 plants with 16 months of age in spacing of 30x30 cm. Plants exposed to full sun, with 30% and 70% of shadow were the treatments used. Evaluation was accomplished after 5 months of the installation of the covers and a second evaluation was made after 5 months from the first one. There were evaluated the fresh and dry mass of the plants which were cut at 15 cm of the ground, as well as there were made the extraction and determination of the percentage of essential oil in the different treatments. In the liming experiment, the amount of fresh and dry presented a quadratic behavior, increasing the production until the saturation of bases of 50,1% for fresh mass and 44,4% for dry mass. In the different shadow levels experiment, in both first and second cuts, the amount of mass was larger in the full sun exposed plants, presenting loss of approximately 50% in the shaded plants production, and an increase of 12,5% in the oil content in the full sun exposed plants. It is indicated a V% of 44,4 to increase production of dry mass. Shadow decreases the amount of fresh and dry mass, as well as the oil amount.
The soluble water elements analysis is an important indicator of the disponible mineral elements in beverages mainly of medicinal species wich leaves are used in water infusion. That is the case of Maytenus ilicifolia (espinheira-santa), a brazilian species. The aim of this study was to determine some soluble water chemical elements levels and its percentage in espinheira-santa leaves, to define new parameters to the phytoterapic product quality control. The samples were collected from native tree communities growing under four environments with differents soils and light conditions, in May 1994, at Lapa, Paraná State, Brazil. There was determinated the total content and the soluble water fraction of K, Ca, Mg, Mn, Cu, Zn, Al e Si in leaves. The soluble water fraction in relation to the total content presented the following decreasing order of the soluble elements: K > Mg > Zn > Si > Mn > Ca > Cu > Al.
