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Abstract Background Onychomycosis has a high prevalance among immunocompromised patients such as diabetics and hemodialysis patients. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the prevalence of onychomycosis among hemodialysis patients with and without diabetes mellitus, and to find out the factors likely to be associated with the development of onychomycosis among hemodialysis patients. Methods One hundred and nine hemodialysis patients were enrolled. Fifty-seven of hemodialysis patients had the diagnosis of diabetes mellitus. Nail scrapings were obtained from 76 patients who had dystrophic nail changes. Samples were examined with 20% potassium hydroxide solution and all of the samples were inoculated on Saboraud's dextrose agar, potateus dextrose agar and mycobiotic agar. Diagnosis of onychomycosis was based on the presence of both positive clinical signs and positive potassium hydroxide test. Results Onychomycosis was diagnosed in 26.6% of hemodialysis patients. Diabetes mellitus was present in 68.9% of patients with onychomycosis. Toenail scraping cultures were reported to be positive in 19.7% of patients with dystrophic nail changes. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the presence of diabetes mellitus and the mean duration of hemodialysis were the significant predictors associated with the development of onychomycosis. Conclusion The prevalence of dystrophic nail changes and onychomycosis is increased among hemodialysis patients. The dialysis duration and the presence of diabetes mellitus are the independent risk factors associated with the development of onychomycosis in uraemic patients.

The current study aims to prepare a green extract using a new method in addition to conventional extraction methods including; methanolic and ultrasonic extraction of Salvia triloba , to compare their phenolic composition utilizing high-performance liquid chromatograph equipped with a diode array detector (HPLC-DAD), anti-bacterial, anti-oxidant, and enzyme inhibition activities. The results of HPLC-DAD analysis showed that Rosmarinic acid was found the highest amount in the methanolic extract followed by ultrasonic and green extracts as 169.7 ± 0.51, 135.1 ± 0.40, and 28.58 ± 0.46 μg/g respectively. The Trans-cinnamic acid (4.40 ± 0.09 μg/g) was found exclusively in ultrasonic extract. For bioactivities, the green extract exhibited the highest biofilm inhibition against Enterococcus faecalis compared to other extracts, while the methanolic extract outperformed both ultrasonic-assisted and green extract against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli strains at minimum inhibitory concentration. The methanolic and green extract exhibited considerable quorum sensing inhibition against Chromobacterium violaceum CV026, while no activity was recorded from ultrasonic-assisted extract. The methanolic and ultrasonic-assisted extracts of S. triloba recorded moderate butyrylcholinesterase inhibition; each extract demonstrated limited inhibitory effects on the urease enzyme. Similarly, each extract of S. triloba demonstrated significant antioxidant activity, with the highest activity exhibited by methanolic extract as β-carotene-linoleic acid assay (IC 50  = 10.29 ± 0.36 μg/mL), DPPH • assay (IC 50  = 27.77 ± 0.55 μg/mL), ABTS •+ assay (IC 50  = 15.49 ± 0.95 μg/mL), metal chelating assay (IC 50  = 57.80 ± 0.95 μg/mL), and CUPRAC (assay A 0.50  = 32.54 ± 0.84 μg/mL). Furthermore, the methanolic extract exhibited antioxidant activity better than α-tocopherol (Standard used). The current study demonstrated the potential of green solvent(s) as eco-friendly alternative for extractin phenolic compounds from S. triloba and evaluated their biological activities for the first time., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (© 2024 The Author(s). Food Science & Nutrition published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Growing in prominence is the utilization of natural product-based therapies, especially edibles used in traditional medicine, as more people seek natural and holistic approaches to health and well-being. This research aimed to determine the phenolic compounds, and antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer effects of aqueous and methanolic extracts from Evernia prunastri (L.) Ach., a common spice in Algeria. HPLC-DAD was used to establish the phenolic profile, whereas the antioxidant activity was determined by DPPH, FRAP, phosphomolybdate, and hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) assays. Human red blood cell (HRBC) stabilization, albumin denaturation, and proteinase inhibition procedures were performed to investigate the anti-inflammatory activities, and an MTT assay was used to demonstrate the cytotoxic effect against three human cancer cell lines (HT-29, PC-3, A549) and human nontumor (CCD18-Co) cells. Our results showed that the major phenolics detected were mostly phenylpropanoids with domination of rosmarinic acid (79.17 mg/g), caffeic acid (46.52 mg/g), trans -cinnamic acid (29.23 mg/g), and chlorogenic acid (23.68 mg/g). In addition, six flavonoids were identified (1.98-11.34 mg/g), namely, luteolin, myricetin, kaempferol, rutin, apigenin, and quercetin. Other compounds were relatively present in both extracts, gallic acid and 3-hydroxybenzoic acid (phenolic acids), except pyrocatechol (benzenediol), which was slightly detected in the aqueous extract (0.91 mg/g). Moreover, both E. prunastri extracts showed strong antioxidant activity, with a higher antioxidant potential, as shown by the methanolic extract. Likewise, both reduced HRBC hemolysis damage and moderately suppressed protein denaturation, which reflected their anti-inflammatory potential. Interestingly, the methanolic extract significantly reduced the growth of HT-29, PC-3, and A549 cells by 67.03, 75.56, and 62.96% respectively. No cytotoxic effects were observed in the nontumor cells. The methanolic extract had the lowest IC 50 values of 100 ± 0.04, 146 ± 0.05, and 112 ± 0.06 μg/mL against HT-29, PC-3, and A549 cell lines, respectively. In conclusion, E. prunastri , especially its methanolic extract, could be considered as a promising source of antioxidant and anticancer molecules., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2024 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

Mushrooms are a good diet with high protein and polyunsaturated fatty acid contents in health, food, and industry from past to present. Mushrooms have attracted a lot of attention in terms of the bioavailability of natural products. Hohenbuehelia petaloides , a member of the Pleuroteceae family, is an edible wood fungus that grows naturally on the trunks of old and decayed trees. In this study, the cytotoxic activities of hexane, methanol, and water extracts of H. petaloides against various cancer cell lines A549, MCF-7, PC-3, and HT-29 were investigated with the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-dipenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. In addition, the apoptotic, inflammatory, angiogenic, and antimicrobial effects of the extracts were examined by flow cytometry, real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and well diffusion assays, respectively. Moreover, the antioxidant activity and phenolic and lipid components of H. petaloides were determined. The hexane extract showed the highest cytotoxic activity (IC 50 = 26.48 ± 0.02 μg/mL) against A549 cells, while water and methanol extracts exhibited the highest cytotoxicity (IC 50 = 83.18 ± 0.05 μg/mL and IC 50 = 90.95 ± 0.05 μg/mL, respectively) against PC-3 cells. The hexane extract killed A549 cells via apoptosis. The methanol extract, at the IC 50 level, was the most effective in decreasing both tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) release. In antioxidant activity tests performed with 5 different methods, the methanol extract had higher antioxidant activity than the others, followed by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical (IC 50 = 82.61 ± 0.90 μg/mL) and 2,2-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) cation radical removal (IC 50 = 55.20 ± 0.65 μg/mL) and CUPRAC-reducing power (IC 50 = 76.41 ± 0.73 μg/mL). Among the extracts studied, the hexane extract showed antimicrobial activity against Bacillus cereus , Staphylococcus aureus , Bacillus subtilis , and Micrococcus luteus with different inhibition zones. The major lipid components of H. petaloides analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) were elaidic acid (38.22%), palmitic acid (30.59%), stearic acid (13.21%), linoleic acid (4.35%), and azelaic acid (4.29%). The phenolic compounds determined by the high-performance liquid chromatography with photodiode-array detection (HPLC-DAD) system were p -hydroxybenzoic acid (7.42 μg/g extract), cinnamic acid (6.83 μg/g extract), gallic acid (5.36 μg/g extract), and protocatechuic acid (1.83 μg/g extract). The results showed that H. petaloides has the potential to be a natural source for the development of novel anticancer and antimicrobial agents as well as a beneficial food supplement for the prevention of cancer., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2024 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

Alzheimer's disease (AD) and diabetes are non-communicable diseases with global impacts. Inhibitors of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) are suitable therapies for AD, while α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitors are employed as antidiabetic agents. Compounds were isolated from the medicinal plant Terminalia macroptera and evaluated for their AChE, BChE, α-amylase, and α-glucosidase inhibitions. From 1 H and 13 C NMR data, the compounds were identified as 3,3'-di-O-methyl ellagic acid ( 1 ), 3,3',4'-tri-O-methyl ellagic acid-4-O-β-D-xylopyranoside ( 2 ), 3,3',4'-tri-O-methyl ellagic acid-4-O-β-D-glucopyranoside ( 3 ), 3,3'-di-O-methyl ellagic acid-4-O-β-D-glucopyranoside ( 4 ), myricetin-3-O-rhamnoside ( 5 ), shikimic acid ( 6 ), arjungenin ( 7 ), terminolic acid ( 8 ), 24-deoxysericoside ( 9 ), arjunglucoside I ( 10 ), and chebuloside II ( 11 ). The derivatives of ellagic acid ( 1 - 4 ) showed moderate to good inhibition of cholinesterases, with the most potent being 3,3'-di-O-methyl ellagic acid, with IC 50 values of 46.77 ± 0.90 µg/mL and 50.48 ± 1.10 µg/mL against AChE and BChE, respectively. The compounds exhibited potential inhibition of α-amylase and α-glucosidase, especially the phenolic compounds ( 1 - 5 ). Myricetin-3-O-rhamnoside had the highest α-amylase inhibition with an IC 50 value of 65.17 ± 0.43 µg/mL compared to acarbose with an IC 50 value of 32.25 ± 0.36 µg/mL. Two compounds, 3,3'-di-O-methyl ellagic acid (IC 50 = 74.18 ± 0.29 µg/mL) and myricetin-3-O-rhamnoside (IC 50 = 69.02 ± 0.65 µg/mL), were more active than the standard acarbose (IC 50 = 87.70 ± 0.68 µg/mL) in the α-glucosidase assay. For α-glucosidase and α-amylase, the molecular docking results for 1-11 reveal that these compounds may fit well into the binding sites of the target enzymes, establishing stable complexes with negative binding energies in the range of -4.03 to -10.20 kcalmol -1 . Though not all the compounds showed binding affinities with cholinesterases, some had negative binding energies, indicating that the inhibition was thermodynamically favorable.

In recent years, there have been an attempt to develop safe and environmental friendly solvents to replace conventional solvents, and use for extraction bioactive compounds from natural sources. A current investigation involved the preparation of green, methanolic, and ultrasonic extracts of S. sclarea, and compared their phenolic profiling using HPLC-DAD, antibacterial, antioxidant, and enzyme inhibition activities. The HPLC-DAD analysis revealed that Rosmarinic acid was the main content in all extracts, with Ellagic acid only present in the green extract. The green extract exhibited superior anti-biofilm activity against S. Aureus and E. Faecalis compared to the other extracts at MIC concentration. Furthermore, the green extract also displayed the highest inhibition of swarming motility in P. Aeruginosa with inhibition range 68.0 ± 2.1 (MIC) to 19.5 ± 0.6 (MIC/4). and better enzyme inhibitory activity against BChE (with IC 50  = 131.6 ± 0.98 µg/mL) and AChE (with inhibition 47.00 ± 1.50%) compared to the other extracts; while, the ultrasonic extract showed strong inhibition of violacein production by C. Violaceum with a inhibition range 05.5 ± 0.1 (MIC/32) to 100 ± 0.00 (MIC), followed by the green extract with a inhibition range 15.0 ± 0.5 (MIC/8) to 100 ± 0.00 (MIC), additionally, the ultrasonic and methanoic extracts showed significant activity against urease enzyme with (IC 50  = 171.6 ± 0.95 µg/mL and IC 5 0  = 187.5 ± 1.32 µg/mL) respectively. Both the green and methanolic extracts showed considerable antioxidant activities, as β-carotene-linoleic acid (IC 50  = 5.61 ± 0.47 µg/mL and 5.37 ± 0.27 µg/mL), DPPH · (IC 50  = 19.20 ± 0.70 µg/mL and 16.31 ± 0.23 µg/mL), ABTS ·+ (IC 50  = 8.64 ± 0.63 µg/mL and 6.50 ± 0.45 µg/mL) and CUPRAC (A 0.5  = 17.22 ± 0.36 µg/mL and 12.28 ± 0.12 µg/mL) respectively, likewise the green extract performing better in metal chelating compared to the other extracts. The green extraction is reported as a cost effective and solvent free method for extracting natural products that produces compounds free of toxic chemicals. This could be the method to be used in the industries as a renewable method., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Sanguisorba minor is a medicinal vegetable used in seasoning desserts, juices, and beverages. An evaluation of the total flavonoid, phenolic, tannin and anthocyanin contents indicated that these classes of compounds are distributed variably in the different fractions. In summary, the HPLC-DAD analyses enabled the identification and quantification of thirteen phenolic compounds in an ethyl acetate extract (EAE), nine in a dichloromethane extract (DCME), seven in an aqueous extract (AQE) and four in a butanol extract (BE). Rutin was the most abundant phenolic compound in the BE (278.4 ± 1.20 µg/g) and AQE (32.87 ± 0.23 µg/g) fractions, while apigenin was the most abundant in the DCME (84.75 ± 0.60 µg/g) and EAE (156.8 ± 0.95 µg/g) fractions. The presence of phenolic compounds in the fractions conferred good antioxidant capacity, especially the EAE and DCME fractions, which both exhibited higher antioxidant effects than BHA and α-tocopherol in DPPH • and CUPRAC assays. Additionally, in the ABTS •+ assay, EAE (IC 50 = 9.27 ± 0.33 µg/mL) was more active than α-tocopherol (IC 50 = 35.50 ± 0.55 µg/mL), and BHA (IC 50 = 12.70 ± 0.10 µg/mL). At 200 µg/mL, the fractions inhibited acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase as well as α-amylase and α-glucosidase, indicating that they can slow neurodegeneration and hyperglycemia. Minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) values ranged from 0.312 mg/mL to 1.25 mg/mL, and fractions showed good biofilm inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli . The extracts exhibited good violacein inhibition in Chromobacterium violaceum CV12472 and Chromobacterium violaceum CV026, despite the supply of external acyl-homoserine lactone to CV026. The antioxidant, quorum-sensing, antibiofilm and enzyme inhibition attributes indicate the potential for the application of S. minor as a food preservative.

Tricholoma anatolicum is an edible mushroom from the matsutake group growing under Cedar trees. Bioactivity-guided fractionation of Tricholoma anatolicum afforded two new ( 1 and 2 ), three known ergosterols ( 3 - 6 ), and four known ( 6 - 9 ) compounds. Structures were identified as anatoluin A ( 1 ), anatoluin B ( 2 ), 5 α ,6 α -epoxy-ergosta-7,22-dien,3 β -ol ( 3 ), ergosterol-endoperoxide ( 4 ), ergosterol,3 β -ol ( 5 ), 3,5-dihydroxyfuran-2(5 H )-one ( 6 ), mannitol ( 7 ), turanose ( 8 ), fumaric acid ( 9 ) using spectroscopic techniques. The cytotoxic activity of extract and isolated compounds was performed using MTT assay against MCF7, HT29, H1299, and HeLa cancerous cell lines while toxicity against PDF and L929 fibroblast healthy cell lines. The lipid peroxidation inhibitory and ABTS •+ scavenging activities were used to determine antioxidant activity. The polar extracts exhibited significant cytotoxic activity. The more perfect is that the extracts and isolated compounds ( 1 - 5 ) were inactive against PDF and L929 healthy cell lines. Compounds 1 - 3 and 4 exhibited noticeable cytotoxic activity, while 1 - 5 moderately inhibited lipid peroxidation.

Edible mushrooms are important providers of nutrients and are well recognized for their particular organoleptic properties. The volatiles that Tuber releases serve purposes beyond simply appealing to our sense of smell. Truffles have different smells and tastes due to the fact that they contain different volatile components; therefore, aroma is essential in defining the organoleptic properties and quality of truffles. In this research, seven Tuber species, namely, Tuber ferrugineum , Tuber nitidum , Tuber excavatum , Tuber rufum , Tuber puberulum , Tuber aestivum , and Tuber borchii were selected. The primary objective of this study was to carry out the first in-depth investigation of the volatile compounds and chemometric analysis of seven truffle species from the Tuber genus that are grown in Turkey. The SPME headspace combined with GC-MS analysis identified 60 volatiles from different classes, with the abundance of terpenes being followed in a decreasing order by alcohols, aldehydes, sulfides, ketones, and other aromatic compounds. According to the chemometric analysis, methional, 3-methyl-4,5-dihydrothiophene, p -(methylthio) benzaldehyde, 3-octene, linalyl acetate, methyl caproate, and β-trans-ocimene could be highlighted as markers for T. borchii grown in Turkey. This investigation was conducted for the first time using T. ferrugineum , T. puberulum , and T. nitidum . The comparison of the volatile profile of these tubers' species displayed branded differences. Thus, the knowledge gained from this research may pave the way to identify the key aroma contributors in the chosen Tuber species., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2023 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

The objectives of the present study are to compare the phenolic profiles and biological activities of 15 citrus honey samples from three different locations in Turkey using a chemometric approach. The HPLC-DAD analysis was used to determine phenolic profiles. Nineteen phenolic compounds were identified. Gallic acid (107.14-717.04 μg/g) was recorded as the predominant compound. AF (Antalya-Finike) had the highest antioxidant activity in ABTS⋅ + (IC 50 : 18.01±0.69 mg/mL), metal chelating (IC 50 : 6.20±0.19 mg/mL) and CUPRAC (A 0.50 : 12.05±0.68 mg/mL) assays, while it revealed the best anti-inflammatory activity against COX-2 (17.28±0.22 %) and COX-1 (43.28±0.91 %). AM (Antalya-Manavgat) was the most active in β-carotene-linoleic acid (IC 50 : 10.05±0.19 mg/mL), anti-urease (38.90±0.69 %), anti-quorum sensing and antimicrobial activities. AKO1 (Adana-Kozan-1) in DPPH⋅ (IC 50 : 34.25±0.81 mg/mL) assay, AKU1 (Antalya-Kumluca-1) in tyrosinase inhibition activity (37.73±0.38 %) assay, AKU2 (Antalya-Kumluca-2) in AChE (10.55±0.63 %) and BChE (9.18±0.45 %) inhibition activity assays showed the best activity. Chemometric tools were applied to the phenolic compositions and biological properties. PCA and HCA ensured that 15 citrus honey samples were grouped into 3 clusters. The results showed that myricetin, kaempferol, vanillin, protocatechuic acid, rosmarinic acid, rutin, vanillic acid, gallic acid, catechin and p-hydroxyphenyl acetic acid are phenolic compounds that can be used in the classification of citrus honeys., (© 2023 Wiley-VHCA AG, Zurich, Switzerland.)

In this work, in order to explore a new Algerian medicinal plant used in traditional medicine, the essential oil of the leaves of Cachrys sicula L. (Apiaceae) collected from Algeria, obtained by hydrodistillation, was analyzed by GC/MS. Thirty-two compounds were identified accounting for 98.6% of the total oil, which is characterized by a high content of monoterpene hydrocarbons (74.8%). The main constituents of the essential oil were β-pinene (17.9%), sabinene (17.8%), myrcene (12%), and α-pinene (11.4%). In vitro antioxidant activity of the essential oil was assayed by three methods, namely ABTS •+ , metal chelating, and DPPH • assays. The antioxidant activity of the oil was higher in the ABTS •+ method. Anticholinesterase activity was screened by the Ellman method against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) which are the chief enzymes of Alzheimer's disease. The results showed mild acetylcholinesterase and good butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory effects.

Present study aimed to establish the stimulatory effects of bee drone larvae (BDL) on the androgenic effects and growth performance of goat male kids (GMK). The effects of BDL on growth and testosterone hormone levels were investigated in Saanen male kids. A total of 26 Saanen male kids (13 heads control, 13 heads treatment groups) were used for determining the effects of BDL 60 days after the weaning period. BDL was obtained from "good beekeeping practices" hives. Hormone levels, growth trials, testes characteristics, and body measurements were determined every 14 days on the days 75, 90, 105, 120, and 135 of the trial. The increasing level of testosterone hormone in the treatment group on 135 days strengthened the hypothesis that the BDL could have greater effects in the case of more application that is expensive and considering the time of maturity of Saanen GMK. The lipid composition of BDL was identified by GC/MS. Oleic acid (64.75 %) and palmitic acid (26.08 %) were the dominant lipid compounds of BDL. Additionally, the phenolic/organic acid profile investigated by HPLC-DAD revealed that trans-aconitic acid (11.20±0.32 μg/g) and fumaric acid (5.03±0.41 μg/g) were found as major compounds in BDL., (© 2022 Wiley-VHCA AG, Zurich, Switzerland.)

Isolation and bioactive effects of the roots of Chaerophyllum bulbosum L. were firstly investigated herein. Enzyme (acetylcholinesterase, butyrylcholinesterase, urease, α-amylase, α-glucosidase, and tyrosinase) inhibitory effects of C. bulbosum root extracts were tested. Three known compounds, n -heptadecanyl eicosanoate ( 1 ), stigmasterol ( 2 ), and β -sitosterol-3- O - β -d-glucopyranoside ( 3 ) were isolated from C. bulbosum . Antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory effects of isolated compounds were investigated. The hexane extract (IC 50 : 349.58 ± 0.06 μg/mL) displayed a higher α-glucosidase inhibitory effect than the standard (IC 50 : 378.66 ± 0.14 μg/mL). The best inhibitory effect was found in compound 2 on AChE (46.40 ± 0.31%), BChE (56.41 ± 0.54%), and urease (92.47 ± 0.11%); compound 1 on α-amylase (22.27 ± 0.61%); and compound 3 on α-glucosidase (12.43 ± 0.25%) and tyrosinase (19.00 ± 0.16%). All isolated compounds showed moderate antioxidant effects in all assays. This study contributes to the therapeutic uses of Chaerophyllum roots and emphasizes the value of C. bulbosum species for the development of novel therapeutic agents., (© 2021 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston.)

In this study, Daedalea quercina (L.) Pers., Hydnum repandum L., Inonotus radiatus (Sowerby) P. Karst., Omphalotus olearius (DC.) Singer , and Schizophyllum commune Fr . hexane and methanol extracts were subjected to the spectrophotometric assays for antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory activities, which are linked with human diseases that are very prevalent in recent years. Additionally, phenolic compounds of the mushrooms were quantified by HPLC-DAD. The best antioxidant activity was found in H. repandum methanol extract (IC 50 : 12.04 ± 0.24 µg/mL) in the β-carotene-linoleic assay; I. radiatus methanol extract in DPPH • (81.22 ± 0.50%), ABTS •+ (IC 50 : 73.47 ± 0.18 µg/mL), and CUPRAC (A 0.50 : 88.21 ± 0.02 µg/mL) assays; S. commune hexane extract (53.36 ± 0.89%) in the metal chelating assay. O. olearius hexane extract was found as the best inhibitor against AChE (71.58 ± 0.28%) and BChE (67.30 ± 0.15%). When I. radiatus methanol (95.88 ± 0.74%) and H. repandum hexane (95.75 ± 0.16%) extracts showed close α-amylase inhibitory activity to acarbose (96.68 ± 0.08%), D. quercina methanol extract (70.79 ± 0.34%) had higher α-glucosidase inhibitory activity than acarbose (67.01 ± 2.28%). Among 16 phenolic compounds analyzed, gallic acid (0.02 ± 0.01-0.23 ± 0.01 µg/g) was detected in all studied mushrooms. This study provides that investigated mushrooms can be used for further research, which can lead to the development of new natural remedies to alleviate complications related to oxidative stress, diabetes, and neurological diseases., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestsNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors., (© King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology 2021.)

Polysaccharides are essential compounds that contribute to the biological activities of mushrooms. Two new galactomannans (Galactomannan I and II) were isolated from R. luteolus and G. adspersum. Their structures were characterized using FT-IR, 1D, and 2D-NMR techniques. Both isolated galactomannans I and II mainly include D-mannose and D-galactose in the molar percentages of 0.81:1.0 and 1:1.4, respectively. The GPC calculation demonstrated that the molecular weights are about 5240 and 5090 Da, respectively. Their structures comprise of β-(1,4)-mannose (Man) backbone units with α-(1,6)-galactose (Gal) single unit as a side group. The anticholinesterase activity of galactomannans was tested against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), spectrophotometrically. Antioxidant activity was also measured by six assays (ABTS •+ , DPPH • , O 2 •- , β-carotene-linoleic acid, metal chelating, and CUPRAC assays). Galactomannan II indicated close inhibitory activity to galantamine against AChE (61.04 ± 0.45%) and BChE (59.70 ± 1.15%) at 50 μg/mL concentration. Nevertheless, both galactomannans showed low antioxidant activity in all tests. This study reveals that mainly, Galactomannan II could be used as a new natural promising anticholinesterase agent., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest All authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Food pathogens represent an important health threat, and it is relevant to study the effect of foodstuffs such as spices which can inhibit bacterial growth. This study reports the antimicrobial, antibiofilm, and enzyme (Acetylcholinesterase, Butyrylcholinesterase, urease, tyrosinase) inhibitory activities of two medicinal food spices belonging to the Annonaceae family, Monodora myristica and Xylopia aethiopica . GC-MS (gas chromatography mass spectrometry) analysis of silylated samples of Methanol-Dicloromethane (50:50) extracts of both plants led to the identification of nine compounds in M. myristica and seven compounds in X. aethiopica . M. myristica and X. aethiopica had the same minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of 0.625 mg/mL and 2.5 mg/mL on C. albicans and E. coli , respectively. However, M. myristica had better activity than X. aethiopica on Staphylococcus aureus , while Pseudomonas aeruginosa was more susceptible to X. aethiopica than M. myristica . The lowest MIC value was 0.1325 mg/mL, exhibited by M. myristica on S. aureus . Both extracts showed good antibiofilm activity. On S. aureus , at the same concentration, M. myristica had better antibiofilm activity than X. aethiopica . On E. coli and Candida albicans , X. aethiopica had better antibiofilm activity than M. myristica at the same concentration. X. aethiopica showed better violacein inhibition in Chromobacterium violaceum CV12472, as its percentage inhibition of violacein varied from 80.5% ± 3.0% at MIC to 5.6 ± 0.2 at MIC/8, as compared to M. myristica with 75.1% ± 2.5% at MIC and 15.5% ± 1.1% at MIC/8. The anti-motility activity by swimming and swarming inhibition on P. aeruginosa PA01 was low at test concentrations and in both models, M. myristica showed higher motility inhibition than X. aethiopica . Although in enzyme inhibitory assays all extracts had low inhibitions compared to standards tested at the same concentrations, the results show that these plants can be used to manage food-borne infections.

The increasing resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has motivated the interest in potent natural compounds capable of disrupting bacterial cell-to-cell communication. Column chromatography of seed extract of Annona senegalensis afforded N-cerotoyltryptamine (1), asimicin (2) and ent-19-carbomethoxykauran-17-oic acid (3). The compounds were tested for their antimicrobial, antibiofilm, and anti-quorum sensing activities. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) values ranged from 50 μg/mL to 100 μg/mL for C. albicans ATCC 10239 and S. aureus ATCC 25923 E. coli ATCC 25922, C. violaceum CV026 and C. violaceum CV12472. All the compounds inhibited biofilm formations of all microorganisms tested in various percentages at MIC and MIC/2. Compound 2 also exhibited the highest antibiofilm activity against C. albicans (yeast) and E. coli with percentage inhibitions ranging from 6.3 ± 4.1 (MIC/4) to 37.9 ± 4.5 (MIC) for C. albicans and from 18.8 ± 1.1 (MIC/4) to 43.2 ± 0.5 (MIC) for E. coli. Compound 1, however, showed highest biofilm inhibition on S. aureus as the percentage inhibition varied from 26.7 ± 3.6 (MIC/4) to 43.8 ± 2.1 (MIC). Compound 2 showed highest percentage violacein inhibition on C. violaceum CV12472 ranging from 10.2 ± 0.5 (MIC/8), 65.76 ± 1.3 (MIC/2) and 100 (MIC). Compound 1 and 3 had percentage violacein formation inhibitions on C. violaceum CV12472 ranging from 9.66 ± 1.1 (MIC/4) to 100 (MIC), and from 17.4 ± 2.4 (MIC/4) to 100 (MIC), respectively. Swimming and swarming motility of P. aeruginosa PA01 strain was evaluated at three concentrations of 50, 75 and 100 μg/mL. The compounds inhibited the P. aeruginosa swimming and swarming motility at the three tested concentrations (50, 75 and 100 μg/ml) in a dose-dependent manner. The extents of inhibition of motility migration was relatively higher in the swimming model than in the swarming model for all compounds. Compound 1 exhibited the highest percentage inhibition of motility of 41.50 ± 3.5 and 39.73 ± 1.5 in swimming model and swarming model respectively at 100 μg/ml. Compound 3 showed the lowest percentage inhibition of 30.36 ± 2.0 and 23.50 ± 2.5 in swimming and swarming respectively at 100 μg/ml. At the lowest tested concentration of 50 μg/ml, it was compound 2 showing the highest inhibition of motility of 17.49 ± 0.5 and 14.29 ± 1.0 in swimming and swarming respectively. Compound 1 showed highest quorum sensing (QS) activity with QS inhibition zone of 20.0 ± 1.5 mm at MIC and 11.0 ± 1.0 mm at MIC/8 while compound 2 had the highest antimicrobial (AM) zone diameter amongst the compounds at MIC. Compound 3 was the QS inhibitory sample and did not show any QS inhibition at MIC/8 while showing its highest QS inhibition zone of 13.0 ± 1.6 mm at MIC. For antioxidant assays, no sample showed better activity than the standards. Compound 2 had highest activity with IC 50 values of 87.79 ± 2.70 and 42.77 ± 1.53 μg/mL in DPPH and β-carotene-linoleic acid assay respectively and was more active (IC 50 of 97.69 ± 1.40 μg/mL) than standard quercetin (IC 50 250.09 ± 0.87 μg/mL) in metal chelation assay., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have no conflict of interest to declare., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In this study, urease, tyrosinase, cholinesterase inhibitory, and antioxidant activities of various extracts of Sideritis albiflora and Sideritis leptoclada were determined together with the phytochemical contents. In addition, the fatty acid compositions and phenolic compounds were investigated by gas chromatography (GC), gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), and high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector (HPLC-DAD). Rosmarinic acid and caffeic acid in both Sideritis species were identified as the most abundant phenolic compounds whereas palmitic acid was found as a major fatty acid. The acetone extract of S. leptoclada indicated the highest antioxidant activity in β-carotene-linoleic acid (IC 50 : 17.23 ± 0.11 µg/ml), DPPH • (IC 50 : 28.14 ± 0.05 µg/ml) and ABTS •+ (IC 50 : 15.18 ± 0.02 µg/ml) assays. The acetone extract of S. albiflora (A 0.50 : 32.71 ± 0.44 µg/ml) was found as the best reductant in cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) assay. Against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), only the hexane extracts of Sideritis species showed moderate inhibitory activity. Moreover, all extracts of S. albiflora and the hexane extract of S. leptoclada exhibited significantly higher urease inhibitory activity than that of thiourea. Further, in vivo activity studies on extracts and isolated constituents obtained from these species are needed to understand the activity in biological systems. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Multiple pharmacological studies have proven that Sideritis species is precious with significant bioactive properties. This is the first comprehensive research to determine the enzyme inhibitory and antioxidant activities of various extracts of S. albiflora and S. leptoclada with phytochemical contents. Both Sideritis species were found to be rich in rosmarinic and caffeic acids. The acetone extracts showed the highest activity in terms of antioxidant activity, while the hexane extracts exhibited superior urease inhibitory activity. These results show that Sideritis species could be used as urease inhibitors' agents and source of antioxidants in food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries., (© 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Chromatographic purification of Fuscoporia torulosa extracts resulted in the isolation and characterization of a new steroid, 5α,8α-epidioxyergosta-6,22-dien-3β-il-palmitate (1) and 10 known compounds (2-11). The structures of compounds were elucidated by IR, NMR, MS analyses, and comparison with literature data. Cytotoxic activities against MCF-7 (breast cancer), PC-3 (prostate cancer), and 3T3 (nontumor) of the extracts and cytotoxic, antioxidant, cholinesterase, and tyrosinase inhibitory activities of all isolated compounds were evaluated. The methanol extract and Compound 8 showed the best cytotoxicity against MCF-7, whereas the hexane extract and Compound 4 displayed the highest cytotoxicity against PC-3. Compounds 10 and 11 displayed higher antioxidant activity than α-tocopherol and butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) which are used as standards in ABTS •+ , DPPH • , and cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) assays. Also, cholinesterase inhibitory activity against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butrylcholinesterase (BChE), Compounds 4 and 8 were determined as the most active compounds. Among all isolated compounds, Compound 11 exhibited the highest tyrosinase inhibitory activity. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Mushrooms have various important medicinal properties. A detailed study was made to identify the bioactive constituents of Fuscoporia torulosa mushroom and a new (1) and 10 known compounds (2-11) were isolated. Compounds 10 and 11 showed higher antioxidant activity than standards. The methanol extract and Compound 8 exhibited high cytotoxic activity against MCF-7. Compound 8 indicated potent BChE inhibitory activity. This study suggests that natural compounds isolated from F. torulosa mushroom could be used as promising anticancer, antioxidant, and anticholinesterase agents., (© 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Chemical composition and structural characterization of polysaccharides of Fomes fomentarius (FF), Fuscoporia torulosa, Ganoderma adspersum, Ganoderma applanatum (GAP), Ganoderma lucidum, Phellinus igniarius, Pleurotus ostreatus (PO), and Porodaedalea pini (PP) tree mushrooms with antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities were determined in this research. Total carbohydrate contents of the polysaccharides were ranged between 65.06 ± 6.76 and 88.27 ± 5.15 µg/mg and total protein contents were ranged between 3.18 ± 0.72 and 6.56 ± 1.25 µg/mg. Galactose, glucose, and mannose were identified as major monosaccharides in all polysaccharides using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. FT-IR analysis showed the characteristic peaks of the polysaccharides and high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detection was used to determine the molecular weight of the polysaccharides. In β-carotene-linoleic acid assay FF (IC 50 : 2.55 ± 0.40 µg/ml) displayed the highest antioxidant activity, whereas GAP indicated the highest antioxidant activity in cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (A 0.50 :59.90 ± 0.53 μg/ml), ABTS •+ (IC 50 : 16.62 ± 0.31 μg/ml), and DPPH • (IC 50 : 45.58 ± 0.21 μg/ml) assays. In cholinesterase inhibitory activity test, PO (56.31±0.0.74%) showed significant inhibitory activity against butyrylcholinesterase enzyme. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Polysaccharides from mushrooms are the major class of bioactive compounds with various biological activities. Several studies were performed on the biological activity of the polysaccharide extracts from different mushrooms. However, to our knowledge, this is the first report on the chemical composition, structural characterization, antioxidant, and anticholinesterase activities of extracted polysaccharides from studied mushrooms in detail. This investigation shows that polysaccharide extracts obtained from tree mushrooms show a significant bioactivity and these polysaccharides might be used as bioactive natural sources in the pharmaceutical, food, and cosmetic industries., (© 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Recently, mushroom species have been the focus of researchers' interest because of several bioactivities. The aim of this study was to investigate the chemical profile and biological activities of various extracts of two Stereum species (S. rugosum and S. sanguinolentum). Antioxidant activity was tested using β-carotene-linoleic acid, DPPH scavenging, ABTS·+ scavenging, cupric-reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC), and metal chelating assays. The extracts were also tested for their enzyme inhibitory activities against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE). HPLC-DAD was applied for the analysis of phenolic compounds, and fatty acid compositions were determined using GC and GC-MS. When fumaric acid and catechin hydrate were found as the most abundant phenolic compounds in both Stereum species, oleic acid and palmitic acid were identified as major fatty acids. Both of the studied Stereum methanol extracts were determined as the most active in β-carotene-linoleic acid, DPPR, ABTS·+, and CUPRAC assays; the n-hexane extracts were found to be most active in metal chelating and AChE inhibitory activity assays. In addition, the methanol extract of S. sanguinolentum (IC50: 34.26 ± 0.31 μg/mL) showed higher ABTS·+ scavenging activity than α-tocopherol (IC50: 38.51 ± 0.54 μg/mL). The acetone extracts were found as potent inhibitors against BChE. These results suggest that Stereum species could be an antioxidant source and cholinesterase agent in pharmaceutic, food, and cosmetics industries.

Sideritis leptoclada O. Schwarz et P.H. Davis extracts were evaluated for its singlet oxygen production capacity using spectrophotometric method. The extracts producing singlet oxygen were then evaluated for cytotoxicity against malignant melanoma cancer (HT-144) and fibroblast (3T3) cell lines using the 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazole-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The photocytotoxicity against the HT-144 human melanoma cell line in the presence of illumination (∼≥400 nm) was also evaluated. In the standard MTT assay, the ethanol extract of S. leptoclada (100 µg/ml) showed 83.49±3.33% inhibition of HT-144 cancer cells, whereas in the illuminated MTT assay, it showed 77.46±1.97% inhibition of HT-144 cancer cells. The effects of ethanol extract on reactive oxygen species production, apoptosis, and tumor necrosis factor-α secretion were also evaluated on HT-144 cell lines. The extract triggered an increase in intracellular reactive oxygen species production and tumor necrosis factor-α secretion compared with the respective controls. Thus, the ethanol extract may cause apoptosis. The LC-MS/MS analyses of S. leptoclada ethanolic extract showed that it has quinic acid (137213±11.25 µg/g extract), malic acid (1468±0.16 µg/g extract), chlorogenic acid (881.7±0.06 µg/g extract), and apigetrin (223.2±0.13 µg/g extract) as major constituents. The ethanolic extract of S. leptoclada should be further investigated as a potential treatment for malignant melanoma cancer.

Anthemis species are traditionally used to treat infectious and inflammatory processes, among others clinical disturbances. In the current study, the chemical composition, the total phenolic and flavonoid contents, the antioxidant, anticholinesterase, antimicrobial, and antibiofilm activities of Anthemis stiparum subsp. sabulicola aerial parts methanolic extract (As-ME) and essential oil (As-EO) were investigated. The chemical composition of As-EO was established by GC-MS and GC-FID. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents of As-ME were spectrophotometrically determined. Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH ● ) radical scavenging, cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) and β-carotene bleaching assays were applied to evaluate the antioxidant potential. The anticholinesterase activity against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) enzymes were carried out spectrophotometrically. The antimicrobial activity was assessed by Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) using broth microdilution method against 7 ATCC ® bacterial and one ATCC ® yeast reference strains. The antibiofilm effect was determined quantifying the percentage of adhesion inhibition. GC-MS and GC-FID identified 72 compounds (99.02%), being As-EO predominantly constituted by germacrene D (11.13%), t-cadinol (11.01%), camphor (6.73%), spathulenol (6.50%) and isoamyl salicylate (6.45%). The total phenolic and flavonoid contents of As-ME were 13.6 ± 0.03 and 5.9 ± 0.04 pyrocatechol equivalents and quercetin equivalents, respectively. In β-carotene-linoleic acid assay, As-ME showed the best lipid peroxidation inhibition activity with an IC 50  = 9.96 μg/mL followed by As-EO with an IC 50  = 619.98 μg/mL. In contrast, in DPPH assay, As-ME and As-EO showed moderate to low activity with an IC 50  = 92.69 μg/mL for As-ME and 917.69 μg/mL for As-EO. While in CUPRAC assay, As-EO and As-ME indicated a less to moderate reducing activity. As-ME inhibited AChE (IC 50  = 490.46 μg/mL) and BChE (IC 50  = 142.07 μg/mL), while As-EO was inactive against AChE and revealed a discreet inhibitory action against BChE (IC 50  = 212.14 μg/mL). As-ME displayed better antimicrobial activity than As-EO, being active against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC ® 25923) and Bacillus subtilis (ATCC ® 6633), with MIC of 1.56 mg/mL. An expressive fungal adhesion inhibition (80.02%) on Candida albicans (ATCC ® 10239) was detected with As-ME at 6.25 mg/mL. These results showed that A. stiparum subsp. sabulicola is a natural source of active compounds with antibiotic and antibiofilm effects against S. aureus and B. subtilis, and C. albicans, respectively, and also presents antioxidant and anticholinesterase properties., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

1. This study was carried out to investigate the effects of liquidambar essential oils (LEO) isolated from Turkish sweet gum (Liquidambar orientalis Mill.) leaves on growth performance, carcass, edible inner organs (EIO), gastrointestinal traits (gut), some blood metabolites and jejunum microbiota in broilers. 2. A total of 375 one-d-old male broilers (Ross 308) were randomly allocated to 5 treatments with 5 pens with 15 birds. The birds were fed on diets without antibiotics (CONT), with antibiotic (50 mg per kg, AB), with LEOs at 0.0405 (0.04LEO), 0.0811 (0.08LEO) or 0.1622 (0.16LEO) g/kg feed up to 42 d of age. The levels of LEOs included to diets were determined according to in vitro antimicrobial activity. 3. From d 1 to 42, the 0.08LEO treatment had higher live weight gain (LWG) compared to others. The 0.08LEO treatment increased feed intake (FI) compared to the CONT, AB and 0.04LEO. However, the feed conversion ratio (FCR) of these birds was lower than those in the AB and 0.16LEO treatments. From 1 to 42 d of age for LWG, the effects were quadratic and cubic, while those for FI and FCR were cubic and quadratic, respectively. Birds that fed 0.08LEO and AB diets had higher and lower carcass weights (CW) than those that fed other diets. The effect of LEO levels was cubic on the CW. The 0.08LEO and 0.16LEO decreased abdominal fat (AF) weight compared to the AB. The blood cholesterol decreased by the 0.04LEO and 0.08LEO treatments compared to the CONT. For the blood cholesterol, the effects of LEO levels were cubic. The 0.08LEO treatments decreased Escherichia coli counts in jejunum compared to the CONT and 0.16LEO. 4. Feeding a diet with LEO at 0.0811 g/kg might increase the LWG, FI and weights of carcass and AF, whereas it might decrease blood cholesterol and E. coli counts without affecting blood high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, triglyceride, glucose, aspartate transaminase and alanine transaminase concentrations.

Context: Stachys guyoniana Noë ex. Batt. and Mentha aquatica L. are two Algerian Lamiaceae used in folk medicine., Objective: To investigate their antioxidant, anticholinesterase and antibacterial activities., Material and Methods: n-Butanol (BESG), ethyl acetate (EESG) and chloroform (CESG) extracts of S. guyoniana and methanol (MEMA) and chloroform (CEMA) aerial part extracts of M. aquatica and methanol (MERMA) and acetone (AERMA) roots extracts of M. aquatica were evaluated for their antioxidant activity by the β-carotene-linoleic acid, DPPH • and ABTS • +  scavenging, CUPRAC and metal chelating assays. The anticholinesterase activity was tested against AChE and BChE. The antibacterial activity was assessed by MICs determination against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella heidelberg, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter aerogenes and Morganella morganii strains., Results: In the β-carotene test, the CESG (IC 50 : 2.3 ± 1.27 μg/mL) exhibited the highest activity. The BESG was the best scavenger of DPPH • (IC 50 : 2.91 ± 0.14 μg/mL). In the ABTS test, AERMA was the most active (IC 50 : 4.21 ± 0.28 μg/mL). However, with the CUPRAC, the BESG exhibited the best activity (A 0.50 : 0.15 ± 0.05 μg/mL) and was active in metal chelating assay with 48% inhibition at 100 μg/mL. The BESG was the best AChE inhibitor (IC 50 : 5.78 ± 0.01 μg/mL) however, the AERMA showed the highest BChE inhibitory activity (IC 50 : 19.23 ± 1.42 μg/mL). The tested extracts exhibited a good antibacterial activity., Conclusion: This study demonstrated good antioxidant, anticholinesterase and antibacterial potential of S. guyoniana and M. aquatica, which fits in well with their use in folk medicine.

Phytochemical investigation of the Rhizopogon luteolus Fr. led to the isolation of one new fatty acid ester, 3-hydroxy-2,4-dimethylheptacosyl acetate (1) together with two known compounds tetracosanoic acid (2) and ergosterol (3). 1D and 2D NMR, and MS techniques were used for structural elucidation. Phenolic and fatty acid compositions were identified using HPLC-DAD and GC-MSD, respectively. Fumaric acid was the major phenolic acid, whereas linoleic, stearic and oleic acids were the most abundant fatty acids. Antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities of the extracts and compounds (1-3) were tested spectrophotometrically. Among the extracts, hexane extract showed the highest activity in all tests, particularly in β-carotene-linoleic acid assay (IC50: 16.65 ± 1.12 μg/mL). Furthermore, compound 3 exhibited higher antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities. The study indicates that R. luteolus can be used in food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries.

Twenty compounds were detected in the essential oil of Rhanterium suaveolens representing 98.01% of the total oil content. Perillaldehyde (45.79%), caryophyllene oxide (24.82%) and β-cadinol (5.61%) were identified as the main constituents. In β-carotene-linoleic acid assay, both the oil and the methanol extract exhibited good lipid peroxidation inhibition activity, with IC50 values of 17.97 ± 5.40 and 11.55 ± 3.39 μg/mL, respectively. In DPPH and CUPRAC assays, however, the methanol extract exhibited a good antioxidant activity. The highest antibiofilm activity has been found 50.30% against Staphylococcus epidermidis (MU 30) at 20 μg/mL for essential oil and 58.34% against Micrococcus luteus (NRRL B-4375) at 25 mg/mL concentration for methanol extract. The in vitro anticholinesterase activity of methanol extract showed a moderate acetylcholinesterase inhibitory (IC50 = 168.76 ± 0.62 μg/mL) and good butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory (IC50 = 54.79 ± 1.89 μg/mL) activities. The essential oil was inactive against both enzymes.

Context Dodonaea viscosa (L.) Jacq (Sapindaceae) has been used in traditional medicine as antimalarial, antidiabetic and antibacterial agent, but further investigations are needed. Objective This study determines the antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities of six compounds (1-6) and two crystals (1A and 3A) isolated from D. viscosa, and discusses their structure-activity relationships. Materials and methods Antioxidant activity was evaluated using six complementary tests, i.e., β-carotene-linoleic acid; DPPH(•), ABTS(•+), superoxide scavenging, CUPRAC and metal chelating assays. Anticholinesterase activity was performed using the Elman method. Results Clerodane diterpenoids (1 and 2) and phenolics (3-6) - together with three crystals (1A, 3A and 7A) - were isolated from the aerial parts of D. viscosa. Compound 3A exhibited good antioxidant activity in DPPH (IC50: 27.44 ± 1.06 μM), superoxide (28.18 ± 1.35% inhibition at 100 μM) and CUPRAC (A0.5: 35.89 ± 0.09 μM) assays. Compound 5 (IC50: 11.02 ± 0.02 μM) indicated best activity in ABTS assay, and 6 (IC50: 14.30 ± 0.18 μM) in β-carotene-linoleic acid assay. Compounds 1 and 3 were also obtained in the crystal (1A and 3A) form. Both crystals showed antioxidant activity. Furthermore, crystal 3A was more active than 3 in all activity tests. Phenol 6 possessed moderate anticholinesterase activity against acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase enzymes (IC50 values: 158.14 ± 1.65 and 111.60 ± 1.28 μM, respectively). Discussion and conclusion This is the first report on antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities of compounds 1, 2, 5, 6, 1A and 3A, and characterisation of 7A using XRD. Furthermore, the structure-activity relationships are also discussed in detail for the first time.

Objectives: To assess current iodine levels and related factors among healthy pregnant women. , Methods: In this cross-sectional, hospital-based study, healthy pregnant women (n=135) were scanned for thyroid volume, provided urine samples for urinary iodine concentration and completed a questionnaire including sociodemographic characteristics and dietary habits targeted for iodine consumption at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine,Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University, Muğla, Turkey, between August 2014 and February 2015. Sociodemographic data were analyzed by simple descriptive statistics., Results: Median urinary iodine concentration was 222.0 μg/L, indicating adequate iodine intake during pregnancy. According to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria, 28.1% of subjects had iodine deficiency, 34.1% had adequate iodine intake, 34.8% had more than adequate iodine intake, and 3.0% had excessive iodine intake during pregnancy. Education level, higher monthly income, current employment, consuming iodized salt, and adding salt to food during, or after cooking were associated with higher urinary iodine concentration.  , Conclusion: Iodine status of healthy pregnant women was adequate, although the percentage of women with more than adequate iodine intake was higher than the reported literature.

Context: This is the first study on the phytochemistry, antioxidant, anticholinesterase, and antibacterial activities of Sedum caeruleum L. (Crassulaceae)., Objective: The objective of this study is to isolate the secondary metabolites and determine the antioxidant, anticholinesterase, and antibacterial activities of S. caeruleum., Materials and Methods: Six compounds (1-6) were isolated from the extracts of S. caeruleum and elucidated using UV, 1D-, 2D-NMR, and MS techniques. Antioxidant activity was investigated using DPPH(•), CUPRAC, and ferrous-ions chelating assays. Anticholinesterase activity was determined against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) enzymes using the Ellman method. Antibacterial activity was performed according to disc diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) methods., Results: Isolated compounds were elucidated as ursolic acid (1), daucosterol (2), β-sitosterol-3-O-β-D-galactopyranoside (3), apigenin (4), apigetrin (5), and apiin (6). The butanol extract exhibited highest antioxidant activity in all tests (IC50 value: 28.35 ± 1.22 µg/mL in DPPH assay, IC50 value: 40.83 ± 2.24 µg/L in metal chelating activity, and IC50 value: 23.52 ± 0.44 µg/L in CUPRAC), and the highest BChE inhibitory activity (IC50 value: 36.89 ± 0.15 µg/L). Moreover, the chloroform extract mildly inhibited (MIC value: 80 µg/mL) the growth of all the tested bacterial strains., Discussion and Conclusion: Ursolic acid (1), daucosterol (2), β-sitosterol-3-O-β-D-galactopyranoside (3), apigenin (4), apigetrin (5), and apiin (6) were isolated from Sedum caeruleum for the first time. In addition, a correlation was observed between antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities of bioactive ingredients of this plant.

No previous studies have documented changes in salivary secretion in patients with malaria. This study aimed to compare salivary secretion and composition in malaria positive and malaria negative individuals. Ninety participants composed of 40 malaria parasite positive and 50 malaria parasite negative individuals (age and gender matched) were included. Malaria diagnosis was achieved by microscopic examination of Giemsa stained thick and thin film of blood smears. A self-administered questionnaire was used to assess presence or absence of oral symptoms in the malaria parasite positive individuals. Whole saliva samples were collected and analyzed for flow rate, pH, total protein and concentrations of electrolytes (K+, Na+, Ca2+, Cl-, PO42-and HCO32-). Data were analysed using Independent-Samples t-test and Spearman's correlation test. The salivary flow rate was significantly reduced in malaria parasite positive individuals (P = 0.001). Oral symptoms were present in 82.5% of the malaria parasite positive individuals. There was no significant difference in the salivary pH, total protein and electrolyte ion concentrations between the two groups. Also, Spearman's correlation test showed no significant relationship between the presence of oral symptom and the salivary parameters. Salivary flow rates are reduced in the individuals with malaria. However, presence of oral symptoms in these individuals may not be attributed to the reduced salivary flow rate. Further studies are needed to validate our findings and elucidate mechanisms involved.

Context: Recently, mushrooms are interesting natural products to be investigated due to exhibiting various bioactivities., Objective: This study determines the antioxidant and anticholinesterase activities of various extracts of five wild mushroom species. In addition, the total bioactive contents, namely, ascorbic acid, β-carotene, and lycopene along with phenolic and flavonoid contents were also determined spectrophotometrically., Materials and Methods: Antioxidant activity was tested by using five complementary tests; namely, β-carotene-linoleic acid, DPPH(•) scavenging, ABTS(•+) scavenging, cupric-reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC), and metal chelating assays. The in vitro anticholinesterase activity was tested against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) enzymes using the Ellman method. The spectrophotometric methods were used to determine the total phenolic, flavonoid, ascorbic acid, β-carotene, and lycopene contents., Results: The current study has shown that ethyl acetate extracts of Ganoderma lucidum (Curtis) P. Karst (IC50: 1.55 ± 0.05 µg/mL) and Funalia trogii (Berk.) Bondartsev & Singer (IC50: 4.31 ± 0.18 µg/mL) exhibited good lipid peroxidation inhibitory activity. The DPPH, ABTS, and CUPRAC assays supported this activity. The ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of Funalia trogii and Ganoderma lucidum indicated good anticholinesterase activity. Ganoderma lucidum had rich phenolic and flavonoid contents, indicating 98.67 ± 0.32 mg PEs/g extract and 160.38 ± 1.25 mg QEs/g extract, respectively., Discussion and Conclusion: The results demonstrate that some of the mushroom species tested herein could be used in food and pharmaceutical industries as natural antioxidants.

Mineral and metal contents of 24 wild mushroom species collected from Anatolia were analysed by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. Eight minerals (Na, Mg, Ca, Mn, Fe, Zn, P and K) and six metals (Cr, Ni, Ag, Co, Cu and Pb) were studied. The mineral content of mushroom samples ranged 77.1-1061.2 mg/kg for Na, 268.1-1927.9 mg/kg for Mg, 19.3-352.9 mg/kg for Ca, 1.23-75.36 mg/kg for Mn, 27.8-816.1 mg/kg for Fe, 1.61-122.13 mg/kg for Zn, 176.7-5726.4 mg/kg for P and 1133.3-9866.7 mg/kg for K. The metal content ranged 0.03-10.58 mg/kg for Cr, 0.24-48.65 mg/kg for Ni, 0.02-0.63 mg/kg for Ag, 0.02-5.13 mg/kg for Co, 1.10-9.04 mg/kg for Cu and 0.07-8.46 mg/kg for Pb.

Aminophenyl boronic acid (APBA) carrying uniform-macroporous poly(chloromethylstyrene-co-divinylbenzene), poly(CMS-co-DVB) particles were synthesized for selective separation of cis-diol-containing flavonoids from plant extracts. For this purpose, 2.5 μm polystyrene seed particles were first swelled by a mixture of dibutyl phthalate (DBP), toluene and dodecanol, then by a monomer mixture including CMS and DVB. The repolymerization of the monomer phase in the swollen seed particles provided macroporous and uniform particles, approximately 7 μm in size. Chlorine atoms on the surface of these particles were derivatized with APBA to gain affinity properties for flavonoids containing vicinal hydroxyl groups. Model adsorption studies showed that these particles selectively adsorbed quercetin and rutin containing cis-diol groups, but did not adsorb apigenin similar to quercetin and not carrying cis-diol groups. These particles were also tested in adsorption/desorption studies for ethanol and ethyl acetate extracts of the Hypericum perforatum (HP) stems to obtain high antioxidant mixtures. With ethanol extract, the antioxidant activity of the desorption solution was a bit higher than that of the post-adsorption solutions. However, the DPPH radical scavenging activity of the desorption solution decreased with respect to the original extract and post-adsorption solutions. A similar result was obtained for the antioxidant activity of the desorption solution using ethyl acetate extract. An interesting result was obtained that DPPH radical scavenging activity of the post-adsorption solution was higher than that of the original ethyl acetate extract and desorption solutions. These results were attributed to selective adsorption of antioxidant characterized cis-diol-containing apolar molecules much more rather than that radical scavenger characterized polar molecules., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The fatty acids of Agaricus essettei, Agaricus bitorquis and Agaricus bisporus were investigated by using GC and GC-MS. The dominant fatty acids were found to be linoleic (61.82-67.29%) and palmitic (12.67-14.71%) acids among the 13 fatty acids detected in the oils. Total unsaturation for the oils was calculated as 77.50%, 77.44%, and 79.72%, respectively. In vitro antioxidant, anticholinesterase and antimicrobial activities were also studied. The ethyl acetate extract of Agaricus bitorquis showed the highest activity in β-carotene-linoleic acid, DPPH(·) and ABTS(·)(+) assays, while the hexane extract of Agaricus bisporus exhibited the best metal chelating activity. The ethyl acetate and hexane extract of Agaricus bitorquis and the hexane extract of Agaricus essettei showed meaningful butyrylcholinesterase activity being close to that of galantamine. The extracts were found to be effective on Gram (+) bacteria, especially against Micrococcus luteus, Micrococcus flavus, Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus cereus. In conclusion, Agaricus bitorquis and Agaricus essettei demonstrated higher iron content, and better antioxidant, anticholinesterase and antimicrobial activities than those of Agaricus bisporus commonly consumed mushroom. Hence, Agaricus species, particularly Agaricus bitorquis might be useful as antioxidant agents and moderate anticholinesterase agents, and their extracts will probably be used for development of dietary foods, food products and additives., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The essential oil and methyl ester of hexane extract of Salvia chionantha Boiss. were analysed by GC and GC-MS. Totally, 54 components were detected in the essential oil and all of them were fully determined. Germacrene D (25.03%), β-caryophyllene (8.71%), spathulenol (5.86%) and α-humulene (4.82%) were identified as the major compounds. In the methylated hexane extract, 3-hydroxy hexadecanoic acid (39.39%), 3-hydroxy tetradecanoic acid (12.66%) and palmitic acid (12.02%) were the major fatty acids elucidated. The antioxidant activity of the essential oil and the hexane extract was determined by using four complementary test systems; namely, β-carotene-linoleic acid, DPPH() scavenging, ABTS(+)* scavenging, and CUPRAC assays. In β-carotene-linoleic acid assay, the extract showed 81.2±0.1% lipid peroxidation inhibition at 0.8 mg/mL concentration, while in ABTS(+)* assay the essential oil exhibited 77.4±0.5% inhibition at same concentration. Since, acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase enzymes are taking place in pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease, in vitro anticholinesterase activity of the essential oil and the extract was also studied spectrophotometrically. At 0.5mg/mL concentration, the essential oil showed moderate acetylcholinesterase (56.7±1.9%) and butyrylcholinesterase (41.7±2.9%) inhibitory activity, while the extract was only exhibited activity (63.1±0.8%) against butyrylcholinesterase enzyme. Hence, the essential oil may be useful as a moderate anticholinesterase agent, particularly against acetylcholinesterase., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and ethanolic extracts of the aerial parts of Centaurea austro-anatolica Hub.-Mor. (Asteraceae) were evaluated against microorganisms, including multiresistant bacteria, using a paper disc diffusion method. The chloroform extract exhibited significant antibacterial activity toward all bacteria tested. The chemical composition of the chloroform extract was determined by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The major compounds of the extract were caryophyllene oxide (21.32 %), spathulenol (10.86 %), n-tricosanol (9.58 %) and geranyl isovalerate (8.71 %).

The aerial parts of Micromeria juliana (L.) Bentham ex Reichb. were extracted with light petroleum, acetone and methanol, successively. The antioxidant activity of different concentrations of the extracts was evaluated using different antioxidant tests, namely total antioxidant (lipid peroxidation inhibition activity), DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) radical scavenging, ferric reducing power, and metal chelating. Total antioxidant activity was determined using the beta-carotene-linoleic acid assay. Unexpectedly, the light petroleum extract exhibited strong lipid peroxidation inhibition activity. The extract was fractionated on a silica gel column and the antioxidant activity of the fractions was determined by the beta-carotene-linoleic assay at 25 microg/mL concentration. The fractions that exhibited more than 50% inhibition activity were analysed by GC and GC/MS; thus, the structure of fourteen compounds were elucidated. In addition, acetyl- and butyryl-cholinesterase inhibitory activities of the extracts were also determined in vitro. The light petroleum and acetone extracts were found to have mild butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory activity.

The antimicrobial activity of the n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and ethanol extracts of the aerial parts of C. drabifolia S.M. subsp. cappadocica (DC.) Wagenitz (Asteraceae) was evaluated against microorganisms including multi-antibiotic resistant bacteria using the paper disc diffusion method. The chemical composition of the chloroform extract of this plant was determined by gas chromatography and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The chloroform extract exhibited significant antibacterial activity against all the bacteria tested, except Stenotrophomonas maltophilia MU63. The major compounds of the chloroform extract were spathulenol (14.1%), caryophyllene oxide (12.5%), octadecanol (10.2%), ethyl palmitate (7.7%), [Z,Z]-10,12-hexadecadienal (6.0%), 3-hydroxy p-anisaldehyde (5.9%) and pentacosane (5.8%).

The chemical compositions of the essential oils of Salvia potentillifolia (Lamiaceae) were analyzed by GC and GC-MS. The oils were obtained by four different methods (hydrodistillation, steam distillation, and two extraction methods) to investigate the effect of temperature on the volatile compounds. In total, 121 components were detected in the various oils. The major compounds characterized were alpha-pinene (30.2, 31.2, 10.6, and 14.8%) and beta-pinene (15.0, 14.6, 7.6, and 11.4%), respectively. Surprisingly, the percentage concentrations of alpha-pinene and beta-pinene in the hydrodistilled and steam distilled oils were high, even though prepared at high temperature, whereas the contents of both compounds were lower in the essential oils obtained by the extraction methods prepared without added heat. The percentage concentration of 8,13-epoxy-labda-14-en-2-one, a diterpenoid, in the extracted essential oil was 22 times higher than in the hydrodistilled and steam distilled essential oils. However, the concentrations of cis-p-menth-2-en-1-ol was four times, and beta-bourbonene and beta-caryophyllene two times superior than their percentage concentrations in the hydrodistilled and steam distilled essential oils.