Phytotoxic Activities of Mediterranean Essential Oils

Twelve essential oils from Mediterranean aromatic plants were tested for their phytotoxic activity, at different doses, against the germination and the initial radicle growth of seeds of Raphanus sativus, Lactuca sativa and Lepidium sativum. The essential oils were obtained from Hyssopus officinalis, Lavandula angustifolia, Majorana hortensis, Melissa officinalis, Ocimum basilicum, Origanum vulgare, Salvia officinalis and Thymus vulgaris (Lamiaceae), Verbena officinalis (Verbenaceae), Pimpinella anisum, Foeniculum vulgare and Carum carvi (Apiaceae). The germination and radicle growth of tested seeds were affected in different ways by the oils. Thyme, balm, vervain and caraway essential oils were more active against both germination and radicle elongation.

Effects of seasonal variation on the central nervous system activity of Ocimum gratissimum L. essential oil

Ocimum gratissimum L. (Lamiaceae) and other species of the same genus are used as medicines to treat central nervous system (CNS) diseases, commonly encountered in warm regions of the world. The chemical composition of Ocimum gratissimum essential oil varies according to their chemotypes: timol, eugenol or geraniol. In this study, the essential oil type eugenol was extracted by hydrodistillation in each of the four seasons of the year. Activity upon CNS was evaluated in the open-field and rota-rod tests; sleeping time induced by sodium pentobarbital (PBS, 40 mg/kg, intraperitoneally, i.p.) and anticonvulsant activity against seizures induced by both pentylenetetrazole (PTZ; 85 mg/kg, s.c.) and maximal electroshock (MES, 50 mA, 0.11 s) were determined. Essential oils obtained in each season were effective in increasing the sleeping duration and a preparation obtained in Spring was able to protect animals against tonic seizures induced by electroshock. In each season, eugenol and 1,8-cineole were the most abundant compounds, and in Spring the essential oil presented the greatest relative percentage of sesquiterpenes, suggesting that these compounds could explain the differences observed in the biological activity in essential oils obtained in different seasons of the year. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V.. All rights reserved.

Biological effects of Ocimum gratissimum L. are due to synergic action among multiple compounds present in essential oil

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Sinergismo entre óleos essenciais e drogas antimicrobianas sobre linhagens de Staphylococcus aureus e Escherichia coli isoladas de casos clínicos humanos

Estudos com plantas e utilização em terapias combinatórias têm sido estimulados. Verificou-se as possíveis interações entre óleos essenciais de plantas [canela (Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume Lauraceae), capim-cidreira (Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf, Poaceae), hortelã-pimenta (Mentha piperita L. Lamiaceae), gengibre (Zingiber officinale Roscoe Zingiberaceae), cravo-da-índia (Caryophillus aromaticus L. Myrtaceae) e alecrim (Rosmarinus officinalis L. Lamiaceae)] combinados a oito drogas antimicrobianas frente a doze linhagens de Staphylococcus aureus e doze de Escherichia coli isoladas de humanos. Após determinação da Concentração Inibitória Mínima (CIM) para os óleos pelo método da diluição foram realizados ensaios para verificação de sinergismo entre os óleos essenciais e os antimicrobianos pela metodologia de Kirby & Bauer. S. aureus foi mais suscetível às interações óleos e drogas, tendo o óleo de capim cidreira apresentado sinergismo com as oito drogas testadas, seguido pelo óleo de hortelã com sete drogas. Nos ensaios com E. coli, houve sinergismo apenas para os óleos de alecrim (três drogas) e capim-cidreira (duas drogas). Não ocorreram casos de antagonismo e os resultados de sinergismo foram influenciados pelos microrganismos estudados.

Obtenção e uso das plantas medicinais no distrito de Martim Francisco, Município de Mogi-Mirim, SP, Brasil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Iron chelating-mediated antioxidant activity of Plectranthus barbatus extract on mitochondria

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Trypanocidal activity of Brazilian plants against epimastigote forms from Y and Bolivia strains of Trypanosoma cruzi

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Levantamento fitossociológico das comunidades de plantas infestantes em áreas de produção de arroz irrigado cultivado sob diferentes sistemas de manejo

O presente trabalho de pesquisa teve como objetivo identificar a composição florística de comunidades de plantas daninhas presentes em áreas agrícolas de várzea, manejadas em diferentes sistemas. O trabalho foi desenvolvido em áreas de produção de arroz irrigado das cooperativas: Cooperativas Mista Rural Vale do Javaés e Cooperativa Agroindustrial Rio Formoso, em Formoso do Araguaia-TO. Foram separadas três áreas de 1 ha, sendo: 1 - área sem rotação de culturas (arroz/pousio) há mais de cinco anos; 2 - área com rotação de culturas (arroz/soja) há mais de cinco anos; 3 - área com rotação de culturas (arroz/melancia) há mais de dois anos. Para caracterização e estudo fitossociológico da comunidade infestante foi utilizado, como unidade amostral, um quadro (1,0 x 1,0 m), lançado aleatoriamente dentro da área de estudo (método do quadrado inventário), por meio de um caminhamento em ziguezague. Na área sem rotação, foram identificadas 8 famílias e 16 espécies, destacando-se a família Poaceae com maior número espécies; Fimbristylis miliacea (Cyperaceae) foi a espécie com o maior índice de importância relativa (84,46%). Na área com rotação arroz/soja, foram identificadas 8 famílias e 12 espécies, destacando-se as famílias Poaceae e Cyperaceae com maior número espécies; Cyperus esculentus (Cyperaceae) foi a espécie com o maior índice de importância relativa (91,4%). Na área com rotação arroz/melancia foram identificadas seis famílias e oito espécies, destacando-se as famílias Euphorbiaceae e Lamiaceae com maior número espécies; Physalis angulata (Solanaceae) foi a espécie com o maior índice de importância relativa (153,1%), seguida por Eclipta alba (Compositae) e Hyptis lophanta (Lamiaceae), com 40,45 e 37,6%, respectivamente.

Microbial transformation of cadina-4,10(15)-dien-3-one, aromadendr-1(10)-en-9-one and methyl ursolate by Mucor plumbeus ATCC 4740

The sesquiterpenes cadina-4,10(15)-dien-3-one (1) and aromadendr-1(10)-en-9-one (squamulosone) (14) along with the triterpenoid methyl ursolate (21) were incubated with the fungus Mucor plumbeus ATCC 4740. Substrates 1, 14 and ursolic acid (20) were isolated from the plant Hyptis verticillata in large quantities. M. plumbeus hydroxylated 1 at C-12 and C-14. When the iron content of the medium was reduced, however, hydroxylation at these positions was also accompanied by epoxidation of the exocyclic double bond. In total nine new oxygenated cadinanes have been obtained. Sesquiterpene 14 was converted to the novel 2α,13-dihydroxy derivative along with four other metabolites. Methyl ursolate (21) was transformed to a new compound, methyl 3β,7β,21β-trihydroxyursa-9(11),12-dien-28-oate (22). Two other triterpenoids, 3β,28-dihydroxyurs-12-ene (uvaol) (23) and 3β,28-bis(dimethylcarbamoxy)urs-12-ene (24) were not transformed by the micro-organism, however. © 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Rendimento de óleo essencial de Salvia officinalis L. sob ação de reguladores vegetais

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of different plant growth regulators on essential oil yield in Salvia officinalis L. plants. The experiment was held in a greenhouse and the experimental design was completely randomized, with 5 treatments and three replications. The Treatments consisted in the application of gibberellic acid (GA3), benzylaminopurine (BAP), 2-chloroethyl phosphonic acid (ethephon), and Stimulate at 2%, compared with control plants (water). Applications of plant growth regulators were performed in three consecutive periods, in turn, 15, 25 and 35 days after transplanting of seeding germinating in the light at 25°C. The dry mass yield of the aerial part and the oil essential content were determined 131 days after the transplant. The aerial part of the plants was dried in an oven at 35°C; after dry mass determination, the oil was extracted by hydrodistillation and its volume was determined. Plants treated with GA 3 and Stimulate showed increase in essential oil content, while plants treated with BAP and ethephon showed decrease in essential oil volume when compared with the control plants.

Conhecimento popular sobre plantas medicinais em comunidades rurais de mata atlântica - Itacaré, BA, Brasil

This study's goal was to caryy out an ethnobotanical survey focusing on the knowledge and use of medicinal plants within two rural communities (Marambaia and Camboinha), which are situated in an Environmental Protection Area in Atlantic Forest of Southern Bahia, Brazil. These communities use medicinal plants as an important therapeutic activity, which permits the rural inhabitants to be self-sufficient regarding health care. Data were collected through interviews with 26 families (24% of the total). The medicinal plants collected (98 species) were catalogued, identified and deposited at the Herbarium Rio Clarense (HRCB). They belong to 40 families so that Lamiaceae was the most cited. The majority of these species (78%) are cultivated, usually in backyards by local inhabitants. The leaf is the most common part of the plant used in medicinal preparations. The species with the greatest number of citations were Chenopodium ambrosioides L. and Lippia alba (Mill) N.E. Br. These species are also associated with the highest number of therapeutic uses. Use agreement and diversity index from this survey were compared to other surveys conducted in Brazilian Tropical Forests.

Crescimento de Mentha piperita L, cultivada em solução nutritiva com diferentes doses de potássio

The research aimed at the evaluation of the influence of different potassium doses on the growth and development of Mentha piperita L. The experiment was conducted with stalks rooted in a commercial substrate and transplanted to a complete nutritive solution varying the treatments as following: (a) 234 mg L-1 of K; (b) 117 mg L-1 of K; and (c) 58.5 mg L-1 of K. Plants were evaluated at 21, 42, 63, 84 and 105 days after transplanting (DAT). In this study there were determined the physiological indexes leaf area ratio (LAR), specific leaf area (SLA), net assimilatory rate (NAR) and relative growth rate (RGR) were determined. The results indicated that the decreasing of K concentration to 25% did not affect the LAR, SLA, NAR and RGR physiological indexes.

Atividade antioxidante e antimicrobiana do alecrim (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) em filés de tilápia (Oreochromis ssp) salgados secos durante o armazenamento congelado

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) is a spice from Lamiaceae family known since ancient times because its medicinal effects and, currently, several studies have pointed its antioxidant and antimicrobian effects. Lipid oxidation is a problem in food production because proceed the lost of organoleptical and nutritional qualities so required in Market. Fish salting is an ancient conservation method that expect reduce water activity and, consequently, microorganism growth in food, except halophillic bacteria. In the meantime, the inconvenient of this procedure is that the salt accelerates tissue's lipid oxidation. The aim of this work was evaluate the antioxidative and antimicrobian effects by treatment and pre treatment with rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) aqueous extract in dry salted tilapia fillets, storaged in freezing temperatures. To follow the oxidative, dry salted tilapia fillets were treated or pre treated with rosemary natural extract and storage at -18°C for 240 days. Analisys of 2-thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), soluble nitrogen in trichloroacetic acid (TCA), water activity and microbiology were done. The pre treatment (3.39±0,53) and the treatment with rosemary (3.31±0.79) had oxidative index twice lower than the control treatment (6.14±1.21) in the last time of the research. The microbiological rosemary analisys showed count levels of resistant microorganisms to salt (2.0×103CFU/g of sample), whom causes the initial fillets contamination. The microbiological counts remained invariable in all groups during storage periods.

Cálcio e ethephon no desenvolvimento e produção de óleo essencial de menta (Mentha Piperita L.), cultivada em solução nutritiva

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Produção de biomassa, rendimento e composição do óleo essencial de manjericão (Ocimum basilicum L.) em função de reguladores vegetais

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)