Effect of Baccharis dracunculifolia DC (Asteraeeae) extracts and its isolated compounds on macrophage activation

Baccharis dracunculifolia D.C. (Asteraceae), a shrub which grows wild in Brazil, is the main botanical source of Brazilian green propolis. Since Brazilian propolis shows an immunomodulatory activity, the goal of this work was to evaluate the action of B. dracunculifolia extracts and some of its isolated compounds on reactive oxygen intermediate (H2O2) production by macrophages obtained from male BALB/c mice. The results showed that the leaf (Bd-L) (25, 50, and 100 mu g mL(-1)), leaf rinse (Bd-LR) (25 mu g mL(-1)), and the root (Bd-R) (25 mu g mL(-1)) extracts enhanced H2O2 release by macrophages. A phytochemical study of the root and leaves of B. dracunculifolia was carried out. The chromatographic fractionation of Bd-R, using several techniques, afforded the isolation of baccharis oxide (1), friedelanol (2), viscidone (11), 11-hydroxy-10,11-dihydro-euparin (12), and 6-hydroxy-tremetona (13), while Bd-LR gave the following isolated compounds: baccharis oxide (1), friedelanol (2), isosakuranetin (3), aromadendrin-4'-methyl ether (4), dihydrocumaric acid (5), baccharin (6), hautriwaic acid lactone (7), hautriwaic acid acetate (8), drupanin (9), and cumaric acid (10). Among the isolated compounds, baccharis oxide (1) and friedelanol (2) increased H2O2 production at a concentration of 1001,M. This is the first time that the presence of compounds 7, 8, 12, and 13 in B. dracunculifolia has been reported. Based on these results it is suggested that the crude extracts and some isolated compounds from B. dracunculifolia display an immunomodulatory action.

The Effects of Propolis and its Isolated Compounds on Cytokine Production by Murine Macrophages

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

Expression of renin-angiotensin system signalling compounds in maternal protein-restricted rats: effect on renal sodium excretion and blood pressure

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Caenorhabditis elegans as a model to screen plant extracts and compounds as natural anthelmintics for veterinary use

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Nutritional composition, phenolic compounds, nitrate content in eatable vegetables obtained by conventional and certified organic grown culture subject to thermal treatment

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

Activities of Extracts and Compounds from Spiranthera odoratissima St. Hil. (Rutaceae) in Leaf-cutting Ants and their Symbiotic Fungus

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Lactic Acid Bacteria Antimicrobial Compounds: Characteristics and Applications

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Fatty acids and bioactive compounds of the pulps and kernels of Brazilian palm species, guariroba (Syagrus oleraces), jeriva (Syagrus romanzoffiana) and macauba (Acrocomia aculeata)

BACKGROUND: Bioactive compounds are capable of providing health benefits, reducing disease incidence or favoring body functioning. There is a growing search for vegetable oils containing such compounds. This study aimed to characterize the pulp and kernel oils of the Brazilian palm species guariroba (Syagrus oleracea), jeriva (Syagrus romanzoffiana) and macauba (Acrocomia aculeata), aiming at possible uses in several industries.RESULTS: Fatty acid composition, phenolic and carotenoid contents, tocopherol composition were evaluated. The majority of the fatty acids in pulps were oleic and linoleic; macauba pulp contained 526 g kg(-1) of oleic acid. Lauric acid was detected in the kernels of all three species as the major saturated fatty acid, in amounts ranging from 325.8 to 424.3 g kg(-1). The jeriva pulp contained carotenoids and tocopherols on average of 1219 mu g g(-1) and 323.50 mg kg(-1), respectively.CONCLUSION: The pulps contained more unsaturated fatty acids than the kernels, mainly oleic and linoleic. Moreover, the pulps showed higher carotenoid and tocopherol contents. The kernels showed a predominance of saturated fatty acids, especially lauric acid. The fatty acid profiles of the kernels suggest that these oils may be better suited for the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries than for use in foods. (C) 2011 Society of Chemical Industry

The effects of extrusion conditions and the addition of volatile compounds and flavour enhancers to corn grits on the retention of the volatile compounds and texture of the extrudates

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

Bioactive Compounds in Lipid Fractions of Pumpkin (Cucurbita sp) Seeds for Use in Food

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

On the search for potential anti-Trypanosoma cruzi drugs: Synthesis and biological evaluation of 2-hydroxy-3-methylamino and 1,2,3-triazolic naphthoquinoidal compounds obtained by click chemistry reactions

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Method development for the simultaneous determination of carboxylic acids, phenolic compounds, and sorbic acid in white wines

A reversed phase liquid chromatographic method was developed for the simultaneous determination of carboxylic acids and phenolics in white wines. The samples, diluted, were injected onto a Spherisorb ODS-2 column with a gradient of sulfuric acid (pH 2.5)/methanol as mobile phase. A diode array detector was used which was set at 210nm for carboxylic acids and altered to 278nm, during the run, far phenolics and sorbic acid. The identification of compounds was based on retention time, co-chromatography and UV spectrum. Some clean-up methods (sep-pak C-18 and an ion exchange column) mere tested and did not improve the results.The analysis was simple, with no sample preparation. Application of this method was illustrated by analyses of Brazilian Welchriesling wines.

Detection of volatile organic compounds using a polythiophene derivative

Conjugated polymers have been subject of great interest in the recent literature from both fundamental point of view and applied science perspective. Among the several types of conjugated polymers used in recent investigations, polythiophene and its derivatives have attracted considerable attention over the past 20 years due to their high mobility and other remarkable solid-state properties. They have potential applications in many fields, such as microelectronic devices, catalysts, organic field-effect transistors, chemical sensors, and biosensors. They have been studied as gas and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) sensors using different principles or transduction techniques, such as optical absorption, conductivity, and capacitance measurements. In this work, we report on the fabrication of gas sensors based on a conducting polymer on an interdigitated gold electrode. We use as active layer of the sensor a polythiophene derivative: poly (3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and analyzed its conductivity as response for exposure to dynamic flow of saturated vapors of six VOCs [n-hexane, toluene, chloroform, dichloromethane, methanol, and tetrahydrofuran (THE)]. Different responses were obtained upon exposure to all VOCs, THF gave the higher response while methanol the lower response. The influence of moisture on the measurements was also evaluated. (C) 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

Detection of phenolic compounds using impedance spectroscopy measurements

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

Mechanism for interplay between electron and ionic fluxes in KhFek[Fe(CN)(6)](l)center dot mH(2)O compounds

This paper develops a framework for the interpretation of ionic insertion/deinsertion reactions in an aqueous environment taking place in transition-metal hexacyanoferrates of the general formula KhFek3+ [Fe2+ (CN)(6)](l)center dot mH(2)O, also called Prussian Blue. Three different processes were fully separated in the electrochemistry of these films. It was clearly identified that one of these electrochemical processes involves the insertion/deinsertion of H3O+ (hydrated protons) through the channels of the KhFek3+ [Fe2+ (CN)(6)](l) center dot mH(2)O structure to reach the film electroneutrality during the electron transfer between Everitt's Salt and Prussian Blue. The other electrochemical processes involve K+ or H+ (proton) exchange through the water crystalline structure existing in the channels of the KhFek3+ [Fe2+(CN)(6)](l)center dot mH(2)O structure.