BackgroundHancornia speciosa Gomes (Apocynaceae), popularly known as “mangabeira,” has been used in folk medicine to treat inflammatory disorders, hypertension, dermatitis, diabetes, liver diseases and gastric disorders. Although the ethnobotany indicates that its fruits can be used for the treatment of ulcers and inflammatory disorders, only few studies have been conducted to prove such biological activities. This study investigated the anti-inflammatory properties of the aqueous extract of the fruits of H. speciosa Gomes as well as its bioactive compounds using in vivo experimental models.MethodsThe bioactive compounds were identified by High Performance Liquid Chromatography coupled with diode array detector (HPLC-DAD) and Liquid Chromatography coupled with Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS). The anti-inflammatory properties were investigated through in vivo tests, which comprised xylene-induced ear edema, carrageenan-induced peritonitis and zymosan-induced air pouch. The levels of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-12 and TNF-α were determined using ELISA.ResultsRutin and chlorogenic acid were identified in the extract as the main secondary metabolites. In addition, the extract as well as rutin and chlorogenic acid significantly inhibited the xilol-induced ear edema and also reduced the cell migration in both carrageenan-induced peritonitis and zymosan-induced air pouch models. Reduced levels of cytokines were also observed.ConclusionThis is the first study that demonstrated the anti-inflammatory activity of the extract of H. speciosa fruits against different inflammatory agents in animal models, suggesting that its bioactive molecules, especially rutin and chlorogenic acid are, at least in part, responsible for such activity. These findings support the widespread use of Hancornia speciosa in popular medicine and demonstrate that its aqueous extract has therapeutical potential for the development of herbal drugs with anti-inflammatory properties.

RESUMO: A Anadenanthera colubrina que é conhecida popularmente como angico, angico vermelho, dentre outros nomes, pertencente à família Fabaceae, sendo nativa da América do Sul e no Nordeste do Brasil pode chegar a até 7m de altura. Popularmente utiliza-se a decocção da casca do caule no tratamento de complicações do fígado, gonorreia, leucorreia, infecção dos ovários e como depurativo do sangue. Desta forma, investigações laboratoriais acerca das atividades antimicrobianas desta espécie é justificada, sendo este o objetivo central deste frente a patógenos de importância clínica como o Staphylococcus aureus e a Escherichia coli. As amostras vegetais foram coletadas em Santa Cruz/RN, higienizadas, secas e trituradas. O extrato aquoso foi obtido a partir da imersão de 45g de amostra em 450 mL de água destilada em ebulição, exposta por 15 minutos. Sendo filtrado, congelado e liofilizado. O extrato hidroalcoólico foi obtido pela maceração em solução de etanol: água (70:30 v/v), na proporção (1:10 p/v), por 7 dias, sendo filtrado e retirado o solvente em evaporador rotativo. Os extratos foram caracterizados por Cromatografia em Camada Delgada e testados na ação antimicrobiana em diversas concentrações (200-6,25 mg/mL) por difusão a disco. Os testes de Cromatografia em Camada Delgada indicaram que o extrato vegetal apresenta compostos apolares flavonoides, possivelmente derivados de quercetina e luteonina. O extrato hidroalcoólico quanto o aquoso foi capaz de inibir o crescimento in vitro da bactéria Staphylococcus aureus, sendo que ambos extratos apresentaram como concentração inibitória mínima 25mg/mL.

Background: Anadenanthera colubrina (Vell.) Brenan var. cebil (Griseb) is a plant widely used for medicinal proposes in Brazilian Northeast. Objective: This study aimed to analyze the influence of rainfall indexes (RI) in antimicrobial activity and phytochemical constituents of extracts from leaves and fruits of A. colubrina. Material and Methods: Samples were collected in Catimbau National Park (Buíque, Pernambuco, Brazil) at September 2010 (RI: 75 mm) and January (RI: 65 mm), April (RI: 162 mm) and June 2011 (RI: 73 mm). The extracts were prepared by Soxhlet extraction using cyclohexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and methanol. The antimicrobial activity was determined by MIC and MBC values. Results: All extracts showed antimicrobial activity, but ethyl acetate extracts (from all periods) were more active. Strong correlations were found between the RI and the average MIC of MLE (ρ: -0.99), EALE (ρ: -0.81), CHFE (ρ: -0.81), EAFE (ρ: -0.80); while moderate and weak correlations were found for other extracts. Through a HPLC analysis was possible to reveal that the samples collected from dry periods had more chemical diversity (as they presented more peaks). Gallic acid and quercetin (and derivative compounds) were identified. The levels of quercetin were enhanced in extracts from dry months. Conclusion: Our results showed that the rainfall has a positive effect on the antimicrobial activity of leaves and fruits of A. colubrina, however these extracts showed more chemical diversity during dry months.