Euphorbia characias: Phytochemistry and Biological Activities

Abstract

The aim of this review is to summarize all the compounds identified and characterized from Euphorbia characias, along with the biological activities reported for this plant. Euphorbia is one of the greatest genera in the spurge family of Euphorbiaceae and includes different kinds of plants characterized by the presence of milky latex. Among them, the species Euphorbia characias L. is an evergreen perennial shrub widely distributed in Mediterranean countries. E. characias latex and extracts from different parts of the plant have been extensively studied, leading to the identification of several chemical components such as terpenoids, sterol hydrocarbons, saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, cerebrosides and phenolic and carboxylic acids. The biological properties range between antioxidant activities, antimicrobial, antiviral and pesticidal activities, wound-healing properties, anti-aging and hypoglycemic properties and inhibitory activities toward target enzymes related to different diseases, such as cholinesterases and xanthine oxidase. The information available in this review allows us to consider the plant E. characias as a potential source of compounds for biomedical research.

Euphorbia characias Extract: Inhibition of Skin Aging-Related Enzymes and Nanoformulation

“…The ethanolic extract from E. characias leaves was previously found to exert several biological activities [ 1 ]. Among them, we have described tyrosinase inhibition in both cell-free and cellular systems [ 2 ].…”

“…The decrease in absorbance was quantified as a direct indication of the ability to scavenge the DPPH radical. The latter was expressed both as percent antioxidant activity (AA) calculated according to Equation (1): AA = (Abs DPPH − Abs sample /Abs DPPH ) × 100 (1) and as Trolox Equivalents (TE). The TE values were calculated using a calibration curve plotted with a series of Trolox (reference standard) concentrations (12.5-500 µg/mL).…”

“…Euphorbia characias belong to the Euphorbiaceae family containing latex inside specialized cells called laticifers. E. characias latex has been characterized in terms of its enzymatic properties, but its aerial parts are responsible for most of the biological activities reported up to now [ 1 ]. In particular, an ethanolic leaf extract possessed antimelanogenic properties, inhibiting tyrosinase activity in both cell-free and cellular systems [ 2 ].…”

Identifying Terpenoid Biosynthesis Genes in Euphorbia maculata via Full-Length cDNA Sequencing

“…We found one copy of the sesquiterpene synthase gene in E. maculata . A sesquiterpene synthase gene was isolated from Euphorbia fischeriana , which produced several sesquiterpenoids, including cedrol and eupho-acorenols [ 59 , 60 ]. Oxygenated sesquiterpenes and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons were identified in different Euphorbia species, and their bioactivities were also reported [ 3 ].…”

“…Diterpenoids (C 20 ) are derived from GGPP by diterpene synthase. Diterpenoids are abundant in Euphorbia species [ 60 ]. We found one copy of the diterpene synthase gene in E. maculata .…”