Evaluation of Polyphenolic Composition and Antimicrobial Properties of Sanguisorba officinalis L. and Sanguisorba minor Scop.

Abstract

The most widespread Sanguisorba species are Sanguisorba officinalis L. and Sanguisorba minor Scop. which are also found in the Romanian flora and classified as medicinal plants because of hemostatic, antibacterial, antitumor, antioxidant and antiviral activities. This study aimed to characterize and compare Sanguisorba species in order to highlight which species is more valuable according to phenolic profile and antimicrobial activity. Based on high-performance liquid chromatography equipped with photodiode array detection and mass spectrometry (electrospray ionization) (HPLC–DAD-MS (ESI+)) analysis, it was evident that the ethanol extract obtained from the leaves of S. minor Scop. contains the highest content of phenolic compounds at 160.96 mg/g p.s., followed by the flower and root extract (131.56 mg/g dw and 121.36 mg/g dw, respectively). While in S. officinalis, the highest amount of phenols was recorded in the root extract (127.06 mg/g), followed by the flower and leaves extract (102.31 mg/g and 81.09 mg/g dw, respectively). Our results show that among the two species, S. minor Scop. is richer in phenolic compounds compared with the S. officinalis L. sample. In addition, the antimicrobial potential of each plant organ of Sanguisorba species was investigated. The ethanol extract of S. minor Scop. leaves exhibited better antibacterial activity against all of the bacteria tested, especially on Staphylococcus aureus, with an inhibition zone of 15.33 ± 0.83 mm. Due to the chemical composition and antimicrobial effect, the Sanguisorba species can be used as food supplements with beneficial effects on human health.

Sanguisorba minor Scop.: An Overview of Its Phytochemistry and Biological Effects

“…The stem leaves can have up to 9-15 leaflets that are 0.7-2 cm long. The width can range from 0.5 cm to 1.5 cm for crenate or sharply serrated edges, respectively (Figure 2A,C) [43,44].…”

“…The flowers are grouped in capituliform, terminal inflorescences, with a globose-oval shape and a long peduncle. The upper flowers of the head are female, the middle bisexual, and the lower male (Figure 2B) [44,47]. The receptacle has four uncovered longitudinal stripes on roughly reticulated faces in Sanguisorba minor (Figure 2B) [48].…”

“…The leaves of S. minor are green all year round, but the flowers bloom only from May to August, and the seeds appear from July to September [1,4,15,44].…”

“…S. minor includes a wide range of compounds, such as flavonoids, tannins, triterpenes, phenols, terpenes, and fatty acids [1,25,28,44,58].…”

Characterization in Terms of Phytochemical Content and Medicinal Potential of the Stellaria media Plant Extract

“…The phenolic compounds were identified by comparing the retention time, UV-Vis absorption, and mass spectra with those of the standard compounds and with data from the specialized literature [21][22][23]. The quantification of phenolic compounds was done by using the calibration curve with gallic acid for hydroxybenzoic acid, respectively with luteolin for flavones [21,22,24].…”