Phytochemicals and bioactive properties of Ilex paraguariensis: An in-vitro comparative study between the whole plant, leaves and stems

Abstract

Leaves, stems and whole plant of Ilex paraguariensis (yerba mate) were characterized in terms of their chemical composition and biological activities in order to determine which part of the plant is more interesting to develop bioactive formulations. The yerba mate samples contain at least five free sugars, five organic acids, eighteen fatty acids, one tocopherol, nine hydroxycinnamoyl derivatives and two flavonols. The leaves extract revealed the highest antioxidant activity, correlating with its highest levels of phenolic compounds. By contrast, the stems extract showed the highest antiinflammatory potential and was also the most potent against MCF-7 and HepG2 cell lines, probably due to the presence of other phytochemicals. The absence of hepatotoxicity of the extracts was confirmed in porcine liver primary cells. Although the yerba mate extracts have been widely studied, this report shows for the first time the distinct potentialities of each individual part of the plant.

The potential of Ganoderma lucidum extracts as bioactive ingredients in topical formulations, beyond its nutritional benefits

“…The cytotoxicity was determined using four human tumour cell lines, HeLa (cervical carcinoma), HepG2 (hepatocellular carcinoma), MCF-7 (breast adenocarcinoma) and NCI-H460 (non-small cell lung cancer), following a procedure already descried by the authors Souza et al (2015). The cell growth inhibition was measured using the sulforhodamine B assay, were the number of pigmented cells is directly proportional to the total protein mass and therefore to the number of bounded cells.…”

Effects of in vitro digestion and in vitro colonic fermentation on stability and functional properties of yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis A. St. Hil.) beverages

“…Thirteen phenolic compounds were identified, ten phenolic acids (chlorogenic, caffeic and rosmarinic acids derivatives), and three flavonoids, namely quercetin-3-O-rutinoside, kaempherol-3-O-rutinoside and isorhametin-3-O-rutinoside. From the 13 molecules, eleven (compounds 1-6, 8-11 and 13) have already been identified by Souza et al (2015) in a water-methanol extract of green yerba mate. The two additional compounds identified in this study were, 1,3-O-dicaffeoylquinic acid (compound 7) and isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside (compound 12), which are present in high amounts in toasted yerba mate but only in trace amounts in green yerba mate (chimarrão and tererê).…”

“…It is also used as diuretic and antirheumatic (Isolabella et al, 2010), as well as antioxidant . Cytotoxic and antiproliferative activities against cancer cells as well as anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, neuroprotective and anti-depressant effects have also been ascribed to yerba mate (De Mejía, Song, Heck, & Ramírez-Mares, 2010;Heck & de Mejia, 2007;Lima et al, 2014a Yerba mate is known to be rich in phenolic acids such as caffeic acid (CA) and chlorogenic acid (CGA) and their derivatives in addition to flavan-3-ols such as (+)-catechin (Bracesco et al, 2011;Da Silveira, Meinhart, De Souza, Teixeira Filho, & Godoy, 2016;Souza et al, 2015). Other compounds frequently found in the extracts are: gallic, syringic, ferulic, p-coumaric acids, rutin, methylxanthines (caffeine and theobromine), saponins and tannins (Bracesco et al, 2011;Da Silveira et al, 2016;De Mejía et al, 2010;Murakami et al, 2013).…”

Wild mushrooms and their mycelia as sources of bioactive compounds: Antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic properties

“…In negative controls, no LPS was added. Both extracts and LPS were dissolved in supplemented DMEM (Souza et al, 2015). Nitric oxide determination.…”

“…The cell culture supernatant (100 mL) was transferred to the plate and mixed with sulphanilamide and NED solutions, 5-10 min each, at room temperature. The nitric oxide produced was determined by measuring the absorbance at 540 nm (microplate reader ELX800 Biotek), and by comparison with the standard calibration curve (Souza et al, 2015). The results were expressed in EC 50 values (mg/mL), which correspond to the sample concentration providing 50% of inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) production.…”