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Anacardium plants are native to the American tropical regions, and Anacardium occidentale L. (cashew tree) is the most recognized species of the genus. These species contain rich secondary metabolites in their leaf and shoot powder, fruits and other parts that have shown diverse applications. This review describes the habitat and cultivation of Anacardium species, phytochemical and nutritional composition, and their industrial food applications. Besides, we also discuss the secondary metabolites present in Anacardium plants which display great antioxidant and antimicrobial effects. These make the use of Anacardium species in the food industry an interesting approach to the development of green foods.

Anacardium plants have received increasing recognition due to its nutritional and biological properties. A number of secondary metabolites are present in its leaves, fruits, and other parts of the plant. Among the diverse Anacardium plants' bioactive effects, their antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anticancer activities comprise those that have gained more attention. Thus, the present article aims to review the Anacardium plants' biological effects. A special emphasis is also given to their pharmacological and clinical efficacy, which may trigger further studies on their therapeutic properties with clinical trials.

This research aims to explore the skin care potency of temulawak flower bract. The dried flower bract was extracted using nhexane, ethyl acetate (EtOAc), and methanol (MeOH). Its essential oil was separated by distillation. The anti-acne potency was determined by antioxidant, anti-bacteria against Propionibacterium acnes and lipase inhibition activities, while whitening was determined by tyrosinase inhibition. The results showed that MeOH extract was the most potent as antioxidant and EtOAc extract was the most potent as tyrosinase and lipase inhibitors. -curcumene is responsible for inhibition of lipase activity while xanthorizol is responsible for inhibition of P. acnes growth.

The effect of three natural waxes (bee, carnauba and jojoba) on quality and shelf-life of ‘Ergon’ tomato cultivar was evaluated.Tomato fruits were harvested at the mature-green stage from a greenhouse belonging to the College of Agricultural Studies, Sudan University of Science and Technology. Fruits were selected for uniformity of size, color and freedom from blemishes and defects, and transported in field boxes to the laboratory. The fruits were washed, treated with 0.1 % sodiumhypochlorite (Clorox, 5 %) as a disinfectant and air dried. The waxes were dissolved in olive oil (1:1) and applied by brushing over the surface of the fruits in a thin layer. The treatments were: bee wax, carnauba wax, jojoba wax and untreated (control).They were arranged in a completely randomized design with four replications. The treated and untreated fruitswere stored in carton boxes for 30 days at 18±1 ˚C and 80- 85 % relative humidity in a cold room at the Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Khartoum. Analysis of variance at significancelevel of P ≤ 0.05 was performed on the data using SBS (version 23) statistic. The results showed that the natural waxes significantly reduced losses, maintained quality and extended shelf-life of tomato fruits. The wax treatments significantly delayed fruit ripening (6, 4 and 2 days), reduced water loss (34.1, 19.4 and 9.7 %), decreased peel color (40, 20and 12 %), fruit softening (87.5, 45.0 and 27.5 %), and total soluble solids accumulation (23.2, 13.4 and 7.2 %), in fruits treated with jojoba wax, carnauba wax and bee wax, respectively, compared with un-waxed (control) fruits. Jojoba wax was most effective, followed by carnauba wax and the least was the bee wax. It is recommended that natural waxes,especially jojoba and carnauba waxes, can effectively be used to delay fruit ripening, reduce weight loss, maintain quality and extend shelf-life of tomato fruits.

The search for plant extracts with highly antimicrobial activity has been increased nowadays. This study evaluated the antimicrobial activity of Pulicaria crispa (Forsk.) Oliv., and Pulicaria undulata (L.) C.A.Mey., which have been used traditionally in Sudan as insect replants. The antimicrobial activity was evaluated against six pathogenic microorganisms, four bacteria (two Gram-positive; Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus, two Gram-negative; Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa), and two fungi (Aspergillus niger and Candida albicans) using disc diffusion method. The extraction of the crude extracts was done by maceration. The essential oils were extracted by hydro-distillation. Phytochemical screening was done using reference method. Essential oils were analyzed using Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry. The results indicated that all used the microorganisms were sensitive to the plants extracts. Results of the preliminary phytochemical screening showed the presence of saponins, comarins, tannins, sterols, and triterpenes, and absence of alkaloids, anthraquinones, and flavonoids. Twenty-eight and forty-five constituents were identified in P. crispa and P. undulata, essential oils, respectively. The main constituents in the essential oil of P. crispa were 1,4-ditert butylbenzene (22.81%), caryophyllene (13.19%), carvone (11.80%), and neryl(s)-2-methylbutanoate (10.33%), and for P. undulata were camphor (44.48%), and thymyl acetate (10.31%). Data from this study could be used for developing of natural bioactive agents to improve human health.

BackgroundPeriodontal diseases are one of the major health problems and among the most important preventable global infectious diseases. Porphyromonas gingivalis is an anaerobic Gram-negative bacterium which has been strongly implicated in the etiology of periodontitis. Additionally, matrix metalloproteinases-9 (MMP-9) is an important factor contributing to periodontal tissue destruction by a variety of mechanisms. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the selected Sudanese medicinal plants against P. gingivalis bacteria and their inhibitory activities on MMP-9.MethodsSixty two methanolic and 50% ethanolic extracts from 24 plants species were tested for antibacterial activity against P. gingivalis using microplate dilution assay method to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). The inhibitory activity of seven methanol extracts selected from the 62 extracts against MMP-9 was determined by Colorimetric Drug Discovery Kit. In search of bioactive lead compounds, Combretum hartmannianum bark which was found to be within the most active plant extracts was subjected to various chromatographic (medium pressure liquid chromatography, column chromatography on a Sephadex LH-20, preparative high performance liquid chromatography) and spectroscopic methods (liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR)) to isolate and characterize flavogalonic acid dilactone and terchebulin as bioactive compounds.ResultsAbout 80% of the crude extracts provided a MIC value ≤4 mg/ml against bacteria. The extracts which revealed the highest potency were: methanolic extracts of Terminalia laxiflora (wood; MIC = 0.25 mg/ml) followed by Acacia totrtilis (bark), Ambrosia maritima (aerial part), Argemone mexicana (seed), C. hartmannianum (bark), Terminalia brownii (wood) and 50% ethanolic extract of T. brownii (bark) with MIC values of 0.5 mg/ml. T. laxiflora (wood) and C. hartmannianum (bark) which belong to combretaceae family showed an inhibitory activity over 50% at the concentration of 10 μg/ml against MMP-9. Additionally, MMP-9 was significantly inhibited by terchebulin with IC50 value of 6.7 μM.ConclusionsTo the best of our knowledge, flavogalonic acid dilactone and terchebulin were isolated from C. hartmannianium bark for the first time in this study. Because of terchebulin and some crude extracts acting on P. gingivalis bacteria and MMP-9 enzyme that would make them promising natural preference for preventing and treating periodontal diseases.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12906-017-1735-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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