Forty-three secondary metabolites were isolated and characterized from cv. Annurca apple fruit, an apple variety cultivated in the south of Italy. This apple cultivar undergoes a typical reddening treatment after collection. All of the compounds were characterized on the basis of their spectroscopic data. The compounds were tested for their radical-scavenging and antioxidant activities by measuring their capacity to scavenge DPPH* (2,2'-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical), H2O2, and NO (nitric oxide) and to inhibit the formation of methyl linoleate conjugated diene hydroperoxides or TBARS (thiobarbituric acid reactive species).

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From the fresh leaves or twigs of Aptenia cordifolia, a total of 29 compounds were isolated, including the new tetranoroxyneolignan 18, the new dilignan 19, and the beta-ionone derivative 27, previously only known as a synthetic compound, together with 26 known compounds. The structures of the new products were determined by (1)H-, (13)C-, and 2D-NMR, as well as HR-MS analyses. The phytotoxic effects of the isolates on the germination and growth of the dicotyledon Lactuca sativa L. (lettuce) were studied in the concentration range 10(-4) to 10(-7) M. Several constituents of A. cordifolia were found to be equally active as or superior to 4-hydroxybenzoic acid (HBA) used as positive control.

Six kaempferol glycosides, four of them characterized for the first time, were isolated from the leaf extract of Lobularia maritima. The structural elucidation was performed by a combined approach using Electrospray-Ionization Triple-Quadrupole Mass-Spectrometric (ESI/TQ/MS) techniques, and 1D- and 2D-NMR experiments (1H, 13C, DEPT, DQ-COSY, TOCSY, ROESY, NOESY, HSQC, HMBC, and HSQC-TOCSY). The isolated kaempferol derivatives have different disaccharide substituents at C(3) and four of them have a rhamnose unit at C(7). To evaluate their potential allelopathic role within the herbaceous plant community, the compounds, as well as the aglycone obtained from enzymatic hydrolysis, have been tested in vitro on three coexisting plant species, Dactylis hispanica, Petrorhagia velutina, and Phleum subulatum. The results obtained allow us to hypothesize that the type of the sugar modulates the biological response. The bioassay data, analyzed by a multivariate approach, and grouping the compounds on the basis of the number of sugar units and the nature of carbohydrates present in the disaccharide moiety, indicate a structure-activity relationship.

The phytotoxicity of 5 pharmaceuticals detected in Italian rivers, atorvastatin (7-[2-(4-fluorophenyl)-3-phenyl-4-(phenylcarbamoyl)-5-propan-2-yl-pyrrol-1-yl]-3,5-dihydroxy-heptanoic acid), gemfibrozil (5-(2,5-dimethylphenoxy)-2,2-dimethyl-pentanoic acid), tamoxifene (2-[4-(1,2-diphenylbut-1-enyl)phenoxy]-N,N-dimethyl-ethanamine), ethinyl estradiol (17-ethynyl-13-methyl-7,8,9,11, 12,13,14,15,16,17-decahydro-6H-cyclopenta[a]phenanthrene-3,17-diol) and sildenafil (methyl-9-propyl-2,4,7,8-tetrazabicyclo[4.3.0] nona-3,8,10-trien-5-one), has been assessed in a laboratory model. The treatment system consists of three main successive sections. The first one includes the phytotoxic evaluation of the single compounds on crops, Lactuca sativa (lettuce), Dacus carota subsp. sativa (carrot), and Lycopersicon esculentum (tomato), until the 10(-9) M, concentration lower then the environmental amounts. The second section includes the phytotoxicity assessment of all the selected chemicals on wild species, Avena fatua (wild oats), Amaranthus retroflexus (redroot pigweed), Lolium perenne (perennial ryegrass), Taraxacum officinale (common dandelion), and Chenopodium album (lambsquarter), at the same concentration as previously used. The third section of the procedure includes the evaluation of the effects of the five pharmaceuticals, at 1 microM and 1 nM environmental concentrations, on the metabolism of L. sativa. The variation of the composition of the photosynthetic pigments, sugars, lipids, phenols, fatty acids and flavonoids in lettuce seedlings exposed to the pollutants in respect to the blank was evaluated. The results of the phytotoxicity assays showed the possibility of a notable impact on the different vegetal communities and evidenced different sensitivity among cultivated and wild species, probably due to the different plant physiology.