Pistacia, a genus of flowering plants from the family Anacardiaceae, contains about twenty species, among them five are more popular including P. vera, P. atlantica, P. terebinthus, P. khinjuk, and P. lentiscus. Different parts of these species have been used in traditional medicine for various purposes like tonic, aphrodisiac, antiseptic, antihypertensive and management of dental, gastrointestinal, liver, urinary tract, and respiratory tract disorders. Scientific findings also revealed the wide pharmacological activities from various parts of these species, such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, antiviral, anticholinesterase, anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive, antidiabetic, antitumor, antihyperlipidemic, antiatherosclerotic, and hepatoprotective activities and also their beneficial effects in gastrointestinal disorders. Various types of phytochemical constituents like terpenoids, phenolic compounds, fatty acids, and sterols have also been isolated and identified from different parts of Pistacia species. The present review summarizes comprehensive information concerning ethnomedicinal uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacological activities of the five mentioned Pistacia species.

The composition of hydrodistilled essential oils of three species of Phlomis (Lamiaceae), P. lanceolata, P. anisodonta and P. bruguieri, were investigated by GC and GC-MS, and 31, 28 and 21 compounds, representing 94.1%, 96.0% and 96.8%, respectively, of the total oils, were identified. In all three samples, sesquiterpenes were the main components. In P. lanceolata oil the main components were germacrene D (47.0%), (E)-β β β β β-farnesene (10.5%), α α α α α-pinene (8.7%), germacrene B (8.0%), bicyclogermacrene (5.9%); in P. anisodonta, germacrene D (65.0%) and β β β β β-caryophyllene (11.0%); and in P. bruguieri, germacrene D (60.5%), γ γ γ γ γ-elemene (16.5%), germacrene B (7.1%) and bicyclogermacrene (4.1% Isolation ProcedureThe fresh aerial parts (100 g of each sample) were hydrodistilled for 4 h using a Clevenger-type apparatus and the oils were dried over anhydrous sodium sulphate and stored in sealed glass vials at 4°C before analysis. Gas ChromatographyA Thermoquest 2000 GC chromatograph with capillary column DB-1 (30 m × 0.25 mm i.d., 0.25 µm film thickness) was employed.

5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) is commonly usod as a therapeutic agent to treat cancers of the large bowel. However, therapy with 5-FU as a single agent has only limited success. Additive agents or modulators for the 5-FU effect are needed for more effective treatment of this highly resistant malignancy. In cultured tumour cells, quercetin has been shown to be a sensitizer for certain cytotoxic agents (1), indicating that this bioflavonoid might serve as a modulator of drug efficacy in cancer treatment. To determine if this sensitizing effect is also present with 5-FU, the cytotoxic effect of 5-FU, combined with quercetin against the human colorectal cancer cell lines COLO 320 DM and COLO 205 was evaluated, using the BACTEC, MTT, and clonogenic assays (CA). The cells were exposed to the drugs for 1 h. 5-FU was used in concentrations up to 230 pM. Quercetin was used at 35, 50, and 100 pM.