Ephedra is a dioecious shrub that belongs to the Ephedraceae family of gymnosperms. Almost all commercial applications of Ephedra extracts are derived from the ephedrine alkaloids found in the evergreen stems. The purpose of this study was to compare chemical components (total alkaloid, ephedrine, total phenol, total flavonoid and tannin) of Ephedra major plants during May to October months. The seeds and stems were collected from Bojnoord altitudes in east of Iran. Total alkaloid was separated by solvent and soxhelet extraction method. The results revealed that solvent extraction method is more efficient than soxhelet extraction method. The measurement of chemical components showed significant difference during May to October months. Data from HPLC analysis revealed that while root is depleted of ephedrine, the ephedrine amount in stem organ ranged from 1.50 ± 0.15 to 2.12 ± 0.01 mg/g dry weight. The results indicate that E. major can be as a suitable source of ephedrine.
Background: In the present study, resveratrol was used to prepare complexes of cerium and nanoceria, also coated with gold (CeO2@Au core-shells) to improve the surface interactions in physiological conditions. Methods: The CeO2@Au core-shells were characterized using powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscope (TEM) analysis, dynamic light scattering (DLS) and ζ potential. Results: The experiment was led to the successful synthesis of nanosized CeO2@Au core-shells, although agglomeration of particles caused the distribution of the larger particles. The TEM analysis demonstrated the particles sizes ranged from 20 nm to 170 nm. Moreover, the PXRD analysis showed that both nanoceria and gold with the same crystal systems and space groups. To investigate the anticancer activity of the CeO2@Au core-shells, the cytotoxicity of the nanoparticles was investigated against liver cancerous cell lines (HepG2). Conclusions: The results indicated biosynthesized NCs have significant cellular toxicity properties against HepG2 and could be utilized in hepatocarcinoma therapy. Further in vivo investigations is proposed to be designed to assess anti-cancer and safety effects of fabricated nanocomposites.
Iran, possessing unique topographic and diverse climatic conditions, is the home of 8167 vascular plant species. Iran has a historical tradition in using plants for medicinal purposes. Approximately 2075 species over the whole are popularly characterized as medicinal or aromatic. Medicinal trees and shrubs compose a significant percentage of Iranian medicinal flora. Nonetheless, there are no integrated databases on their applications and most of the publications and documents have been scattered to date. Therefore, the present investigation aims to integrate the published literature considering its ethnobotanical aspects that would serve as promising precursors for developing potent medicines of plant origin. In the study, we compile information about ethnobotany of trees and shrubs of Iran. Our survey found 174 taxa belonging to 109 genera and 56 families. The majority of species were classified in Rosaceae, Fabaceae, Rutaceae, Salicaceae, and Lamiaceae families. Rosaceae was the most dominant, representing 21.8% of the total plant species recorded, among them, the genus with the highest number of species was Prunus (16 species). Berberis vulgaris, Citrus limon, and Betula pendula have the highest number of medicinal uses (24 number of uses) in Iran. Leaves (22.7%) represented the most dominant usage of the plant parts, while the most commonly used preparation method was infusion (33.5%). Most of the plant species have been consumed for digestive system treatment (21%), followed by immune system treatment (20%). The present review highlights that different trees and shrubs taxa have great traditional applications in various healing throughout the Iranian territory. The represented data can potentially be a precious reference containing useful information for directing further phytochemical, biological, and pharmacological investigations. Several endemic species of trees and shrubs, particularly Ribes khorasanicum, are frequently used in Iranian traditional medicine. Because of overharvesting, these species are calling a wake-up alarm for conservation.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.