In this paper, antibacterial and antimycobacterial activity of five Labiatae plant methanol extracts, commonly used for treating cold, stomachache, and sore throat, Salvia fruticosa Mill., Salvia tomentosa Mill., Sideritis albiflora Hub.-Mor. (endemic), Sideritis leptoclada O. Schwarz & P.H. Davis, (endemic), and Origanum onites L., were investigated, and their phenolic compounds were determined by HPLC. Antibacterial activity was analyzed against Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Enterococcus faecalis, Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, Enterobacter aerogenes, and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Antimycobacterial activity was assayed against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The best antibacterial activity (MIC 640 µg/mL) was shown against S. typhimurium and E. aerogenes by S. fruticosa; E. coli, and S. typhimurium, E. aerogenes by S. tomentosa; S. typhimurium, and E. aerogenes by S. leptoclada and S. typhimurium, E. aerogenes and S. epidermidis by O. onites, respectively. The best antimycobacterial activity (MIC 196 µg/mL) was shown by S. tomentosa. S. fruticosa (MIC 392 µg/mL) and O. onites (MIC 784 µg/mL) showed moderate activity against M. tuberculosis. S. albiflora, with low level rosmarinic acid and carvacrol content, showed inhibition against bacteria except K. pneumoniae, B. cereus and M. tuberculosis. The correlation between in vitro activity and ethnobotanical usage was evaluated.

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BackgroundThe global resurgence of tuberculosis is a significant threat. Lamiaceae members have been used in folk remedies for centuries. This study was designed to assess the in-vitro antimycobacterial activity of eighteen crude extracts from six plants (Lamiaceae) and to characterize their phenolic and flavonoid compounds.MethodsSix Turkish medicinal plants of the family Lamiaceae (Stachys tmolea Boiss., Stachys thirkei C. Koch, Ballota acetabulosa (L.) Benth., Thymus sipthorpii Benth., Satureja aintabensis P.H. Davis, and Micromeria juliana (L.) Benth. ex Reich.) were collected in 2009 – 2010. Dried and crushed plant samples were subjected to sequential extraction with petroleum ether, ethyl acetate, and methanol in order of increasing polarity. A broth microdilution method was employed to screen extracts against four mycobacterial strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Phenolic and flavonoid compounds were characterized by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry.ResultsS. aintabensis, T. sibthorpii, and M. juliana were found to develop considerable activity against the four strains of M. tuberculosis with the minimal inhibitory concentrations value of 12.5-100 μg/ml. S. aintabensis and T. sibthorpii extracts killed M. tuberculosis with the minimum bactericidal concentration value of 50–800 μg/ml. On the basis of these prominent antimycobacterial activity, we suggest that they could be a source of natural anti-tuberculosis agents.ConclusionS. aintabensis and T. sibthorpii showed activity by killing Mycobacteria strains. The major phenolic compound was rosmarinic for T. sibthorpii and S. aintabensis. Flavonoids might be “a modal” for the drug design.

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BackgroundZanthoxylum heitzii is a spice used to prepare several dishes and to treat tumors, syphilis, malaria, cardiac palpitations, urogenital infections in the west region of Cameroon, but the antitumor mechanisms and chemical composition are not yet investigated.This study was aimed to determine the antiproliferative effects of four extracts from the fruits and barks of Zanthoxyllum heitzii (Rutaceae) on apoptosis in human promyelocytic cells, their mechanisms and the chemical composition. The 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazole-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was used to determine the fifty percent inhibition (IC50) concentration of the cell lines after treatment. The effect on morphology was observed using a light or fluorescence microscopy. The rate of apoptosis and the cell cycle were measured using flow cytometry (FCM). The phytochemical analysis of the extract was carried with HPLC/MS methods.ResultsThe phytochemical analysis of the extracts indicated the presence of four known polyphenols (Syringic acid, Juglon, Luteolin and Myricetin) in both fruits and barks of Z. heitzii but in different quantities. Syringic acid and Myricetin concentrations were between 17-21 fold higher in the fruits than the stem bark. Rhamnetin (393.35 μg/mL) and Oleuropein (63.10 μg/mL) were identified only in the stem barks of Z. heitzii. Among the four extracts tested for cytotoxicity properties, only the methanol extract of fruits and barks significantly inhibited cell proliferation of HL-60 cells with IC50 value of 20 μg/mL and 12 μg/mL respectively. HL-60 cells treated with Z. heitzii extracts significantly produced reactive oxygen species (ROS) with concurrent loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP). Modifications in the DNA distribution and enhanced of G1/G0 phase cell cycle arrest were observed in a concentration dependent manner.ConclusionsPolyphenols from Z. heitzii plant exert inhibitory effect on HL-60 cells through the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, loss of mitochondrial membrane potential and cell cycle destabilization.