Genotoxic Maillard byproducts in current phytopharmaceutical preparations of Echinodorus grandiflorus

Abstract

Extracts of Echinodorus grandiflorus obtained from dried leaves by three different techniques were evaluated by bacterial lysogenic induction assay (Inductest) in relation to their genotoxic properties. Before being added to test cultures, extracts were sterilized either by steam sterilization or ultraviolet light. Only the extracts prepared by infusion and steam sterilized have shown genotoxic activity. The phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of the flavonoids isovitexin, isoorientin, swertisin and swertiajaponin, isolated from a genotoxic fraction. They were assayed separately and tested negative in the Inductest protocol. The development of browning color and sweet smell in extracts submitted to heat, prompted further chemical analysis in search for Maillard´s reaction precursors. Several aminoacids and reducing sugars were cast in the extract. The presence of characteristic Maillard´s melanoidins products was determined by spectrophotometry in the visible region and the inhibition of this reaction was observed when its characteristic inhibitor, sodium bisulfite, was added prior to heating. Remarkably, this is the first paper reporting on the appearance of such compounds in a phytomedicine preparation under a current phytopharmaceutical procedure. The genotoxic activity of such heat-prepared infusions imply in some risk of developing degenerative diseases for patients in long-term, uncontrolled use of such phytomedicines.

Potentially Harmful Maillard Reaction Products in Food and Herb Medicines

“…Wu [57] studied the effect of gamma irradiation on the browning of depolymerized chitosan; the result showed that gamma irradiation was an effective technology to inhibit browning during the depolymerization of chitosan. Lima-Dellamora et al [18] found that the sodium bisulfite added could cause the absorbance of Echinodorus grandiflorus at 420 nm dropped comparison with the control.…”

“…Zhang et al [7] studied the different levels of MRPs in different extract conditions such as aqueous extract, ethanol extract, infusion, decoction, and sterilization. Combined with LH-20 separation, and absorption of UV measurement at 420 nm indicates that steam sterilization can lead to the formation of MRPs [18]. Shi et al developed the method to extract acrylamide in heat-processed Chinese herb Radix Asparagi using water, and the result indicated that the extract efficiency was good [19].…”

Characterization of the volatile compounds and anatomical features in commercial samples of Echinodorus plant species

“…Echinodorus species is basically represented by the presence of tannins, alkaloids, flavonoids, anthraquinones, steroids, triterpenes, saponins, polysaccharides, and coumarins Figueiredo & Kaplan, 2006;Lima-Dellamora et al, 2014;Garcia et al, 2016;Bonetti et al, 2020).…”

Marcadores químicos em espécies de <i>Echinodorus</i> (Alismataceae) utilizadas como chapéu-de-couro

“…O extrato foliar do chapéu-de-couro, desde a década de 1940, é usado como matéria prima para preparo de refrigerante, associado à erva-mate, conferindo a bebida paladar agradável [7,8]. A adição do mesmo à cerveja ale também é alvo de estudo, visando obtenção de bebida com características sensoriais diferenciadas e elevada atividade antioxidante [9].…”

“…A variação dos principais compostos detectados em Echinodorus pode ser atribuída às diferentes técnicas de extração utilizadas, à capacidade de adsorção e à volatilidade dos compostos [28]. Sugere-se que os flavonoides são responsáveis pelas atividades biológicas comprovadas, em sinergia ou não com outros compostos [7,22,24,29,30]. Dentre os quais, destacam-se: swertisin, orientina, isoorientina, swertiajaponine, vitexina e isovitexina, além dos ácidos trans aconítico e chicórico [7,22,24,29,30].…”