A penta-substituted pyridine alkaloid from the rhizome of Jatropha elliptica (Pohl) Muell. Arg. is active against Schistosoma mansoni and Biomphalaria glabrata

Abstract

Jatropha elliptica is a shrub distributed throughout the north and west of Brazil and reputedly possesses a wide range of therapeutical properties. The roots of this plant possess molluscicidal activity and contain terpenoids, coumarin, lignoid, steroids and alkaloid. In the present study, we assessed the schistosomicidal, miracicidal and cercaricidal activities (against Schistosoma mansoni) and molluscicidal activities (against adults and egg masses of Biomphalaria glabrata) of the alkaloid diethyl 4-phenyl-2,6-dimethyl-3,5-pyridinedicarboxylate, isolated from the ethanol extract of the rhizome of J. elliptica, have been determined. The alkaloid was 100 % lethal to adult schistosomes within 4 days at a concentration of 50 μg/mL. Alterations were observed in the schistosome tegument occasioned by treatment with the alkaloid, such as formation of vesicles and vacuolisation. The extent of tegumental damage of the worm was proportional to the time of incubation and to the concentration of compound. The alkaloid also exhibited a potent cercaricidal activity (LC100 = 2 μg/mL); it was totally ineffective against miracicidal forms of the parasite. Moreover, the alkaloid presented strong activity against adult snails (LC90 = 36.43 μg/mL) but was inactive against their egg masses. It is observed then the potential of this compound for the development of new therapies for the treatment of schistosomiasis.

Ambrosia artemisiifolia as a potential resource for management of golden apple snails, Pomacea canaliculata (Lamarck)

“…Based on LC 50 values, we found that psilostachyin and psilostachyin B were the main bioactive compounds responsible for the molluscicidal activity of A. artemisiifolia , with LC 50 values of 27.0 and 15.9 mg/L, respectively. Both psilostachyin and psilostachyin B also have molluscicidal activity against the snail Oncomelania hupensis , with mortality of 73.3 and 50% following exposure to 100 mg/L . These data, combined with the toxicity to GAS, indicate that psilostachyin and psilostachyin B have a broad spectrum of molluscicidal activity and that GAS appears to be more sensitive than O. hupensis .…”

“…Sesquiterpene lactones and thiophenes have been found to be the bioactive compounds responsible for the molluscicidal activity of Ambrosia plants . In addition, many plant species have been found to have potential value as molluscicides for controlling GAS, such as Chenopodium quinoa , Pueraria peduncularis , Jatropha elliptica , Mikania micrantha , and Wedelia trilobat . A few saponins and alkaloids have been identified as the effective active components.…”

“… Figure S1 Structures of compounds 1 − 15 previously isolated from Ambrosia artemisiifolia Table S1. Molluscicidal activities of the 15 compounds against 10‐d‐old Pomacea canaliculata …”

Prospect of bioactive molecules from Jatropha curcas to improve soil and microbial quality for sustainable agriculture

“…Like other perennial plants, full grown J. curcas has main stem, branch and leaves. These aerial parts contain organic acids (Devappa et al, 2010;Aiyelaagbe et al, 2011), amyrin in stem bark (Misra and Misra, 2010;Islam et al, 2011), terpenes in leaves (Boateng and Kusi, 2008;Jummai and Okoli, 2014), curcins in latex (dos Santos et al, 2014;Falodun et al, 2014), phorbolesters in seeds (Agarwal et al, 2013;Bashir et al, 2013), saponins in kernel (Gámez-Meza et al, 2013;Pasha et al, 2013;Sharath et al, 2014), and sitosterol in roots (Abdelgadir and Van Staden, 2013;Khalil et al, 2013). Phytochemicals found in J. curcas can be explored for bio-prospecting new and novel bioactive compounds.…”

Cascade Extraction and Separation of the Active Constituents from <i>Jatropha Curcas </i>L. Seeds

“…Less attention has been paid to the other active constituents of Jatropha curcas L. seeds, such as polysaccharides [11], flavones [12], phytosterol [13], anthocyanin [14], and alkaloids [15]. Additionally, while Jatropha oil is the main product, the process of extracting and isolating the other active constituents from Jatropha curcas L. seeds has not been completely explored.…”