Essential‐Oil Composition, Antileishmanial, and Toxicity Study of Artemisia abyssinica and Satureja punctata ssp. punctata from Ethiopia

Abstract

Essential oils of Artemisia abyssinica and Satureja punctata ssp. punctata from Ethiopia were analyzed by GC and GC/MS, and screened for leishmanicidal activity against promastigote and axenic amastigotes of Leishmania donovani and L. aethiopica, including toxicity studies on human monocytic leukemia cells (THP-1) and erythrocytes in vitro. GC/MS of A. abyssinica oil revealed 67 compounds (99.94%) with the major constituents yomogi alcohol (38.47%), artemisyl acetate (24.88%), and artemisia alcohol (6.70%), and oxygenated monoterpenes (84.00%) as the dominant group. The oil of S. punctata contained 67 compounds (99.49%) with the main constituents geranial (27.62%), neral (21.72%), alpha-bisabolol (13.62%), and (E)-nerolidol (4.82%), of which oxygenated mono- and sesquiterpenes (58.39 and 26.91%, resp.) showed highest abundance. Both oils showed effect on promastigotes (MIC 76.5 to 312.5 nl/ml) and amastigotes (EC(50) 4.06 to 131.00 nl/ml) of L. donovani and L. aethiopica, and varying toxicities on THP-1 cells (CC(50) 0.013 to 350 nl/ml with selectivity index between 0.001 and 28) and erythrocytes (with LC(50) 0.35 to 1.52 microl/ml). S. punctata oil exerted highest activity against both Leishmania sp. and toxicity. The revealed antileishmanial activities support further isolation and investigation of oil constituents for in vitro/in vivo evaluation.

Essential oil composition of four Artemisia species from Ethiopia

“…These compounds were reported before in the plant from other parts of Ethiopia with some quantitative difference [20,21]. However, Burits et al [15] reported 4-hydroxycyclohexanemethanol (21.3%) and α-terpinolene (9.2%) to be the main components of the essential oil of the plant purchased from the market in Addis Ababa.…”

“…There are, however, a few reports on Artemisia species from Ethiopia [14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22].…”

A pharmacological and phytochemical overview onSatureja

“…Toxicity potential of S. punctata subsp. punctata on human monocytic leukemia cells (THP-1) and erythrocytes was evaluated by Tariku et al (2010). According to this report, the sample indicated high toxicity on THP-1 cells (CC 50 value ¼ 0.013-350 nL/mL with selectivity index between 0.001 and 28) and erythrocytes (with LC 50 value 0.35-1.52 lg/mL).…”

“…punctata from Ethiopia was also screened for its leishmanicidal activity against promastigote and axenic amastigotes of L. donovani and L. aethiopica by Tariku et al (2010). The oil showed effect on promastigotes (MIC value 76.5-312.5 nL/mL) and amastigotes (EC 50 value 4.06-131.00 nL/mL) of L. donovani and L. aethiopica.…”

The Artemisia Genus: A Review on Traditional Uses, Phytochemical Constituents, Pharmacological Properties and Germplasm Conservation

“…Anti-fungal [8] anti-viral [12] anti-malarial [13] antiinflammatory [14] anti-cancer [15] anti-tumor [16] anti98 helminthic [12] anti-diabetic [17][18][19] anti-spasmodic [14], hepatoprotective [20] anti-pyretic [21] anti-parasitic 5 [22] anti-oxidant [15,20,23,24] antifertility [17] acaricidal [25] anti-rheumatic [26] anti-hypertensive [27,28] trypanocidal, trichomonacidal [29] wormicidal [30] emmenagogue, diuretic, abortive [31] anti-arthritis [32] immunomodulatory [33] neuroprotective [34] menopause, premenstrual syndrome, dysmenorrhea and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder [35]. Antiulcerogenic [36] analgesic (Saxena, 2015), bile stimulant [26] antinociceptive [37] anti-plasmodial [38] anti-venom [39] anti-coccidal [40] anti-leishmanial [41,42] anti-hyperlipidemic [43,44] anti-epileptic and anti-convulsant [45] anti-cholesterolemic, cholagogue, diuretic, febrifuge and vasodilator [46] deobstruents …”