Ethnopharmacology, Phytochemistry, and Pharmacological Properties of Thymus satureioides Coss.

Abstract

Thymus satureioides Coss. (Lamiaceae) is a Moroccan medicinal plant locally known as “Azkouni” or “Zaitra.” It is widely used in traditional medicine to treat various ailments, including hypertension, diabetes, cold, fever, dermatological and circulatory disorders, immune problems, bronchitis, nociception, cooling, pharyngitis, cough, and influenza. The current review aims to critically summarize the literature on ethnopharmacological uses, chemical profile, and pharmacological investigations of T. satureioides in order to provide data support and scientific evidences for further investigations. Electronic databases such as Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, SciFinder, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, and Medline were used to gather data on T. satureioides. Chemical characterization of T. satureioides essential oils (EOs) and extracts allowed to identify a total of 139 bioactive compounds, mainly belonging to the terpenoids, phenolic acids, and flavonoids classes. T. satureioides especially its essential oils exhibited numerous biological activities such as antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antidiabetic, anticancer, antiparasitic, and hypolipedemic activities. In light of these findings, further studies to transmute the traditional application of T. satureioides into scientific-based information are strongly required. Additional in vivo pharmacological studies are recommended to validate the results of the in vitro studies. Moreover, comprehensive preclinical and clinical trials on the pharmacological mechanisms of action of this plant and its bioactive compounds on molecular targets should be performed. Finally, more efforts must be focused on toxicological assessments and pharmacokinetic studies, in order to ensure the safety and the efficiency of T. satureioides.

Physiological and biochemical changes in Moroccan barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) cultivars submitted to drought stress

“…Various environmental stresses including drought constraints, induce the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can lead to the oxidation of DNA and proteins, the peroxidation of membrane lipids, hydrogen peroxide accumulation, and oxidative burst cell [ 29 , 78 ]. On the other hand, lipid peroxidation could be triggered by increased lipoxygenase activity [ 19 , 79 ]. Both enzymatic and non-enzymatic processes are reported to be involved in the formation of lipid peroxidation products in plants such as MDA and jasmonates under oxidative stress conditions [ 80 ].…”

Correlation between the chemical composition and the antimicrobial properties of seven samples of essential oils of endemic Thymes in Morocco against multi-resistant bacteria and pathogenic fungi

“…Correlations between chemotypes polymorphism, sexual polymorphism, and environment have been detected ( Gouyon et al 1986 ). The antifungal and antibacterial activity of the essential oil of the genus Thymus has been demonstrated by several researchers ( Vinciguerra et al, 2019 , El-Shemy, 2017 , Delgado-Adámez et al, 2017 , El Hachlafi et al, 2021 ). Most studies report the action of essential oils against pathogens.…”

Moroccan Medicinal Plants Used to Treat Cancer: Ethnomedicinal Study and Insights into Pharmacological Evidence

“…Furthermore, the Lamiaceae and Asteraceae families have been specifically reported in traditional medicine against cancer. Besides that, these two botanical families dominate Moroccan flora and are found throughout the country [ 43 ].…”