Lavandula austroapennina (Lamiaceae): Getting Insights into Bioactive Polyphenols of a Rare Italian Endemic Vascular Plant

Abstract

Lavandula austroapennina N.G. Passal., Tundis and Upon has recently been described as a new species endemic to the southern Apennines (Italy). Locally, this species has a long ethnobotanical tradition of use for curative and decoration purposes and has been the protagonist of a flourishing essential oil production chain. Currently, while this tradition has long since ended, attention to the species is necessary, with a view to enhancing marginal and rural areas, as a recovery of a precious resource to (i) get insights into its (poly)phenolic fraction and (ii) address new and innovative uses of all its organs in various application fields (e.g., cosmeceutical sector). Therefore, after field sampling and dissection of its organs (i.e., corolla, calyx, leaf, stem and root), the latter, previously deterpenated and defatted, were subjected to accelerated ultrasound extraction and the related alcoholic extracts were obtained. Chemical composition, explored by UHPLC-QqTOF-MS/MS, and the following multivariate data analysis showed that the hydroxycinnamoyl derivatives are abundant in the leaf, stem and root, while flavonoids are more present in corolla and calyx. In particular, coumaroyl flavonoids with glyconic portion containing also hexuronyl moieties differentiated corolla organ, while yunnaneic acid D isomers and esculin distinguished root. When antiradical and reducing properties were evaluated (by means of ABTS, DPPH and PFRAP tests), a similar clustering of organs was achieved and the marked antioxidant efficacy of leaf, stem and root extracts was found. Thus, following cytotoxicity screening by MTT test on HaCaT keratinocytes, the protective effects of the organ extracts were assessed by wound closure observed after the scratch test. In addition, the extracts from corolla, leaf and stem were particularly active at low doses inducing rapid wound closure on HaCaT cells at a concentration of 1 μg/mL. The diversity in (poly)phenols of each organ and the promising bioactivity preliminarily assessed suggest further investigation to be carried out to fully recover and valorize this precious endemic vascular plant.

Lavandula austroapennina: Assessment of the Antiviral Activity of Lipophilic Extracts from Its Organs

“…The extracts appeared to be more effective when a pre-treatment experiment was carried out, with the only exception of the root sample, which showed a similar trend. The root extract appeared peculiarly enriched in docosyl ferulate (20). This compound was shown as a behaviourally active GABAA receptor complex (GABAAR) agonist [48], whose occurrence has not been reported in the Lavandula species.…”

“…Within this framework and as part of a project aimed at promoting the endemic species of Southern Italy [ 8 , 19 , 20 ], in particular of the Campania Region, through also differently exploiting their organs, Lavandula austroapennina ( L. austroapennina ) N.G. Passal., Tundis and Upson—which was morphologically and genetically identified as a disjunct population of L. angustifolia subsp.…”

Innovative Cosmeceutical Ingredients: Harnessing Selenosugar-Linked Hydroxycinnamic Acids for Antioxidant and Wound-Healing Properties

“…Subsequently, the cells were exposed to the investigated compounds (5, 10, 50, and 100 µM), whereas a negative control was assessed by adding only the culture medium. The wound size was measured at different times: 0, 3, 6, 24, 48, and 72 h, as reported in Gravina et al [ 22 ].…”

Investigation of Volatile Components and Assessment of Antioxidant Potential in Seven Lamiaceae Plant Hydrosols

“…Synthetic antioxidants [ 7 ], such as BHA (Butylated hydroxyanisole) and BHT (2,6-Di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol), may be potentially harmful to human health [ 8 ]. At present, hydrosols are recognized as safe compounds, and their reasonable use does not adversely affect human health [ 9 , 10 ]. Moreover, their production costs are much lower than those of essential oils, and water-soluble components are more easily absorbed by the human body [ 11 , 12 ].…”