Methanolic Extract of the Herb Ononis spinosa L. Is an Antifungal Agent with no Cytotoxicity to Primary Human Cells

Abstract

Ononis spinosa L. is a plant traditionally used as folk remedy. There are numerous studies regarding chemical constituents and health beneficial properties of Ononidis Radix. The following study was designed to investigate chemical composition and antifungal potential of the methanolic extract obtained from the O. spinosa L. herb. Chemical analyses regarding phenolic compounds of O. spinosa were performed by liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry (LC-DAD-ESI/MSn). Antifungal activity, antibiofilm properties and antifungal mode of action of the extract were evaluated, as well as cytotoxicity. Chemical analyses revealed the presence of flavonoids, isoflavonoids and phenolic acids in O. spinosa, with kaempherol-O-hexoside-pentoside being the most abundant compound (5.1 mg/g extract). Methanolic extract was active against all of the tested microfungi with Penicillium aurantiogriseum being the most sensitive to the extract inhibitory effect at 0.02 mg/mL; and effectively inhibited biofilms formed by Candida strains. Minimum fungicidal concentrations of extract rose in the presence of ergosterol and leakage of cellular components was detected. The extract showed no cytotoxicity to human gingival fibroblast (HGF-1) cells. This study significantly contributes to overall knowledge about medicinal potential of O. spinosa herbal extract and enlightens previously unrevealed properties. O. spinosa aerial parts seem to be an interesting candidate for the development of antifungal preparations, non-toxic to human cells.

Camphor and Eucalyptol—Anticandidal Spectrum, Antivirulence Effect, Efflux Pumps Interference and Cytotoxicity

“…One of the crucial steps at the very beginning of the development of novel antifungals is to observe the effects that the investigated compounds might have on cultured mammalian cells [ 50 ]. A previous study showed that camphor influenced the proliferation of fetal lung fibroblasts MRC-5 with IC 50 11.0 mM [ 51 ].…”

Extract of Herba Anthrisci cerefolii: Chemical Profiling and Insights into Its Anti-Glioblastoma and Antimicrobial Mechanism of Actions

“…The aerial parts of the plant were lyophilized and reduced to a fine powder. Plant material was successively extracted with methanol according to the procedure described previously [ 41 , 42 ].…”

“…Cytotoxic effect of A . cerefolium methanolic extract on HGF-1 cells was determined as described by Stojkovic et al, [ 42 ]. The A172 cells were grown in high-glucose Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS), 2 mM L-glutamine and 1% penicillin and streptomycin at 37 °C in 10% CO 2 .…”

“…The A . cerefolium methanolic extract at the concentration of 0.1–20 mg mL −1 (in 5% dimethylsulfoxide—DMSO) was tested for antibacterial and antifungal activity through the serial microdilution method as described previously [ 41 , 42 ]. All microorganisms were provided by the Institute for Biological Research “Sinisa Stanković”—National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade (Belgrade, Serbia).…”

“…The effect of A. cerefolium methanolic extract on inhibition of formed biofilm of C. albicans , C. krusei and C. tropicalis was determined as previously described [ 42 ]. MIC was defined as the minimum concentration of the extract that inhibited further growth of the initial biofilm, and minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC) represents the concentration of the extract that resulted in the level of luminescence presenting no fungal growth.…”