Polyphenol Content and Biological Activities of Ruta graveolens L. and Artemisia abrotanum L. in Northern Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Natural populations of Ruta graveolens L. and Artemisia abrotanum L. in northern Saudi Arabia may be a rich source of natural polyphenols with potential biological activities. Therefore, tentative high-performance liquid chromatography–diode array detection was used to analyze the polyphenol contents of leaf extracts. R. graveolens mainly contained the phenolic acids chlorogenic acid and p-coumaric acid and the flavonoids rutoside and quercetin, whereas those of A. abrotanum mainly contained the phenolic acids isochlorogenic acid and rosmarinic acid and the flavonoid quercetin. Leaf extracts of both species showed antioxidant activities due to the presence of quercetin, chlorogenic acid, and p-coumaric acid as well as antiproliferative and cytotoxic activities against cancer cells, which may be attributed to necrotic cell accumulation during the early and late apoptotic periods. Both species also exhibited antibacterial activity, although the activity was higher in R. graveolens due to the high contents of quercetin and other polyphenols. Finally, both species exhibited antifungal activities, which were associated with specific polyphenols. This is the first study to confirm the richness of polyphenols and wide spectrum of biological activities in natural populations of R. graveolens and A. abrotanum in northern Saudi Arabia.

Polyphenols of Frangula alnus and Peganum harmala Leaves and Associated Biological Activities

“…Rosmarinic acid antioxidant activities were comparable to antioxidant standards. In a previous investigation on the Saudi-origin Artemisia abrotanum , a strong antioxidant activity was detected and it was attributed to several polyphenols including rosmarinic acid [ 44 ]. The antioxidant activity of P. harmala is mainly attributed to polyphenols such as hydrocaffeic acid, cynaroside and protocatechuic acid.…”

Antioxidant and Biological Activities of Acacia saligna and Lawsonia inermis Natural Populations

“…Antiproliferative and cytotoxic effects of the leaf extracts of A. saligna and L. were tested against HeLa, HT-29, Jurkat, MCF-7 and HEK-293 (normal human cells) [ 5 , 13 , 31 , 36 ]. To study the antiproliferative effects on cell viability, a 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was used.…”

“…The percentage of viable cells was plotted against the extract concentration (µg mL −1 ) to determine the IC 50 . The IC 50 amounts were applied in the flow cytometry assay to study the cytotoxic activities of A. saligna and L. inermis leaf extracts; then, the apoptotic cell populations were determined (FACScan, New York, NY, USA) [ 5 , 13 , 36 , 37 ]. The assay was based on monitoring phosphatidylserine translocation in the Annexin [ 38 ].…”

“…Polyphenols may control microbes such as bacteria and fungi [ 10 , 11 ] and might be used as natural food preservatives [ 12 ]. Medicinal and aromatic plant polyphenols available in different parts of the plant (leaves, stems, flowers, seeds and bark) were successful in controlling foodborne pathogens such as Escherichia coli , Staphylococcus aureus , and Bacillus cereus ; human pathogenic fungi such as Candida albicans ; and plant pathogenic molds such as Penicillium funiculosum [ 6 , 13 , 14 ].…”

Artemisia abrotanum L. (Southern Wormwood)—History, Current Knowledge on the Chemistry, Biological Activity, Traditional Use and Possible New Pharmaceutical and Cosmetological Applications

“…Sesquiterpene lactones santonin [50] artemisinin [33,37,40] Flavonoids rutoside [33] apigenin, artemisetin, hyperoside, isoquercitrin, kaempferol, quercetol, luteolin, myricetin, patuletin [40] quercetin [40,55] centaureidine, casticin [56] Coumarines isofraxidine [33,37] umbelliferone [33,37,50] scopoletin [33,37,50,56] herniarin [37] esculetin [37,50] coumarin [50] Phenolic acids ferulic acid, gentisic acid, caftaric acid, p-coumaric acid, sinapic acid [40] chlorogenic acid [33,37,40,50,55] isochlorogenic acid, protocatechuic acid, rosmarinic acid, syryngic…”