Quantification of total bioactive contents and evaluation of the antioxidant and antibacterial activities of crude extracts from Ephedra altissima Desf.

Abstract

The present work describes the in vitro biological activities of the crude extracts (petroleum ether, ethyl acetate and n-butanol) prepared from the species Ephedra altissima Desf. The estimation of total phenolic, flavonoid and tannin contents were carried out using the Folin-Ciocalteu, trichloroaluminum and acidified vanillin methods, respectively. The evaluation of the in vitro antioxidant activities were performed by three different methods namely: scavenging of the free radical ABTS, permanganate reducing antioxidant capacity, and potentiometric assay. In addition, the antibacterial activity was assessed by the agar disk diffusion assay against seven bacterial strains. The results of the phytochemical screening revealed the presence of several types of secondary metabolites. The EtOAc extract exhibited the highest content of phenols (125.62 ± 1.51 μg EGA mg-1 of extract). The greatest flavonoid and tannin contents were observed for n-BuOH extract (19.18 ± 0.39 µg EQ mg-1 of extract and 8.95 ± 1.70 μg EC mg-1 of extract, respectively). Moreover, the EtOAc extract revealed potent antioxidant activity in all the tested methods. Furthermore, the aqueous extract from the species E. altissima showed a good ability to reduce iron III to iron II with a value of 0.68 ± 0.3 moL eq L-1 in potentiometric assay. All the crude extracts (PE, EtOAc and n-BuOH) displayed inhibition of bacterial growth against at least three strains with values of MIC ranging from 3.125 to 50 µg mL-1. Therefore, these results suggest that Ephedra altissima could be used as an important source of natural bioactive compounds with antioxidant and antibacterial properties.

Phytochemical Screening, Antioxidant Potential, and LC–ESI–MS Profiling of Ephedra alata and Ephedra altissima Seeds Naturally Growing in Tunisia

“…In addition, the methanolic extracts of Tunisian E. alata possessed high TPC (125.73 mg GAE/g dw), TFC (27.89 mg QE/g dw), and total tannin content (5.55 mg acid tannic equivalent/g dw) [ 32 ]. The aerial parts of the Algerian E. altissima , on the other hand, showed low and varied contents of polyphenols (19.55–125.62 µg GAE/g dw), flavonoids (7.02–19.18 µg QE/g dw), and tannins (1.24–8.95 µg CE/g dw) depending on the extraction solvents [ 46 ]. These features suggest that Ephedra seeds may have positive effects on health and can be considered a valuable source of natural antioxidants that could be used for several industrial purposes.…”

Ethnobotanical Uses and Pharmacological Activities of Moroccan Ephedra Species

“…In particular, a recent work evidenced the antibacterial effects of an ethyl acetate extract from an Algerian sample of the plant (collected in Bouhmama County). It revealed inhibitory activities against the two enzymes, α-amylase (IC 50 = 8.07 µg/mL) and pancreatic lipase (IC 50 = 289.1 µg/mL), coupled with an anti-inflammatory effect (IC 50 = 126.4 µg/mL), possibly explaining the activ-ity of the plant against type 2 diabetes [101]. The activity has been associated with the presence of flavone glycosides, such as isovitexin-2-O-rhamnoside, kaempferol-3-O-rhamnoside, and quercetin-3-O-rhamnoside found in the ethyl acetate extract [102].…”

Isolation and characterization of endophytic fungi associated with Ephedra alata (macroscopic and microscopic characterization)

“…It is even found in the sand of the tropical floor and the Hamada of Tinghert (Hadjadj, 2020), Ephedra alata is widely used in traditional medicine. In Algeria, this plant is used to treat several diseases, it is applied in the form of herbal tea and by inhalation against influenza, whooping cough, general weakness (Bouafia, 2021) .In El ouede, Alanda is used against cancer, diabetes, cough, gastric ulcer, abortions intestinal gases , influenza, renal and cardiac insufficiency and against obesity (Hadjadj, 2020). Despite the importance of Ephedra alata in medicine and the potential bioactivity of related fungi, no studies on its endophytic fungi have been carried out to date.…”