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Phytochemicals from Aromatic and Medicinal Plants: From Identification to Biomedical Applications 2.0

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Bioactives and Nutraceuticals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2023) | Viewed by 13544

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Amélia M. Silva

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Biology and Environment, School of Life Sciences and Environment ; Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD), 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal
2. Centre for the Research and Technology of Agro-Environmental and Biological Sciences (CITAB-UTAD), 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal
Interests: cell biology and biochemistry; cell-based assays; evaluation of bioactivities of natural compounds; phytochemicals; nutraceuticals; nanoencapsulation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aromatic and medicinal plants play a very important socio-cultural and economic role, for many communities all over the world, beyond being a source of curative and preventive molecules. The use of plants for therapeutic purposes constitutes a valuable ethnopharmacological knowledge that brings a major challenge, which is the identification of bioactive molecules behind the attributed health promoting properties. Phytochemicals from aromatic and medicinal plants, such as phenolics, flavonoids, terpenoids, alkaloids, and others, have been described as nutraceuticals acting at several targets and exerting beneficial health effects. Considering the need to discover new pharmacologically active compounds, both the characterization and identification of plant phytochemicals are required, as well as the study of the relationship between structure and function using in vitro, in vivo or in silico models, with the aim to validate the bioactivity effectiveness. The biomedical potential of phytochemicals is vast, from skin care to cancer prevention, from nutraceutical supply to chronic disease amelioration and prevention; however, the efficient pharmacological effect requires effective targeting, bioavailability at biologically active sites and at effective concentrations, among other aspects.

This Special Issue aims to comprehensively highlight the newest discoveries in phytochemicals obtained from medicinal and aromatic plants, as well as their physiological and pharmacological roles, and to describe their biomedical application. In addition, new strategies to achieve bioavailability and efficacy of phytochemicals at target sites are welcome.

We cordially invite authors to contribute original articles, as well as reviews, that bring new insights into the potential biomedical application of phytochemicals from aromatic and medicinal plants in the prevention and treatment of various chronic diseases.

Dr. Amélia M. Silva
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • phytochemicals
  • aromatic and medicinal plants
  • biomedical applications
  • pharmacological effect
  • nutraceutical
  • bioavailability
  • phytochemical delivery

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

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20 pages, 4712 KiB  
Article
The Essential Oil of Citrus lumia Risso and Poit. ‘Pyriformis’ Shows Promising Antioxidant, Anti-Inflammatory, and Neuromodulatory Effects
by Antonella Smeriglio, Susanna Alloisio, Raffaella Barbieri, Mariarosaria Ingegneri, Paola Malaspina, Bruno Burlando, Laura Cornara and Domenico Trombetta
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(6), 5534; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24065534 - 14 Mar 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1396
Abstract
Citrus lumia Risso and Poit. ‘Pyriformis’ are horticultural varieties of Citrus lumia Risso. The fruit is very fragrant and pear-shaped, with a bitter juice, a floral flavor, and a very thick rind. The flavedo shows enlarged (0.74 × 1.16 mm), spherical and ellipsoidal secretory [...] Read more.
Citrus lumia Risso and Poit. ‘Pyriformis’ are horticultural varieties of Citrus lumia Risso. The fruit is very fragrant and pear-shaped, with a bitter juice, a floral flavor, and a very thick rind. The flavedo shows enlarged (0.74 × 1.16 mm), spherical and ellipsoidal secretory cavities containing the essential oil (EO), visible using light microscopy, and more evident using scanning electron microscopy. The GC-FID and GC-MS analyses of the EO showed a phytochemical profile characterized by the predominance of D-limonene (93.67%). The EO showed interesting antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities (IC50 0.07–2.06 mg/mL), as evaluated by the in vitro cell-free enzymatic and non-enzymatic assays. To evaluate the effect on the neuronal functional activity, the embryonic cortical neuronal networks grown on multi-electrode array chips were exposed to non-cytotoxic concentrations of the EO (5–200 µg/mL). The spontaneous neuronal activity was recorded and the mean firing rate, mean burst rate, percentage of spikes in a burst, mean burst durations and inter-spike intervals within a burst parameter were calculated. The EO induced strong and concentration-dependent neuroinhibitory effects, with IC50 ranging between 11.4–31.1 µg/mL. Furthermore, it showed an acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity (IC50 0.19 mg/mL), which is promising for controlling some of the key symptoms of neurodegenerative diseases such as memory and cognitive concerns. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemicals from Aromatic and Medicinal Plants: From Identification to Biomedical Applications 2.0)
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16 pages, 4208 KiB  
Article
Amorphous System of Hesperetin and Piperine—Improvement of Apparent Solubility, Permeability, and Biological Activities
by Kamil Wdowiak, Andrzej Miklaszewski, Robert Pietrzak and Judyta Cielecka-Piontek
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(5), 4859; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24054859 - 02 Mar 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1705
Abstract
The low bioaccessibility of hesperetin and piperine hampers their application as therapeutic agents. Piperine has the ability to improve the bioavailability of many compounds when co-administered. The aim of this paper was to prepare and characterize the amorphous dispersions of hesperetin and piperine, [...] Read more.
The low bioaccessibility of hesperetin and piperine hampers their application as therapeutic agents. Piperine has the ability to improve the bioavailability of many compounds when co-administered. The aim of this paper was to prepare and characterize the amorphous dispersions of hesperetin and piperine, which could help to improve solubility and boost the bioavailability of both plant-origin active compounds. The amorphous systems were successfully obtained by means of ball milling, as confirmed by XRPD and DSC studies. What’s more, the FT-IR-ATR study was used to investigate the presence of intermolecular interactions between the systems’ components. Amorphization enhanced the dissolution rate as a supersaturation state was reached, as well as improving the apparent solubility of both compounds by 245-fold and 183-fold, respectively, for hesperetin and piperine. In the in vitro permeability studies simulating gastrointestinal tract and blood-brain barrier permeabilities, these increased by 775-fold and 257-fold for hesperetin, whereas they were 68-fold and 66-fold for piperine in the GIT and BBB PAMPA models, respectively. Enhanced solubility had an advantageous impact on antioxidant as well as anti-butyrylcholinesterase activities—the best system inhibited 90.62 ± 0.58% of DPPH radicals and 87.57 ± 1.02% butyrylcholinesterase activity. To sum up, amorphization considerably improved the dissolution rate, apparent solubility, permeability, and biological activities of hesperetin and piperine. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemicals from Aromatic and Medicinal Plants: From Identification to Biomedical Applications 2.0)
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22 pages, 5139 KiB  
Article
Bridging the Chemical Profile and Biological Activities of a New Variety of Agastache foeniculum (Pursh) Kuntze Extracts and Essential Oil
by Fănică Bălănescu, Andreea Veronica Botezatu, Fernanda Marques, Anna Busuioc, Olivian Marincaş, Costel Vînătoru, Geta Cârâc, Bianca Furdui and Rodica Mihaela Dinica
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(1), 828; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24010828 - 03 Jan 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2045
Abstract
This study investigated the phytochemical content of alcoholic extracts and essential oil of a new variety of medicinal plants, Agastache foeniculum (Pursh), which Kuntze adapted for cultivation in Romania, namely “Aromat de Buzău”. The essential oil was investigated by GC-MS, while the identification [...] Read more.
This study investigated the phytochemical content of alcoholic extracts and essential oil of a new variety of medicinal plants, Agastache foeniculum (Pursh), which Kuntze adapted for cultivation in Romania, namely “Aromat de Buzău”. The essential oil was investigated by GC-MS, while the identification and quantification of various compounds from alcoholic extracts were performed by HPLC-DAD. The total phenol and flavonoid contents of the extracts were evaluated by using standard phytochemical methods. The antioxidant activities of ethanol, methanol extracts, and essential oil of the plant were also assessed against 2,2′-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•), 2,2′-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS•+), and by ferric reducing power (FRAP) using spectroscopic methods. Cyclic voltammetry was used to evaluate the antioxidant capacity of the essential oil. The concentrations of phenolic compounds were higher in methanolic extract compared to ethanolic extract. A significant correlation was found between total phenol and total flavonoid contents (r = 0.9087). Significant high correlations were also found between the total phenolic compounds and the antioxidant activities of the extracts (r ≥ 0.8600, p < 0.05). In addition, the extracts and essential oil showed good antioxidant and xanthine oxidase inhibitory activities. Estragole was detected as the major constituent of the essential oil (94.89%). The cytotoxic activity of the essential oil was evaluated by the MTT assay. At lower concentrations (1 µg/mL) high cytotoxicity against MCF-7 breast cancer cells was observed but not on the non-tumoral dermal fibroblasts (HDF) which indicated selectivity for cancer cells and suggests the presence of biologically active components that contribute to the observed high cytotoxic effect. Findings from the present study offer new perspectives on the use of A. foeniculum as a potential source of bioactive compounds and a good candidate for pharmaceutical plant-based products. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemicals from Aromatic and Medicinal Plants: From Identification to Biomedical Applications 2.0)
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Review

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26 pages, 3909 KiB  
Review
Enhanced Natural Strength: Lamiaceae Essential Oils and Nanotechnology in In Vitro and In Vivo Medical Research
by Tomasz Kowalczyk, Anna Merecz-Sadowska, Mansour Ghorbanpour, Janusz Szemraj, Janusz Piekarski, Michal Bijak, Tomasz Śliwiński, Radosław Zajdel and Przemysław Sitarek
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(20), 15279; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms242015279 - 17 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1343
Abstract
The Lamiaceae is one of the most important families in the production of essential oils known to have a wide spectrum of biological activity. Recent research has highlighted the dermatological capabilities of various Lamiaceae essential oils, which appear to offer potential in free [...] Read more.
The Lamiaceae is one of the most important families in the production of essential oils known to have a wide spectrum of biological activity. Recent research has highlighted the dermatological capabilities of various Lamiaceae essential oils, which appear to offer potential in free radical scavenging and anti-inflammatory activity. Some have also been extensively studied for their tissue remodeling and wound-healing, anti-aging, anti-melanogenic, and anti-cancer properties. Certain Lamiaceae essential oils are promising as novel therapeutic alternatives for skin disorders. This potential has seen substantial efforts dedicated to the development of modern formulations based on nanotechnology, enabling the topical application of various Lamiaceae essential oils. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the utilization of various essential oils from the Lamiaceae family over the past decade. It offers an overview of the current state of knowledge concerning the use of these oils as antioxidants, anti-inflammatory agents, wound-healers, anti-aging agents, anti-melanogenic agents, and anticancer agents, both alone and in combination with nanoparticles. Additionally, the review explores their potential applicability in patents regarding skin diseases. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemicals from Aromatic and Medicinal Plants: From Identification to Biomedical Applications 2.0)
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25 pages, 2099 KiB  
Review
Fisetin—In Search of Better Bioavailability—From Macro to Nano Modifications: A Review
by Joanna Szymczak and Judyta Cielecka-Piontek
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(18), 14158; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241814158 - 15 Sep 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3217
Abstract
As secondary plant metabolites, polyphenols are abundant in fruits and vegetables. They are in high demand because of their many health benefits. However, their low bioavailability makes them complex compounds to use for therapeutic purposes. Due to the limited solubility of phytocompounds, dietary [...] Read more.
As secondary plant metabolites, polyphenols are abundant in fruits and vegetables. They are in high demand because of their many health benefits. However, their low bioavailability makes them complex compounds to use for therapeutic purposes. Due to the limited solubility of phytocompounds, dietary supplements made from them may only be partially effective. Such molecules include fisetin, found in strawberries, and have shown great promise in treating Alzheimer’s disease and cancer. Unfortunately, because of their limited water solubility, low absorption, and poor bioavailability, the assistance of nanotechnology is required to allow them to fulfil their potential fully. Here, we provide evidence that nanodelivery methods and structure modifications can improve fisetin bioavailability, which is linked to improvements in therapeutic efficacy. An open question remains as to which nanocarrier should be chosen to meet the abovementioned requirements and be able to enhance fisetin’s therapeutic potential to treat a particular disease. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemicals from Aromatic and Medicinal Plants: From Identification to Biomedical Applications 2.0)
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21 pages, 4301 KiB  
Review
Dibenzo[b,f]oxepine Molecules Used in Biological Systems and Medicine
by Hanna Krawczyk
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(15), 12066; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241512066 - 27 Jul 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1286
Abstract
In this short review, including 113 references, issues related to dibenzo[b,f]oxepine derivatives are presented. Dibenzo[b,f]oxepine scaffold is an important framework in medicinal chemistry, and its derivatives occur in several medicinally relevant plants. At the same time, the structure, production, [...] Read more.
In this short review, including 113 references, issues related to dibenzo[b,f]oxepine derivatives are presented. Dibenzo[b,f]oxepine scaffold is an important framework in medicinal chemistry, and its derivatives occur in several medicinally relevant plants. At the same time, the structure, production, and therapeutic effects of dibenzo[b,f]oxepines have not been extensively discussed thus far and are presented in this review. This manuscript addresses the following issues: extracting dibenzo[b,f]oxepines from plants and its significance in medicine, the biosynthesis of dibenzo[b,f]oxepines, the active synthetic dibenzo[b,f]oxepine derivatives, the potential of dibenzo[b,f]oxepines as microtubule inhibitors, and perspective for applications of dibenzo[b,f]oxepine derivatives. In conclusion, this review describes studies on various structural features and pharmacological actions of dibenzo[b,f]oxepine derivatives. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemicals from Aromatic and Medicinal Plants: From Identification to Biomedical Applications 2.0)
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17 pages, 1710 KiB  
Review
Paulownia Organs as Interesting New Sources of Bioactive Compounds
by Natalia Sławińska, Joanna Zając and Beata Olas
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(2), 1676; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24021676 - 14 Jan 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1896
Abstract
Paulownia spp. is a genus of trees in the Paulowniaceae family. It is native to southeastern Asia (especially China), where it has been cultivated for decorative, cultural, and medicinal purposes for over 2000 years. Depending on taxonomic classification, there are 6 to 17 [...] Read more.
Paulownia spp. is a genus of trees in the Paulowniaceae family. It is native to southeastern Asia (especially China), where it has been cultivated for decorative, cultural, and medicinal purposes for over 2000 years. Depending on taxonomic classification, there are 6 to 17 species of Paulownia; P. tomentosa, P. elongata, P. fortunei, and P. catalpifolia are considered the most popular. Nowadays, Paulownia trees are planted in Asia, Europe, North America, and Australia for commercial, medical, and decorative purposes. Lately, growing interest in Paulownia has led to the development of various hybrids, the best-known being Clone in vitro 112, Shan Tong, Sundsu 11, and Cotevisa 2. Paulownia Clone in vitro 112 is an artificially created hybrid of two species of Paulownia: P. elongata and P. fortunei. The present review of selected papers from electronic databases including PubMed, ScienceDirect, and SCOPUS before 15 November 2022 describes the phytochemical characteristics, biological properties, and economic significance of various organs from different Paulownia species and hybrids, including P. tomentosa, P. elongata, P. fortunei, and Paulownia Clone in vitro 112. Many compounds from Paulownia demonstrate various biological activities and are promising candidates for natural preparations; for example, the leaves of Clone in vitro 112 have anti-radical and anticoagulant potential. However, further in vivo studies are needed to clarify the exact mechanism of action of the active substances and their long-term effects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemicals from Aromatic and Medicinal Plants: From Identification to Biomedical Applications 2.0)
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