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Plants
Special Issues
Phytochemical Profiling and Bioactive Potential of Plants
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Phytochemical Profiling and Bioactive Potential of Plants

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Phytochemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2026 | Viewed by 995

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Dimitrina Zheleva-Dimitrova

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical Unviersity, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria
Interests: phytochemical analysis; LC-MS; plant metabolomics; pharmacognosy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Phytochemical profiling and analytical methods are of particular interest in plant science. In the last decade, intensive research in the field of specialized (secondary) plant metabolites has led to the development of a variety of hyphenated techniques, such as LC/UV, LC/MS, and LC/NMR. These techniques analyze the chemical composition of plants and quickly provide structural information, leading in many cases to the identification of compounds.

Plant-derived specialized metabolites are essential as both the chemical and biological characterizations of medicinal plants are of great importance. Presently, numerous research groups are focusing on the study and characterization of herbal extracts to identify a variety of plant metabolites and their potential to exert protective effects on biological systems.

This Special Issue of Plants, titled “Phytochemical Profiling and Bioactive Potential of Plants”, provides an opportunity for the dissemination of the new approaches and techniques on different strategies for detection, extraction, separation, purification, identification, quantification, or structural elucidation of known and new specialized natural products, with the aim of providing valuable insights into the phytopharmacological potential.

Please note that in studies of complex mixtures of natural products, the characterization of chemicals using analytical methodologies, such as HPLC, MS, LC–MS, HPLC–MS, and NMR, should be included.

Dr. Dimitrina Zheleva-Dimitrova
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. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). 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

  • phytochemical profiling
  • phytochemical analysis
  • phytopharmacology
  • plant biological activity evaluation

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 1376 KB  
Article
A Bioeconomically Valuable Essential Oil from Baccharis sinuata Kunth in Southern Ecuador: Chemical Composition and Enantiomeric Profile
by Gianluca Gilardoni, Bryan Flores, Nixon Cumbicus and Omar Malagón
Plants 2025, 14(19), 3110; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14193110 - 9 Oct 2025
Viewed by 231
Abstract
The present research describes the chemical composition and the enantiomeric profile of a spicy green aroma essential oil, distilled from the dry leaves of Baccharis sinuata Kunth (Asteraceae). The distillation yield was as high as 3.0% by weight. The chemical analysis was conducted [...] Read more.
The present research describes the chemical composition and the enantiomeric profile of a spicy green aroma essential oil, distilled from the dry leaves of Baccharis sinuata Kunth (Asteraceae). The distillation yield was as high as 3.0% by weight. The chemical analysis was conducted on two columns, coated with stationary phases of different polarity (5% phenyl—95% methyl polysiloxane, expressed by weight, and 100% polyethylene glycol). Major components (≥2.0% as an average value between the two columns) were as follows: β-pinene (4.9%), limonene (39.0%), (E)-β-caryophyllene (2.0%), bicyclogermacrene (2.7%), γ-cadinene (4.0%), δ-cadinene (7.3%), β-eudesmol (2.0%), α-eudesmol (3.0%), and α-cadinol (2.0%). For the enantioselective analysis, 10 enantiomeric pairs were investigated, using two capillary columns coated with different chiral selectors. As a result, (1R,5R)-(−)-α-thujene, (1S,5S)-(−)-α-pinene, and (1R,2S,6S,7S,8S)-(−)-α-copaene were enantiomerically pure, whereas (R)-(+)-limonene presented a 90.0% enantiomeric excess. All the other analysed chiral compounds were scalemic mixtures. The high distillation yield, its aroma, and the bibliographic bioactivity profile make this essential oil potentially interesting from a commercial point of view. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first description of an essential oil distilled from leaves of B. sinuata. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemical Profiling and Bioactive Potential of Plants)
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14 pages, 581 KB  
Article
Seasonal Influence on Volatile Organic Compounds from Flowers and Leaves of Lepechinia mutica Extracted by SPME-GC-MS
by James Calva, Dayanna Suquilanda, Ángel Benítez, Chabaco Armijos and Jorge Ramírez
Plants 2025, 14(19), 3103; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14193103 - 9 Oct 2025
Viewed by 219
Abstract
Lepechinia mutica, an endemic species of the Ecuadorian Andes, was studied to identify the seasonal variation in volatile organic compounds emitted from leaves and flowers in winter and summer using solid-phase microextraction–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (SPME-GC-MS). A total of 101 and 100 volatile compounds [...] Read more.
Lepechinia mutica, an endemic species of the Ecuadorian Andes, was studied to identify the seasonal variation in volatile organic compounds emitted from leaves and flowers in winter and summer using solid-phase microextraction–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (SPME-GC-MS). A total of 101 and 100 volatile compounds were identified in flowers and leaves, respectively. The main compounds in flowers were β-phellandrene (7.81–17.74%), dictamnol (3.57–31.89%) and 9-epi-(E)-caryophyllene (3.93–14.37%), while in the leaves, they were dictamnol (9.85–34.64%), (Z)-β-ocimene (1.24–29.24%) and δ-3-carene (1.14–11.51%). This is the first report of enantiomeric separation in L. mutica using a capillary column with 2,3-diethyldecyl-6-tert-butyl-dimethylsilyl-β-cyclodextrin, revealing three enantiomerically pure compounds as (S)-(-)-β-pinene, (1S,3R)-(+)-δ-3-carene and (S)-(+)-linalool, while (+) (-) α-pinene, (+) (-) δ-cadinene and (+) (-) α-muurolene were found as racemic mixtures. Principal component analysis confirmed distinct chemical profiles between plant parts and seasons. This result has important implications for the future highlighting its potential as a source of seasonally variables components with applications in fragrance and phytotherapy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemical Profiling and Bioactive Potential of Plants)
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21 pages, 679 KB  
Article
Insight into Cytotoxic Potential of Erica spiculifolia Salisb (Balkan Heath)
by Reneta Gevrenova, Rositsa Mihaylova, Nikolay Bebrivenski, Georgi Momekov and Dimitrina Zheleva-Dimitrova
Plants 2025, 14(19), 3063; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14193063 - 3 Oct 2025
Viewed by 326
Abstract
Erica spiculifolia Salisb. (Balkan heath) is an evergreen shrub growing in the mountain shrublands of Eastern Europe. E. spiculifolia was used as a diuretic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant herbal remedy. The present study aims to conduct an evaluation of the phytochemical composition and antitumor [...] Read more.
Erica spiculifolia Salisb. (Balkan heath) is an evergreen shrub growing in the mountain shrublands of Eastern Europe. E. spiculifolia was used as a diuretic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant herbal remedy. The present study aims to conduct an evaluation of the phytochemical composition and antitumor activity of the methanol–aqueous extract from E. spiculifolia aerial parts to explore its potential in cancer treatment. Overall, a total of 54 secondary metabolites, including 28 hydroxybenzoic, hydroxycinnamic acids, and phenolic glycosides, and 10 triterpene acids, together with 17 flavonoids, were identified or annotated in the assayed E. spiculifolia extract using liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry. The cytotoxic activity of the extract, alongside gallic, protocatechuic, and oleanolic acids as its constituents, was screened against a panel of malignant human cell lines of different origin (LAMA-84, HL-60, MDA-MB-231, MCF-7, and CASKI). The most prominent antiproliferative effect of the studied extract (with IC50 16.6 μg/mL), matched with the highest tumor selectivity (SI > 120), was observed in the LAMA-84 myeloid cells. These findings were further supported by gallic and oleanolic acid (IC50 6.2 and 1.7 μg/mL, respectively), accounting for a more distinct cytotoxicity. The strongest selective antineoplastic activity was achieved towards the triple-negative breast carcinoma cell line MDA-MB-231, with an IC50 of 32.5 μg/mL. This study provided compelling evidence for a wide spectrum of E. spiculifolia antitumor activity, indicating its potential as a natural alternative for future therapeutic applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemical Profiling and Bioactive Potential of Plants)
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