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Insights into Functional and Medicinal Value of Natural Products from...
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Insights into Functional and Medicinal Value of Natural Products from Plants

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2024) | Viewed by 7633

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Shaden Khalifa

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Molecular Biosciences, Capio Saint Göran's Hospital, SE-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
Interests: natural products from plants

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Plant-derived natural compounds have long been recognized for their functional and therapeutic benefits. For millennia, they have been utilized in traditional medicine across the world. Plants are essential components in our diet, supplying vitamins, minerals, and other bioactive compounds required for good health and well-being. These products encompass a diverse range of compounds, including alkaloids, flavonoids, terpenoids, phenolic compounds, and many others, which contribute to the rich chemical diversity found in the plant kingdom. In addition to the distinct flavors and smells of these products, they also have antibacterial and antioxidant characteristics that can be used to preserve a wide range of food and beverage products. Furthermore, natural pigments produced by certain plants are utilized in textile coloring. Currently, many pharmacological medications are derived from plants where natural products serve as important starting materials for drug discovery and development. The anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidant, anticancer, and immunomodulatory effects are among the most studied biological impacts of natural products, but the potential of natural products in the pharmaceutical and medical fields is unlimited. The current Special Issue aims to provide updated knowledge of the chemical components, the biological functions, the metabolomics profile, and all the other aspects covering the potential of natural products in health care systems.

Prof. Dr. Shaden Khalifa
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

  • plant-derived natural compounds
  • drug discovery
  • herbal supplement
  • phytochemical profile
  • traditional medicine

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 1085 KiB  
Article
Development of a Tandem Mass Spectral Library for the Detection of Triterpenoids in Plant Metabolome Based on Reference Standards
by Bibi Zareena, Syed Usama Y. Jeelani, Adeeba Khadim, Arslan Ali, Jalal Uddin, Satyajit D. Sarker, Matthias Rainer, Shaden A. M. Khalifa, Hesham R. El-Seedi, Muhammad Ramzan and Syed Ghulam Musharraf
Plants 2024, 13(23), 3278; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13233278 - 22 Nov 2024
Viewed by 917
Abstract
Plant triterpenoids represent a diverse group of secondary metabolites and are thought to be valuable for therapeutic applications. For drug development, lead optimization, better knowledge of biological pathways, and high-throughput detection of secondary metabolites in plant extracts are crucial. This paper describes a [...] Read more.
Plant triterpenoids represent a diverse group of secondary metabolites and are thought to be valuable for therapeutic applications. For drug development, lead optimization, better knowledge of biological pathways, and high-throughput detection of secondary metabolites in plant extracts are crucial. This paper describes a qualitative method for the rapid and accurate identification of various triterpenoids in plant extracts using the LC-HR-ESI-MS/MS tool in combination with the data-dependent acquisition (DD) approach. A total of 44 isolated, purified, and characterized triterpenoids were analyzed. HR-MS spectra and tandem mass spectra (MS/MS) of each compound were recorded in the positive ionization mode in two different sets of collisional energies, i.e., (25–62.5 eV), and fixed collisional energies (10, 20, 30, and 40 eV). As a result, three triterpenoids were identified in all plant extracts using the retention time, high-resolution mass spectra, and/or MS/MS spectra. The developed method will be helpful with other plant extracts/botanicals, as well as in the search for new triterpenoids in the kingdom Plantae. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insights into Functional and Medicinal Value of Natural Products from Plants)
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18 pages, 1467 KiB  
Article
Phytochemical, Antioxidant, Antimicrobial and Safety Profile of Glycyrrhiza glabra L. Extract Obtained from Romania
by Iulia Semenescu, Stefana Avram, Diana Similie, Daliana Minda, Zorita Diaconeasa, Delia Muntean, Antonina Evelina Lazar, Daniela Gurgus and Corina Danciu
Plants 2024, 13(23), 3265; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13233265 - 21 Nov 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1906
Abstract
Glycyrrhiza glabra L., also known as licorice, belongs to the Fabaceae family and is one of the most commercially valuable plants worldwide, being used in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and food industries, both for its therapeutic benefits as well as for the sweetening properties [...] Read more.
Glycyrrhiza glabra L., also known as licorice, belongs to the Fabaceae family and is one of the most commercially valuable plants worldwide, being used in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and food industries, both for its therapeutic benefits as well as for the sweetening properties of the extract. This study evaluates the phytochemical composition, the biological activities, and the safety profile of a methanolic extract of licorice root (LRE) obtained from Romania. Ten phytocompounds were quantified by the HPLC-DAD-ESI+, the most abundant being the triterpene glycyrrhizin (13.927 mg/g dry extract.), followed by these flavonoids: liquiritin, liquiritigenin-apiosyl-glucoside, and apigenin-rutinoside liquiritigenin. The total phenolic content of the LRE was found to be 169.83 mg gallic acid/g dry extract. (GAE/g d.e.), and the extract showed a maximum of 79.29% antioxidant activity in the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. Good antimicrobial activity of the LRE was observed for Gram-negative bacteria, especially for S. pneumoniae and S. pyogenes. The mineral content of the LRE was indicative of the lack of toxicity; heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, arsenic, nickel, and cobalt were below the detection limit. The safety profile of the licorice extract was assessed using the in vivo hen egg test-chorioallantoic membrane (HET-CAM protocol), indicating no irritability, good tolerability, and biocompatibility. The phytochemical and biological characterization of the Romanian licorice root extract reveals a good source of glycyrrhizin and polyphenols with antioxidant and antimicrobial potential, along with a safety profile that may be useful for future therapeutic applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insights into Functional and Medicinal Value of Natural Products from Plants)
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14 pages, 1372 KiB  
Article
The Proximate Composition, Mineral and Pectin Content and Fatty Acid Profile of the Pomace Fraction of 16 Rowanberry Cultivars
by Viive Sarv, Shehzad Hussain, Reelika Rätsep and Ave Kikas
Plants 2024, 13(12), 1615; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13121615 - 11 Jun 2024
Viewed by 1392
Abstract
The berry pomace could be a potential source for food applications due to its high content of polyphenols, but also dietary fiber, PUFAs and pectin. This is the first study that aims to compare the total dietary fiber (TDF), protein, fat, mineral, pectin [...] Read more.
The berry pomace could be a potential source for food applications due to its high content of polyphenols, but also dietary fiber, PUFAs and pectin. This is the first study that aims to compare the total dietary fiber (TDF), protein, fat, mineral, pectin and fatty acid content of the following 16 different pomace samples of Sorbus aucuparia L. cultivars (cvs): ‘Likernaja’, ‘Burka’, ‘Alaja Krupnaja’, ‘Granatnaja’, ‘Rubinovaja’, ‘Bussinka’, ‘Vefed’, ‘Angri’, ‘Krasnaja’, ‘Solnechnaja’, ‘Sahharnaja’, ‘Oranzevaja’, ‘Kubovaja’, ‘Moravica’, ‘Rosina’ and ‘Rossica’, in order to find new natural materials for valorization. The contents of pectin and dietary fibers were analyzed using the respective Megazyme enzymatic kits. The TDF content was the highest in the pomace samples of hybrid cvs ‘Granatnaja’ (63.04% dry mass DM), ‘Burka’ (64.52% DM), ‘Rubinovaja’ (65.66% DM) and ‘Likernaja’ (67.17% DM). The pomace of hybrid cv ‘Rubinovaja’ was distinguished from other samples by its high protein content, cv ‘Alaja Krupnaja’ by its high pectin content and cv ‘Oranzevaja’ by its high fat content, which were 7.58% DM, 8.39% DM and 7.47% DM, respectively. The pomace of cv ‘Sahharnaja’ possessed the highest average macro-element content (1.56 g/kg DM). The average fatty acids profile was characterized by a high content of linoleic acid (51.94%), oleic acid (20.55%) and palmitic acid (12.96%). The lowest n6/n3 ratio was found in the hybrid cv ‘Alaja Krupnaja’ (6.70%). The data obtained demonstrate that the pomaces of certain cultivars of rowanberry contain significant amounts of valuable components, which can be used in functional food and cosmetic applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insights into Functional and Medicinal Value of Natural Products from Plants)
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21 pages, 4481 KiB  
Article
Anti-Melanogenic Effects of Lilium lancifolium Root Extract via Downregulation of PKA/CREB and MAPK/CREB Signaling Pathways in B16F10 Cells
by Seokmuk Park, Nayeon Han, Jungmin Lee, Jae-Nam Lee, Sungkwan An and Seunghee Bae
Plants 2023, 12(21), 3666; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12213666 - 24 Oct 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2617
Abstract
Hyperpigmentation disorders causing emotional distress require the topical use of depigmenting agents of natural origin. In this study, the anti-melanogenic effects of the Lilium lancifolium root extract (LRE) were investigated in B16F10 cells. Consequently, a non-cytotoxic concentration of the extract reduced intracellular melanin [...] Read more.
Hyperpigmentation disorders causing emotional distress require the topical use of depigmenting agents of natural origin. In this study, the anti-melanogenic effects of the Lilium lancifolium root extract (LRE) were investigated in B16F10 cells. Consequently, a non-cytotoxic concentration of the extract reduced intracellular melanin content and tyrosinase activity in a dose-dependent manner, correlating with the diminished expression of core melanogenic enzymes within cells. LRE treatment also inhibited cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) response element-binding protein (CREB)/microphthalmia-associated transcription factor signaling, which regulates the expression of tyrosinase-related genes. Upon examining these findings from a molecular mechanism perspective, LRE treatment suppressed the phosphorylation of protein kinase A (PKA), p38, and extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK), which are upstream regulators of CREB. In addition, L-phenylalanine and regaloside A, specifically identified within the LRE using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, exhibited inhibitory effects on melanin production. Collectively, these results imply that LRE potentially suppresses cAMP-mediated melanogenesis by downregulating PKA/CREB and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)/CREB signaling pathways. Therefore, it can be employed as a novel therapeutic ingredient of natural origin to ameliorate hyperpigmentation disorders. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insights into Functional and Medicinal Value of Natural Products from Plants)
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