Search Results (10)

Similarly to conventional field crops, weeds often pose significant problems in the cultivation of medicinal plants. To date, no comprehensive documentation exists regarding weed infestation levels in these crops in Serbia. The objective of this study was to provide a valuable foundation for developing effective, site-specific weed management strategies in medicinal crop production. Weeds in five medicinal crops (lemon balm, fennel, peppermint, ribwort plantain, German chamomile), were surveyed based on the agro-phytosociological method between 2019 and 2024, and across 59 plots. A total of 109 weed species were recorded, belonging to 29 families and 88 genera. Among them, 75 were annuals and 34 perennials, including 93 broadleaved species, 10 grasses, and one parasitic species. All surveyed plots were heavily infested with perennial weeds such as Elymus repens, Cirsium arvense, Convolvulus arvensis, Lepidium draba, Rumex crispus, Sorghum halepense, Taraxacum officinale, etc. Also, several annual species were found in high abundance and frequency, including Amaranthus retroflexus, Chenopodium album, Galium aparine, Lactuca serriola, Lamium amplexicaule, L. purpureum, Papaver rhoeas, Stellaria media, Veronica hederifolia, V. persica, etc. The most important ecological factors influencing the composition of weed vegetation in investigated medicinal crops were temperature and light for fennel and peppermint plots, soil reaction for lemon balm and ribwort plantain plots, and nutrient content for German chamomile plots. A perspective for exploitation of these results is the development of effective weed control programs tailored to this specific cropping system. Weed control strategies should consider such information, targeting the control of the most frequent, abundant, and dominant species existing in a crops or locality. Full article

Aquatic vegetation plays an important role in maintaining the health of river ecosystems. However, few studies have evaluated the impact of vegetation decomposition on water quality in rivers. Therefore, we aimed to analyze the effect of aquatic vegetation decomposition on nutrient conditions in the Jeonjucheon River in South Korea. To this end, we determined the distribution and biomass of four dominant species: Phragmites japonica Steud., Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud., Miscanthus sinensis Andersson, and Rumex crispus L. Additionally, we conducted a nutrient leaching experiment to determine the contributions of different species to the nutrient status of the river. We found that the decomposition concentrations of total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) were the highest for P. japonica (7.74 mg/L) and R. crispus (1.59 mg/L). The annual load of TN from decomposition was 536,171.6 kg/yr and that of TP was 57,547.1 kg/yr. The total pollution load for the Jeonjucheon River was 2,903,885.3 kg/yr for TN and 17,602.1 kg/yr for TP. However, the TN and TP contribution from vegetation decomposition was negligible compared to that from other sources. This study serves as a valuable reference for sustainable management of river vegetation and water pollution. Full article

Colorectal cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death and the third most common cancer diagnosed in the United States. Several anticancer compounds from natural products have been of great interest in cancer chemotherapy and are currently in clinical trials. Natural products that present the targeted killing of cancerous cell and are soluble in water with minimal side effects are ideal candidates. In this study, water-soluble compounds from Rumex crispus plants were screened for anti-proliferative and apoptotic activity against human colorectal adenocarcinoma (DLD-1) cells. The most potent fraction with the highest cell killing and caspase fold change rates was selected for further experiments. The observed changes were further validated by measuring the caspase fold change using RT-qPCR. Furthermore, gene transcript levels were evaluated using an RT2 Profiler assay and a microarray experiment. Our results showed that the most potent L19 fraction exhibits anti-proliferative activity in a dose-dependent manner. The L19 fraction was found to induce apoptotic pathways by triggering different caspases and inflammatory pathways through the activation of non-apoptotic genes. Our study identified and validated the anticancer property of the L19 fraction, which can serve as a strong lead compound for the synthesis of other novel potent analogues. Full article

The purpose of this study was to analyze midwifery practice in the Mazahua and Otomi (MO) indigenous community and its relationship with the persistence of the native language and the use of medicinal plants. A semi-structured survey with qualitative and quantitative information was designed and validated. Data were collected from the students enrolled in the Intercultural Health Degree at the Intercultural University of the State of Mexico, their parents, their grandparents, and people from their community of the MO ethnic group. The variables mother tongue and births attended by midwives among both MO and non-indigenous people were correlated with three generations (grandparents, parents, and grandchildren). In the MO indigenous group, births attended by midwives and mother tongue concerning the three generations were lost in proportions of 25.5% and 17.05%, respectively. There are 23% more midwife-attended births in the MO community than among non-ethnic people. The medicinal plants most used by the MO indigenous group are “too” (Montanoa tomentosa Cerv.) and “lengua de vaca” (Rumex crispus L.). As regards family economy, 79.3% of the adults surveyed consider that there is a saving of between 25% and 75% with midwifery practice in the MO community. There is a generational correspondence between the loss of native language and midwifery practice. Full article

Among antihyperglycemic drugs used for treating diabetes, α-glucosidase inhibitors generate the least adverse effects. This contribution aimed to evaluate the potential antidiabetic activity of Rumex crispus L. by testing its in vitro α-glucosidase inhibition and in vivo antihyperglycemic effects on rats with streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes. Better inhibition of α-glucosidase was found with the methanol extract versus the n-hexane and dichloromethane extracts. The methanol extract of the flowers (RCFM) was more effective than that of the leaves (RCHM), with an IC₅₀ of 7.3 ± 0.17 μg/mL for RCFM and 112.0 ± 1.23 μg/mL for RCHM. A bioactive fraction (F89s) also showed good α-glucosidase inhibition (IC₅₀ = 3.8 ± 0.11 μg/mL). In a preliminary study, RCHM and RCFM at 150 mg/kg and F89s at 75 mg/kg after 30 days showed a significant effect on hyperglycemia, reducing glucose levels (82.2, 80.1, and 84.1%, respectively), and improved the lipid, renal, and hepatic profiles of the rats, comparable with the effects of metformin and acarbose. According to the results, the activity of R. crispus L. may be mediated by a diminished rate of disaccharide hydrolysis, associated with the inhibition of α-glucosidase. Thus, R. crispus L. holds promise for the development of auxiliary drugs to treat diabetes mellitus. Full article

The Mongolian rhubarb—Rheum undulatum L. (RU)—and Rumex crispus L. (RC)—a Taiwanese local rhubarb belonging to the family of Polygonaceae—are principal therapeutic materials in integrative medicine due to their rich quantities of bioactive compounds; however, their phytochemical and antioxidant properties, and anti-cancer activity is poorly investigated. Furthermore, the phytochemical characteristics of both species may be affected by their different geographical distribution and climatic variance. The current study aimed to compare RU with RC extracts in different polarity solvents (n-hexane, ethyl acetate, acetone, ethanol, and water) for their phytochemical contents including the total phenolic content (TPC), total anthraquinone content (TAC), total flavonoid content (TFC), antioxidant and free radical scavenging capacities, and anticancer ability on the HepG2 cell. Except for the n-hexane extract, all of the RU extracts had considerably higher TPCs than RC extracts, ranging from 8.39 to 11.16 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE) per gram of dry weight, and the TPCs of each extract were also significantly correlated with their antioxidant capacities by ABTS, DPPH, and FRAP assays (p < 0.05). Moreover, there was no remarkable association between the antioxidant capacities and either TACs or TFCs in both the RU and RC extracts. Besides, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis revealed that both the RU and RC extracts contained chrysophanol, emodin, and physcion, and those bioactive compounds were relatively higher in the n-hexane solvent extracts. Additionally, we observed different levels of dose-dependent cytotoxic effects in all the extracts by cell viability assay. Notably, the ethanol extract of RU had a compelling cytotoxic effect with the lowest half-maximum inhibition concentration (IC50-171.94 ± 6.56 µg/mL at 48 h) among the RU extracts than the ethanol extract of RC. Interestingly, the ethanol extract of RU but not RC significantly induced apoptosis in the human liver cancer cell line, HepG2, with a distinct pattern in caspase-3 activation, resulting in increased PARP cleavage and DNA damage. In summary, Mongolian Rhubarb, RU, showed more phytochemical contents, as well as a higher antioxidant capacity and apoptotic effect to HepG2 than RC; thus, it can be exploited for the proper source of natural antioxidants and liver cancer treatment in further investigation. Full article

The root of Rumex crispus L. has been shown to possess anti-gout and anti-diabetic properties, but the compounds responsible for these pharmaceutical effects have not yet been reported. In this study, we aimed to isolate and purify active components from the root of R. crispus, and to evaluate their anti-radical, anti-gout and anti-diabetic capacities. From the ethyl acetate (EtOAc) extract, two compounds, chrysophanol (1) and physcion (2), were isolated by column chromatography with an elution of hexane and EtOAc at a 9:1 ratio. Their structures were identified by spectrometric techniques including gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), X-ray diffraction analyses and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The results of bioassays indicated that (1) showed stronger activities than (2). For antioxidant activity, (1) and (2) exhibited remarkable DPPH radical scavenging capacity (IC₅₀ = 9.8 and 12.1 µg/mL), which was about two times stronger than BHT (IC₅₀ = 19.4 µg/mL). The anti-gout property of (1) and (2) were comparable to the positive control allopurinol, these compounds exerted strong inhibition against the activity of xanthine oxidase (IC₅₀ = 36.4 and 45.0 µg/mL, respectively). In the anti-diabetic assay, (1) and (2) displayed considerable inhibitory ability on α-glucosidase, their IC₅₀ values (IC₅₀ = 20.1 and 18.9 µg/mL, respectively) were higher than that of standard acarbose (IC₅₀ = 143.4 µg/mL). Findings of this study highlight that (1) and (2) may be promising agents to treat gout and diabetes, which may greatly contribute to the medicinal properties of Rumex crispus root. Full article

The study investigated the accumulation of phenolic compounds and the antioxidant activity of extracts of various parts of R. crispus and R. obtusifolius, collected at the flowering stage and the fruiting stage. Half of the collected plants were divided into root, stem, leaves, and reproductive organs (inflorescence). The other half was used to study the vertical distribution of biologically active components and antioxidants throughout the plant. The samples were analyzed for total catechins content, total proanthocyanidins content, total phenolic content, and total antioxidant activity (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2’azinobis(3)ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS), and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays). All analyses were performed in four replicates. In general, a similar trend was observed in the distribution of phenolic compounds in the studied species. The maximum content of these secondary metabolites was noted in the reproductive organs, both in the flowering and fruiting period. Stems were characterized by a minimum content of the studied classes of substances. The antioxidant activity of the sorrels studied parts can be arranged in the following order: the generative part (flowers, seeds) > leaves > root > stem (for flowering and fruiting stages). It was found that parts of the root closer to the stem differed in higher activity. Full article

Medicinal plants are a pertinent and effective remedy, employed in indigenous healthcare systems by traditional healers. This study focused on proximate parameters, minerals, vitamins, anti-nutrients and essential oil of the root and leaf of the medicinal plant; R. crispus, using the standard food analysis techniques. The result reveals that the moisture content of the leaf (7.57 ± 0.40%) and root (7.59 ± 0.08%) was not significantly different. The leaf has a higher ash, crude fat, fibre and mineral content than the root, except the carbohydrate (57.74 ± 3.06%) and Ca (1190.0 ± 0 mg/100g) values which are quite higher in the root. Traces of phytate was found in the leaf (1.15 ± 0.74%) and root (1.38 ± 0.27%) of R. crispus. The highest value of retinol, ascorbic acid and α-tocopherol was found in dried leaf (1.29 ± 0.014 mg retinol/100g), fresh leaf (159.73 ± 26.77 mg ascorbic acid/100g) and fresh root (54.90 ± 0.39 mg α-tocopherol/100g) respectively. The principal compound in the essential oil of the leaf are; 5-Eicosene, (E)-, docos-1-ene, trans-5-Octadecene, tetradecane while those found in the root are; 1-Heptacosanol, 4-Methyloctane, ethylcyclohexane, eucalyptol, m-Xylene, octadecane, phytol, and tetradecane. The research reveals that R. crispus may not only be used for medicinal purposes but could also be suitable for a complementary diet. Full article

Sensor-based weed mapping in arable fields is a key element for site-specific herbicide management strategies. In this study, we investigated the generation of application maps based on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle imagery and present a site-specific herbicide application using those maps. Field trials for site-specific herbicide applications and multi-temporal image flights were carried out in maize (Zea mays L.) and sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) in southern Germany. Real-time kinematic Global Positioning System precision planting information provided the input for determining plant rows in the geocoded aerial images. Vegetation indices combined with generated plant height data were used to detect the patches containing creeping thistle (Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop.) and curled dock (Rumex crispus L.). The computed weed maps showed the presence or absence of the aforementioned weeds on the fields, clustered to 9 m × 9 m grid cells. The precision of the correct classification varied from 96% in maize to 80% in the last sugar beet treatment. The computational underestimation of manual mapped C. arvense and R. cripus patches varied from 1% to 10% respectively. Overall, the developed algorithm performed well, identifying tall perennial weeds for the computation of large-scale herbicide application maps. Full article