Phytoscreening and Isolation of Some Phenolic Compounds from the Iraqi Gundelia tournefortii and Detecting the Antioxidant Activity of its Crude Extract

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of Pharmacognosy. College of Pharmacy, University of Basra, Basra, Iraq

2 Department of Pharmacognosy. College of Pharmacy, University of Baghdad, Baghdad, Iraq

Abstract

The Gundelia tournefortii is considered one of the plants that harbor the most bioactive components. They can potentially be used to treat several illnesses, especially those involving the antioxidant system. Few studies have dealt with these plants in Iraq. Therefore, this study aims to determine, extract, and investigate the bioactivity of some plant extracts. The aerial parts of the plant were collected from Sulaimani governorate, Iraq. The plant's methanolic extract was obtained using Soxhlet. The phenolic acid primary screening was conducted using phytochemical tests, followed by secondary screening using Reverse-Phase HPLC-UV-Vis. Two specific phenolic acid types, rutin and gallic acid, were isolated and identified using preparative liquid chromatography and HPLC, respectively, along with FTIR spectroscopy. Then, the antioxidant and IC50 value of the methanolic extract was measured. Several phenolic compounds were detected in variable volumes, including rutin (32.9 ppm), kaempferol (90.1 ppm), apigenin (51.4 ppm), gallic acid (71.4 ppm), quercetin (74.1 ppm), myricetin (44.3 ppm), and catechin (78.9 ppm). A high free radical scavenging activity for methanol extract (IC50 value of 381.189µg/mL), compared to the control (vitamin C: 416.667µg/mL), was obtained. These findings indicate that the methanolic extract exhibits superior antioxidant activity to vitamin C and shows the significance of the antioxidant effectivity of G. tournefortii, which can be potentially used as an antioxidant supplement. It is essential to note that this study is the first to successfully isolate rutin and gallic acid from the aerial parts of the Iraqi G. tournefortii.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

  1. Timothy M K.M., Mainaradi M.D. Complementary and alternative medicine_ Herbs, phytochemicals and vitamins and their immunologic effects – ScienceDirect. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 2009;123(2)283–294. doi: 10.1016/j.jaci.2008.12.023.
  2. Groden S.R., Woodward A.T., Chatters L.M., Tylor R.J. Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine among Older Adults_ Differences between Baby Boomers and Pre-Boomers – Science Direct. the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. 2017;25(12) 1393–1401.doi: 10.1016/j.jagp.2027.08.001.
  3. Dawood Y.A., Sabaa Ali S.A.M., Noor Almousawi U.M., Al-Hejjaj M.Y. Antioxidant activity and in-silico study of anthraquinone glycosides extracted from cassia fistula against the main protease (7BUY) in SARS-COV2. Biomedical and Pharmacology Journal. 2021;14(3)1669–1674.doi: 10.13005/bpj/2268.
  4. Al-Saadi S.A.M. Variations in Fatty Acid Methyl Ester Contents and Composition in Oil Seeds Gundelia Tournefortii L. (Asteraceae). Advances in Plants & Agriculture Research. 2017; 6(6). doi: 10.15406/apar.2017.06.00236.
  5. Abu-Lafi S., Rayan B., Kadan S., Abu-Lafi M., Rayan A. Anticancer activity and phytochemical composition of wild Gundelia tournefortii. Oncology Letters. 2019;17(1): 713–717. doi: 10.3892/ol.2018.9602.
  6. Lev-Yadun S., et al. Notes on economic plants. Economic Botany. 1999;53(2): 217–223. doi: 10.1007/BF02866501.
  7. Halabi S., Battah A.A., Aburjai T., Hudaib M. Phytochemical and antiplatelet investigation of Gundelia tournifortii. Pharmaceutical Biology. 2005;43(6). doi: 10.1080/13880200500220268.
  8. Çoruh N., Saǧdiçoǧlu Celep A.G., Özgökçe F., Işcan M. Antioxidant capacities of Gundelia tournefortii L. extracts and inhibition on glutathione-S-transferase activity. Food Chemistry. 2007;100(3):1249–1253. doi: 10.1016/J.FOODCHEM.2005.12.008.
  9. Samani M.A., Rafieian M.K., Azimi N. Gundelia: a systematic review of medicinal and molecular perspective. Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences. 2013;16(21):1238–1247. doi: 10.3923/PJBS.2013.1238.1247.
  10. Bagci E., Hayta S., Kilic O., Kocak A. Essential Oils of Two Varieties of Gundelia tournefortii L. (Asteraceae) from Turkey Asian Journal of Chemistry. 2010.
  11. Mohammadi G., Zangeneh M.M., Rashidi K., Zangeneh A. Evaluation of Nephroprotective and Antidiabetic Effects of Gundelia tournefortii Aqueous Extract on Diabetic Nephropathy in Male Mice. Research Journal of Pharmacognosy (RJP). 2018;5(4):65–73. doi: 10.22127/rjp.2018.69223.
  12. Ahmad Movahedian L.R.M.K.Z.H. (PDF) Effect of Gundelia tournefortii L. on some cardiovascular risk factors in an animal model. Journal of Herbmed Pharmacology. 2017; 6(4):191–195.
  13. Gezici S., Sekeroglu N. Comparative biological analyses on kenger and kenger coffee as novel functional food products. Journal Food Science and Technology. 2022;59(6):2328–2338. doi: 10.1007/s13197-021-05248-5.
  14. Haseeb Ahsan G.W. Reactive oxygen species_ role in the development of cancer and various chronic conditions – PMC. Journal of Carcinogenesis. 2006.
  15. Zaveri Nurulain T. Green tea and its polyphenolic catechins_ Medicinal uses in cancer and noncancer applications – ScienceDirect. Life Science. 2006;78(18): 2073–2080. doi: 10.1016/j.lfs.2005.12.006.
  16. Woodside I.Y.J. Antioxidants in health and disease – PMC. Journal of Clinical Pathology. 2001;54(3):176–186. doi: 10.1136/jcp.54.3.176.
  17. Shahidi F. Natural Antioxidants Chemistry, Health Effects, and Applications,’ AOCS Press, Urbana, 1997. - References - Scientific Research Publishing. Journals A-Z.1997.
  18. Tanya Abraham S.M. In Vitro Antioxidant Activity and Scavenging Effects of Cinnamomum Verum Leaf Extract Assayed by Different Methodologies- PDF- Antioxidant- Lipid Peroxidation. Food and Chemical Toxiology. 2006;44(2):198–206. doi: 10.1016/j.fct.2005.06.013.
  19. Lia F., Baron B. Analysis of Polyphenolic Composition, Antioxidant Power and Stress-Response Effects of Fractionated Perilla Leaf extract on cells in vitro. Biologics. 2025;5(1). doi: 103390/biologics5010002.
  20. Vasilis Valdramidis L.M.C.C.R.G. HPLC Analysis of Phenolic Compounds and Flavonoids with Overlapping Peaks – PMC. Food Technology & Biotechnology. 2020;58(1):12–19. doi: 10.17113/ftb.58.01.20.6395.
  21. Heal H.H., Al-Dallee Z.T., Khadim E.J. Extraction, Isolation and Identification of Luteolin Flavonoid from Vitex pseudonegundo leaves. in IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science. Institute of Physics. 2023. doi: 10.1088/1755-1315/1262/5/052016.
  22. Hatim Hamadanalla A.M.M. Phytochemical Screening of Leaves and Roots of Stylochiton Borumensis: A Medicinal Plant. Earth & Environmental Science Research & Reviews. 2019;2(1). doi: 10.33140/eesrr.02.01.03.
  23. Neama M.A.M., Dawood Y.A.H., Alsaad H.N. Exploring the photochemical composition of indigenous Capparis Genus species in Iraq. Multidisciplinary Science Journal. 2024;6(9).doi: 10.31893/multiscience.2024179.
  24. Jue-Liang Has S.N. Determination of Phenolic Compounds, Procyanidins, and Antioxidant Activity in Processed Coffea arabica L. Leaves. Foods. 2019; 9(389):4–8. doi: 10.33390/foods8090389.
  25. Lailatusy Syarifah A. Retnowati R. Characterization of Secondary Metabolites Profile of Flavonoid from Salam Leaves (Eugenia Polyantha) Using TLC and UV-Spectrophotometry. Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research (PSR). 2019;6(3):155–163. doi: 10.7454/psr.v6i3.4219.
  26. Malbaša R.V., Lončar E.S., Kolarov L.A. TLC Analysis of some Phenolic Compounds in Kombucha Beverage Apteff. 2004. doi: 10.2298/APT0435199M.
  27. Margarida Moldao D.I.S. Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) Spectroscopy as a Possible Rapid Tool to Evaluate Abiotic Stress Effects on Pineapple By-Products. MDPI Journals. 2019;9(19). doi: 10.3390/app9194141.
  28. Berger U.K.R.G. Antioxidant activity of some roasted foods – ScienceDirect. – Food Chemistry. 2001;72(2): 223–229. doi: 10.1016/s0308-8146(00)00226-0.
  29. Tarhan A., Firat M., Topal G. Comprehensive study of all Gundelia L. taxa existing in the globe: An insight on LC-MS/MS based phytochemical investigation and bioactivity potential of 22 species. Biochemical Systematic and Ecology. 2023;109:104672. doi: 10.1016/J.BSE.2023.104672.
  30. Chung Y., Chang C., Chao W., Lin C., Chou S. Antioxidative Activity and Safety of the 50 Ethanolic Extract from Red Bean Fermented by Bacillus subtilis IMR-NK1. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 2002;(50)8: 2454–2458. doi: 10.1021/jf011369q.
  31. Jaradat N., Al-Lahham S., Abualhasan M.N., Bakri A., Zaide H., Hammad J., Hussein F., Issa L., Mousa A., Speih R. Chemical Constituents, Antioxidant, Cyclooxygenase Inhibitor, and Cytotoxic Activities of Teucrium pruinosum Boiss. Essential Oil. Biomed Research International. 2018;2018. doi: 10.1155/2018/4034689.
  32. Nabavi M.A.E.S.M. Antioxidant activities of methanol extract of Sambucus ebulus L. flower – PubMed. Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences. 2009;12(5):447–450. doi: 10.3923/pjbs.2009.447.450.
  33. Du W., AnY., He X., Zhang D., He W. Protection of Kaempferol on Oxidative Stress-Induced Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cell Damage – PMC. Oxid Med Cell Longev. 2018:1. doi: 10.1155/2018/1610751.
  34. Kashyap P., Shikha D., Thakur M., Aneja A. Functionality of apigenin as a potent antioxidant with emphasis on bioavailability, metabolism, action mechanism and in vitro and in vivo studies (A review) PubMed. Journal of Food Biochemistry 2022; 46(4). doi: 10.1111/jfbc.13950.
  35. Souza R.P., Gimenes F., Ratti B.A., Kaplum V., Bruschi M.L., Nakamura C.V., Silia S.O., Marcia E.L. Oxidative Stress Triggered by Apigenin Induces Apoptosis in a Comprehensive Panel of Human Cervical Cancer-Derived Cell Lines – PMC. Oxidative Medicine and Celluar Longevity. 2017;1:2017. doi: 10.1155/2017/1512745.
  36. Rusmana D., Wahyudianingsih R., Elisabeth M., Balqis B., Maesaroh M., Widowati W. Antioxidant Activity of Phyllanthus niruri Extract, Rutin and Quercetin _ Rusmana _ The Indonesian Biomedical Journal. The Indonesian Biomedical Journal. 2017;9(2). doi: 10.18585/inabj.v9i2.281.
  37. Taheri Y., Matrins N., Sytar O., Beyalti A., Yeskaliyeva B., Seitimova G., Salehi B., Semwal P., Painuli S., Kumar A., Azzini E., Martorell M., Sharifi-Rad Y.T. Myricetin bioactive effects_ moving from preclinical evidence to potential clinical applications _ BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies. _ Full Text. BMC Complement Med Ther. 2020;20(1). doi: 10.1186/s12906-020-03033-z.
  38. Bae J., Kim N., Shin Y., Kim S.-Y., Kim Y.-J. Activity of catechins and their applications. Biomedical Dermatology. 2020;4(1). doi: 10.1186/s41702-020-0057-8.
Journal of Medicinal plants and By-products
Volume 14, Issue 6
November and December 2025
Pages 647-653

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics