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Herpes simplex virus (HSV) can infect millions of people worldwide causing mild to life-threating infections. The current study demonstrates the first comparative anti-HSV type 1 activity and phytochemical investigation of Artemisia herba-alba and Thymus capitatus collected from Egypt and Libya. Liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) analysis allowed the identification of 56 and 38 compounds in the Egyptian and Libyan Artemisia herba-alba ethanolic extracts, respectively, in addition to 46 and 50 compounds in the Egyptian and Libyan Thymus capitatus ethanolic extracts, respectively. Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis of their corresponding essential oils revealed the presence of 15, 17, 17 and 8 compounds in Egyptian and Libyan Artemisia herba-alba and Thymus capitatus, respectively. The major chemical classes of the identified compounds were phenolic acids, flavonoids and oxygenated monoterpenes. Evaluation of the anti-HSV1 activities of the studied extracts showed that the Egyptian Thymus capitatus ethanolic extracts were the most potent extract with more than 200-fold reduction in the viral PFU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artemisia herba-alba is widely used in traditional medicines for the treatment of several diseases. From the aerial parts organic extract of A. herba-alba, two new compounds, 1,3,8-trihydroxyeudesm-4-en-7α,11βH-12,6α-olide (1) and 5-β-​D-​glucopyranosyloxy​-​7-methoxy-​6H-​benzopyran-​2-​one (2), respectively, together with five known metabolites: 3α,8β-dihydroxygermacr-4(15),9(10)-dien-7β,11αH,12,6α-olide (3), 1β,8α-dihydroxy-11α,13-dihydrobalchanin (4), 11-epiartapshin (5), tomenin (6) and benzoic acid, p-​(β-​D-​glucopyranosyloxy)​-​methyl ester (7), were isolated and identified. The chemical structures were proven depending upon spectroscopic analysis, including 1 D/2D NMR as and ESI-MS. Compound 1 inhibited Gram-positive bacteria Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus. Compounds 2 and 3 exhibited antibacterial activity against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, total phenolic and flavonoid contents, acute toxicity and the antinociceptive activity of Artemisia campestris and Artemisia herba-alba, individually and in combination, were investigated using multiple forms of pain in animals. Our results have been shown that plants are relatively safe without clinical signs of toxicity in animals. Thus, extracts were presented high levels in phenolic and flavonoid contents. Artemisia decoctions with 100, 200, 400 mg/kg b-w studied dose, clearly attenuate chemical and thermal noxious stimuli in writhing, formalin and hot-plate tests, and significantly reduced paw oedema in formalin test. Additionally, binary combination forms exhibited a great improvement in intensity and amplitude of antinociceptive activity in comparison with both plants used individually by a relative interference with opioid system. Our findings suggested the central and peripheral analgesic properties and confirmed the folkloric medicinal use of these plants in pain symptom treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]