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It is known that Celtis species have been used in healing wound, epilepsy crisis, and stomach pain among the people. The antiradical (DPPH, OH, ABTS) activities, phytochemical compounds (total proanthocyanidin, total flavonoid, total phenolic, flavonoids, phenolic acids, sterols, lipid soluble vitamins, fatty acids), antimicrobial, antiproliferative (MCF-7, HCT-116, A2780, PC-3) activities of water, ethanol, methanol extracts of C. tournefortii fruits were evaluated in this study. All the C. tournefortii fruit water extracts were higher scavenged OH radical than standard antioxidant BHT. It was detected that C. tournefortii includes high amount of α-tocopherol (2.65 mg/kg), vitamin D (10.05 mg/kg), ergosterol (78.70 mg/kg), stigmasterol (185.90 mg/kg), unsaturated fatty acids (74.47 %). C. tournefortii extracts showed antiproliferative activity on MCF-7, HCT-116, A2780, PC-3 cancer cell lines and antimicrobial activity on some microorganisms when compared to standard antibiotics. Also, this study is the first report about phytochemical contents, antiproliferative, antimicrobial, antiradical properties of C. tournefortii fruits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We explored the temporal effects of fruit consumption on the subsequent seed germination pattern of a fleshy-fruited tree, the Chinese hackberry ( Celtis sinensis). Via nursery-based sowing experiments, we investigated (1) how pulp removal affected seed germination patterns at the different stages of fruit maturation, and (2) how the timing of seed dispersal (August, October, and December) affected the germination patterns of seeds from ripe fruits after the removal of pulp. We found that the removal of pulp from around the seeds of ripe fruit had no effect on the percentage and timing of germination. In contrast, the removal of pulp from seeds of unripe fruits largely reduced the germination percentage. The time of sowing did not affect the germination percentage, whereas the timing of germination was delayed for seeds that were sown later or under shaded environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to identify phytohormones involved in the initiation and maintenance of galls on the hackberry tree, Celtis occidentalis (Ulmaceae), in the presence of the insect Pachypsylla celtidis (Psyllidae); endogenous levels of cytokinins (CKs) and abscisic acid (ABA) were measured in the tissues of leaves, galls, and larval insects using liquid-chromatography-tandem-mass-spectrometry. The CKs isopentenyl adenine, isopentenyl adenosine, trans-zeatin and cis-zeatin, were extremely concentrated in insect larvae compared to surrounding tissue of leaves and galls. ABA concentrations in the insects were also relatively high at about 3268 pmol•g-1 fresh mass - approximately 25 times higher than in leaves, and 17 times higher than in galls. This represents a novel case of high concentrations of ABA being found in a larval insect. These findings indicate that manipulation of CK and ABA are involved in the initiation and maintenance of hackberry galls in the presence of larval P. celtidis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]