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Parkinson's disease (PD) is a multifactorial ailment that severely affects the viability of dopaminergic neurons leading to progressive loss of motor control. The current regimen for PD treatment includes synthetic drugs that lack efficacy and cause serious side effects. Consequently, recent drug development studies are focusing on alternative medicines from plant sources. Artemisia pallens Wall. ex DC, commonly known as davana, is an annual aromatic herb cultivated in southern India. Given the diverse traditional and scientifically documented therapeutic effects of A. pallens, the pharmacological potential of the isolates of the plant, namely bicyclogermacrene (D1), cis-davanone (D3), and cis-hydroxy davanone (D5), was tested for anti-Parkinson's activity in Caenorhabditis elegans model. The tested compounds alleviated α-synuclein (α-syn) aggregation and maximum decline was observed in 25 μM D1 supplemented worms. Additionally, D1 modulated dopamine regulated nonanol-1 repulsion and locomotory behaviour of C. elegans validating its future use as a dopamine-enhancing agent. The genetic regulation mediating the above effects validated through the qPCR study showed that D1 supplementation displayed its anti-Parkinson's effect through upregulation of the antioxidant defence system genes (superoxide dismutase (sod)-1, sod-2, and sod-4) and PD associated pdr-1 gene that maintains the mitochondrial proteostasis. The molecular docking studies of C. elegans PDR-1 with D1 further confirmed its contribution in D1 induced abridgment of Parkinson disease linked pathologies in C. elegans disease model. Hence, this article proposes D1 as an effective regimen for curtailing the Parkinson disease linked pathologies through mechanism of maintaining cellular redox state and proteostasis., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest All the authors raise no conflict of interest concerning the contents presented in the current manuscript., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Artemisia pallens Wall. ex DC., popularly known as davana, has gained considerable attention because of its unique fragrance, high economic value, and pharmacological properties. The compositional complexity of davana essential oil (DO) has been a challenge for quality control. In this study, the chemical profile of DO was developed using polarity-based fractionation and a combination of gas chromatographic (GC-FID), hyphenated chromatographic (GC/MS), and spectroscopic (Fourier-Transform Infra-Red, 1D, 2D-Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) techniques. The analysis led to the identification of ninety-nine compounds. Major components of the DO were cis-davanone (D3, 53.0 %), bicyclogermacrene (6.9 %), trans-ethyl cinnamate (4.9 %), davana ether isomer (3.4 %), spathulenol (2.8 %), cis-hydroxy davanone (2.4 %), and trans-davanone (2.1 %). The study led to identifying several co-eluting novel minor components, which could help determine the authenticity of DO. The rigorous column-chromatography led to the isolation of five compounds. Among these, bicyclogermacrene, trans-ethyl cinnamate, and spathulenol were isolated and characterized by spectroscopic methods for the first time from DO. Pharmacological profile revealed that the treatment of DO and D3 inhibited the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-6) induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in primary macrophages without any cytotoxic effect after administration of their effective concentrations. The result of this study indicates the suitability of DO and D3 for further investigation for the treatment of chronic skin inflammatory conditions., (© 2021 Wiley-VHCA AG, Zurich, Switzerland.)

Artemisia pallens Wall. ex DC, commonly known as davana, is cultivated in India for extraction of its essential oil (DO). In this study, DO collected from thirteen locations (DO1-DO13) and those extracted from six different phenophases and different plant parts were investigated using GC-FID and GC-MS. Altogether, 84 constituents were identified, forming 81.0–96.2% of the total oil composition. Major components of the oils were cis-davanone (17.4–65.1%), bicyclogermacrene (4.0–22.0%), cis-methyl jasmonate (0.4–8.5%), β-eudesmol (0.3–6.6%), davana ether isomer (0.5–6.1%), trans-ethyl cinnamate (1.4–6.1%), and germacrene D (0.1–4.7%). Among all tested oils, the DO10, having low cis-davanone content (27.5%), was found more potent against test microorganisms. The oils collected from different locations showed variations in their physical properties, chemical composition, and antimicrobial activity. Based on the yield and cis-davanone content, the flower bud and full-flowering stages could be suitable for harvesting good quality oil in north Indian plains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Essential oils isolated fromArtemisia gmeliniiWeb. ex Stechm,Artemisia roxburghianaBess. var.purpurascens(Jacq.) Hook andArtemisia maritimaL. were analyzed using gas chromatography (GC) and GC–mass spectrometry (GC–MS).Artemisia gmelinii,A. roxburghianaandA. maritimayielded 1.43%, 0.77–0.90% and 1.67% essential oil, respectively. In all, ninety-two constituents, representing 95.6–99.1% of the total oil compositions of differentArtemisiaspp., were identified. Major constituents ofA. gmeliniioil were artemisia ketone (40.7%),cis-chrysanthenyl acetate (21.3%), 1,8-cineole (11.0%) and pinocarvone (8.9%). The oil ofA. roxburghianacontained borneol (2.1–18.5%), α-thujone (0.2–13.1%), artemisia alcohol (5.2–11.6%), β-eudesmol (5.0–11.6%), eucarvone (2.0–8.9%), caryophyllene oxide (3.5–8.8%), 1,8-cineole (3.2–8.1%),cis-sabinene hydrate (4.5–7.1%),cis-chrysanthenyl acetate (0.2–5.4%) and terpinen-4-ol (2.2–5.2%) as main constituents. However, the oil ofA. maritimawas rich in thujones (α-thujone 72.1%, β-thujone 8.4%). The oils of the investigatedArtemisiaspp. showed considerable variations in their chemical compositions compared with earlier reports. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]