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The intention of this study was to compare the different parts of Tunisian Ferula communis via their fatty acids, essential oils and phenolic compounds. Results showed that the lipid fraction of fruits and leaves was characterized by the predominance of oleic acid. Erucic and linoleic acids were the most abundant in stems while linoleic and palmitic acids in flowers. F. communis essential oils were defined by four chemotypes, namely isoshyobunone/6-tert-butyl-4-methylcoumarin in stems; α-eudesmol/ caryophyllene oxide in leaves; caryophyllene/myrcene in flowers and α-gurjunene/hexadecanoic acid in fruits. So, oxygenated sesquiterpenes and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons represented the major classes of stem essential oil. Monoterpene hydrocarbons were the predominant classes of leaves and flowers. Fruit essential oil was predominated by sesquiterpene hydrocarbons. Resorcinol and ferulic acid were the main phenolic compounds in flowers but chlorogenic and ferulic acides in leaves. Stems were rich in ferulic acid and quercetin while leaves in coumarin and tannic acid. Besides to the high variability among F. communis parts, this plant contained high amounts of bioactive compounds with various health benefits attributed to their antioxidant potential.

Introduction Synthetic colourants are subject to various allergies. As a result, the use of plant-based additives has proved promising. Objective It is in this perspective that our objective was undertaken to investigate natural colourants from edible cactus. Opuntia species populations were single-sequence repeat (SSR) fingerprinted, the analysis of betalains and phenolic compounds and the evaluation of their biological potentials were also characterised. Results Photometric quantification of betalains and phenols showed an interspecific variation across Opuntia species. Opuntia ficus indica fruits showed the highest betalain [betaxanthins; 843.67 and betacyanins; 1400 mg/100 g dry weight (DW)] and polyphenol contents. Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) analysis showed that the variation of individual phenols profile was influenced by interspecific and genetic factors. Isorhamnetin-O-(di-deoxyhexosyl-hexoside) was the major compound and its content varied according to Opuntia species, while catechol was the predominant phenolic compound in O. humifusa with 1.88 μg/g DW. Concerning cactus species, Opuntia colourants exhibited a potent antiradical activity [half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50 ) up to 1 μg/mL]. Opuntia species were effective against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains [inhibition zone (IZ) up to 27 mm]. A high genetic diversity within Opuntia genotypes based on SSR markers was revealed. UPGMA (unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean) dendrogram and PCoA (principal coordinate analysis) based on natural pigments and antimicrobial profiles indicated significant variation. The correlation approach proved the presence of a probably metabolic relationship between genetic markers, pigments and their biological activities. Conclusion A possible association between molecular approach and metabolic profile analysis of Opuntia allows tracing the relationship among species for its genetic conservation.

Artemisia herba-alba (Aha) is an aromatic and medicinal plant rich in health-promoting flavonoids compounds that play an important role as antioxidant. For better utilization of this resource, the ...

This study aimed to determine the chemical composition of methanolic extracts of thirteen Eucalyptus species leaves cultivated in north east of Tunisia and their antioxidant activity was also inves...

Glaucium flavum (Papaveraceae) is a halophyte which is known for its high importance in phytomedicine and ecology. In this work, phytochemical analysis, as well as antioxidant, antiproliferative and anti-inflammatory effects were investigated for EOH, EA and PE fractions of G. flavum shoots. Results showed that total polyphenol amounts were highest in EOH fraction (158.3 mg GAE/g DR) followed by EA and PE. This latter fraction was rich in flavonoids (128.43 mg CE/g DR), however EA produced more condensed tannins (19.83 mg CE/g DR) than other fractions. In addition, seven molecules (phenolics) have been identified: kaempferol, caffeic acid, catechin hydrate, syringic acid, chlorogenic acid, isoquercitrin, and trans-hydroxycinnamic acid. Concerning antioxidant effects, ethanol fraction was distinguished by a high total antioxidant activity (432.58 mg GAE/g DR), a lower iron reducing power (EC50 = 800 µg/ml), a capacity to inhibit the β-carotene bleaching (IC50 = 48.78 µg/ml), and an important antiradical activity (IC50 = 140 µg/ml). In addition, PE, EA and EOH fractions have strong antiproliferative effect against MCF-7 cells but with superiority of EA fraction (IC50 = 135 µg/ml). EA showed also a high anti-inflammatory effect with an amount of NO which is equal to around 29 and 20 µM/ml NO at 50 and 100 µg/ml, respectively.

Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) seeds oils (PSO) from three Tunisian varieties namely Jebali, Testouri, and Gabsi were extracted by ultrasonic-assisted extraction and analyzed for their physicochemical properties, fatty acids (FA) profile, and sterol composition. PSO of Gabsi and Testouri showed the best quality indexes in terms of peroxide and acid values and the highest oxidative stability index was observed for PSO of Gabsi ecotype (2.534 hr). Polyphenol content of PSO of Gabsi ecotype (886.909 mg/kg) was roughly 3 and 23 times higher than that of Jebali and Testouri ecotypes, respectively. Twelve FAs were identified by GC/FID. Punicic acid was the major compounds ranged from 81.53% (Testouri) to 86.41% (Gabsi). The unsaturated/saturated FA ratios of PSO were 14.53, 15.95, and 18.68, respectively for Gabsi, Testouri, and Jebali, respectively. Phytosterols were also identified and β-sitosterol was the major compound in PSO. In addition, the phytochemical and antioxidant properties of phenolic extracts obtained from pomegranate seeds residues were investigated. Pomegranate seeds extract (PSE) of Gabsi cultivar showed the highest content of polyphenols (64.762 mg CAE/g) and flavonoids (7.127 mg RE/g). Antioxidant potential of extracts was performed using DPPH test and total antioxidant capacity (TAC). Results revealed that Gabsi cultivar was the most reactive extract with EC50 of 0.105 mg/mL for DPPH test and 40.622 mg AA/g for TAC. Phenolic profiles of PSE were also investigated. Results showed the importance of cultivar selection in the potential use of bioactive compounds of seeds as nutraceutical ingredients in food and chemical industries. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Three Tunisian pomegranate cultivars namely Jebali, Testouri, and Gabsi were investigated for their seeds oil and phenolic composition. Pomegranate seeds oil (PSO) are rich in bioactive polyunsaturated fatty acids and phytosterols that can be of interest in several food and chemical industrial applications. Moreover, pomegranate seeds extracts are a natural source of antioxidant components, such as phenolic compounds, that can be used by the pharmaceutical industry as promising nutraceutical ingredients. The obtained results can be used to provide guidance on cultivar selection during industrial applications.

Thymus capitatus has traditionally been considered as an anthelmintic, antispasmodic, carminative, emmenagogue, expectorant, rubefactient, sedative, stimulant, and tonic. This work was carried out to determine total polyphenol and total flavonoids chemical composition of phenolics and to evaluate the antioxidant activities of the methanolic extract. Total phenolic contents were assayed using the Folin–Ciocalteu reagent, total flavonoid content was measured spectrophotometrically and phenolics were analyzed by reverse phase–high performance liquid chromatography. The 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl and reducing power were calculated. Total phenols and total flavonoids varied significantly among the studied regions. Chromatographic analysis by reverse phase–high performance liquid chromatography showed that phenolic acids: tannic, gallic, chlorogenic hemihydrate, caffeic, syringic, ferulic, p-coumaric acid, and trans-cinnamic rosmarinic were the main compounds. The anti-radical activity was region-dependent a...

The aim of this study was to determine the chemical variability of wormwood extracts as affected by the growing region. Antioxidant and antimicrobial activities were also investigated. The essential oil composition variability ofA. absinthiumL. aerial parts collected from four different Tunisian regions was assessed by gas chromatography (GC/FID) and by gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC/MS). In addition, total polyphenols, flavonoids, and condensed tannins as well as antioxidant, antibacterial, and antifungal activities of methanolic extract and essential oils were undertaken. Chromatographic analysis of wormwood essential oils showed the predominance of monoterpene hydrocarbons represented mainly by chamazulene. RP-HPLC analysis of wormwood methanolic extract revealed the predominance of phenolic acids. Antiradical activity was region-dependant and the methanolic extract of Bou Salem region has the strongest activity (CI50=9.38±0.82 µg/mL). Concerning the reducing power, the methanolic extract of Bou Salem, Jérissa, and Boukornine regions was more active than the positive control. Obtained results of antimicrobial activities showed that wormwood essential oil is endowed with important antibacterial activity which was strongly related to the organoleptic quality of oil which appeared strongly region-dependant.A. absinthiumL. EOs investigated are quite interesting from a pharmaceutical standpoint because of their biological activities.

Variation in metabolite composition and content is often observed in citrus, however, it is poorly understood to what extent this variation has a genetic basis. C. aurantium genotypes originating from Tunisia were evaluated to detect genomic (SSR markers) and chemotypic polymorphisms and to discover possible associations between them. A total of fifteen highly polymorphic SSR markers were selected to screen the genetic variability of the most widespread sour orange genotypes. Targeted secondary metabolite profiling analysis generated twenty-one compounds differentially accumulated in the leaves of sour orange genotypes. PCA analysis revealed that genomic and chemotypic data generated similar pattern of clustering, highlighting the intra-specific variability in C. aurantium species. Both data were integrated, leading to the identification of associated SSR alleles with secondary metabolites. Based on results, a relatively high correlation (r = 0.381; p