Planta Med 2016; 82(S 01): S1-S381
DOI: 10.1055/s-0036-1596478
Abstracts
Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York

Antioxidant capacity and cytotoxicity of different polyphenolic extracts of Pistacia lentiscus

MC Marzano
1   Department of Plant, Soil and Environmental Sciences, University of Florence, Viale delle Idee 30, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Florence), Italy
,
A Gori
1   Department of Plant, Soil and Environmental Sciences, University of Florence, Viale delle Idee 30, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Florence), Italy
2   Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro 2, 53100 Siena (SI), Italy
3   Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection, The National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Florence), Italy
4   Trees and Timber Institute, The National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Florence), Italy
,
MC Baratto
2   Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro 2, 53100 Siena (SI), Italy
,
S Lamponi
2   Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro 2, 53100 Siena (SI), Italy
,
M Tattini
3   Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection, The National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Florence), Italy
,
C Brunetti
4   Trees and Timber Institute, The National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Florence), Italy
,
F Ferrini
1   Department of Plant, Soil and Environmental Sciences, University of Florence, Viale delle Idee 30, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Florence), Italy
› Author Affiliations
Further Information

Publication History

Publication Date:
14 December 2016 (online)

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In the Mediterranean areas plants need to face with stressful conditions, such as drought stress, that lead to the evolution of a suite of biochemical features enhancing their adaptation in such harsh environments. As a result, these plants synthesize a wide variety of carbon based secondary compounds (CBSC). They have important antioxidant properties with many potential pharmaceutical applications. In this context Pistacia lentiscus L., which belongs to the Anacardiaceae family, has long been used in the Mediterranean folk medicine [1]. However, there are only limited scientific studies on its efficacy as antioxidant and its ex vivo nontoxicity. This study reports the polyphenolic content, the antioxidant capacity and cytotoxicity of different fractionated extracts of P. lentiscus leaves [2, 3]. To asses this we obtained three enriched extracts differing in polyphenolic composition. In particular, we obtained an ethanolic crude extract, water (enriched in tannins) and ethyl acetate (enriched in flavonoids) fractions. We then characterized their composition through LC-MS/MS (Liquid Chromatography-tandem Mass Spectrometry) and evaluated their antioxidant activity through the DPPH (1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazil radical) assay with electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. Finally, fibroblasts cell line NIH3T3 was used to evaluate the ex vivo cytotoxicity of the leaf extracts. Our results reveal that all the extracts are not cytotoxic, displaying an IC50 value ≤2 (v/v %). Furthermore, all the fractions are good to scavenge DPPH-radical. In particular, the tannin-enriched-fraction displays the highest EC50 value, even compared with the pure standard (gallic acid). Based on these results we hypothesize a synergistic antioxidant effect of galloyl tannins present in P. lentiscus. In conclusion, this study is a preliminary step that will ask for future analysis aimed to fully understand the in vivo antioxidant properties of these different extracts.

Keywords: Pistacia lentiscus, DPPH, antioxidant activity, EPR, cytoxicity, pharmacological use.

References:

[1] Romani A, Pinelli P, Mulinacci N, Vincieri FF, Tattini M. Identification and quantification of galloyl derivatives, flavonoid glycosides and anthocyanins in leaves of Pistacia lentiscus L. Phytochem Anal 2002; 13: 79 – 86

[2] Baratto MC, Tattini M, Galardi C, Pinelli P, Romani A, Visioli F. Antioxidant activity of galloyl quinic derivatives isolated from Pistacia lentiscus leaves. Free Radical Res 2003; 37: 405 – 412

[3] Agati G, Azzarello E, Pollastri S, Tattini M. Flavonoids as antioxidants in plants: location and functional significance. Plant Sci 2012; 196: 67 – 76

[4] P. lentiscus has long been used in the ethno- or popular-medicine of Mediterranean people (El-Kamali and Khalid, 1996; Amico and Sorce, 1997).