CHEMICAL PROFILE OF ¨MARAVILLA¨ AND ITS MEDICINAL POTENTIAL

VERNI C.; SIMÃO MATOS T.; SOSA A. M.; ALBERTO M. R.; BLÁZQUEZ M. A. ; SUSSULINI A.; ARENA M. E.; CARTAGENA E.

BIOCELL

BIOCELL

Año: 2024

Flourensia fiebrigii S.F. Blake (Asteraceae) popularly known as “Maravilla” is a species that grows in high altitude areas in the of northwestern Argentina, and is characterized by presenting resinous exudates and yellow capitula. Among its biological properties, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and antirheumatic activities were previously reported. The objective of this work was to investigate the volatile and non-volatile chemical profile of 8 extracts with different polarities, obtained from leaves, flowers and roots of a chemotype that grows in the Cañón del Ocre, La Rioja, Argentina, as well as their antipathogenic and antioxidant properties. The obtained extracts were analyzed by GC-MS and UHPLC-MS/MS techniques. GC-MS profile revealed the presence of encecalin in the ethereal extract from flowers, and this benzopyran together with sitosterol were identified in the ethereal exudate of the leaves (EXF). The main compounds identified by UHPLC-MS/MS in both extracts were: limocitrin, (2Z)-4,6-dihydroxy-2-[(4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxyphenyl)methylidene]-1-benzofuran-3-one, isobavachin, naringenin and sternbin. All samples from the aerial parts exhibited significant activity against pathogenic biofilms of indigenous and ATCC bacteria, particularly EXF at 50 µg/mL reduced 99.7-99.9% the Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms and between 74.7-93.2% those of Staphylococcus aureus. A fact to highlight is that the phytoextracts did not affect the growth of nutraceutical bacteria of the genus Lactobacillus, suggesting a clear selective action. Regarding the antioxidant activity, determined by different methods, EXF showed the highest capacity to eliminate reactive species. This study provides useful information about the potential of this chemotype in health.