Algerian Bunium incrassatum Seeds: Effects of Extraction Solvent Polarity on Phenolic Profile and Antioxidant Activity

Abstract

Bunium incrassatum, vernacularly called ‘Talghouda’ is one of the most important plant species of the traditional Algerian pharmacopeia, used for medicinal and culinary purposes. Despite of its benefits, it still remains a scientifically neglected species, especially with regards to the phytochemical profile. The present study aims to evaluate the antioxidant potentials of Bunium incrassatum seeds’ extracts prepared in different solvents with increasing polarities. The antioxidant potentials of extracts were measured using DPPH and β-carotene Bleaching assays. Total phenolic, flavonoid, and tannin contents were also spectrophotometrically determined. The phenolic profiles were screened through RP-HPLC. Methanol extract showed the highest DPPH scavenging potential and also the highest inhibitory potential against β-carotene bleaching (IC50=0.15±0.02 and 0.41±0.03 mg/mL, respectively). Thirteen phenolic compounds were identified, a flavanol (catechin), two flavonols (kaempferol, quercetin), two flavanones (hesperetin, naringenin) and eight phenolic acids: caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, ellagic acid, ferulic acid, gallic acid, p-coumaric acid, sinapic acid, and syringic acid. These results support the few previous studies showing that Bunium incrassatum, as an endemic species, is considered as a good source of bioactive compounds that requires further investigations.

Keywords

• Bunium incrassatum
• seeds
• phenolic compounds
• antioxidant potential
• RP-HPLC.

References

1. 1. Carocho M, Morales P, Ferreira ICFR. Natural food additives: Quo vadis? Trends in Food Science & Technology. 2015 Oct;45(2):284–95.
2. 2. Khatua S, Mitra P, Chandra S, Acharya K. In Vitro Protective Ability of Ramaria aurea Against Free Radical and Identification of Main Phenolic Acids by HPLC. Journal of Herbs, Spices & Medicinal Plants. 2015 Oct 2;21(4):380–91.
3. 3. Ramchoun M, Sellam K, Harnafi H, Alem C, Benlyas M, Khallouki F, et al. Investigation of antioxidant and antihemolytic properties of Thymus satureioides collected from Tafilalet Region, south-east of Morocco. Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine. 2015 Feb;5(2):93–100.
4. 4. Hammoudi N, Hafid H, Moumen Y, Chentouh S, Djebaili H, Boulahbel S. Effect of organic materials extract from Buniumincrassatum (Talghouda) roots on hematological and histological parameters of the adrenal glands in the pregnant rabbits, Oryctolaguscuniculus. Journal of New Technology and Materials. 2020;10(1):38–43.
5. 5. Taïbi K, Ait Abderrahim L, Helal F, Hadji K. Ethnopharmacological study of herbal remedies used for the management of thyroid disorders in Algeria. Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal. 2021 Jan;29(1):43–52.
6. 6. Halimi A. Les plantes médicinales en Algérie. Ed Berti, Algérie. 2004;42.
7. 7. Bousetla A, Zellagui A, Derouiche K, Rhouati S. Chemical constituents of the roots of Algerian Bunium incrassatum and evaluation of its antimicrobial activity. Arabian Journal of Chemistry. 2015 May;8(3):313–6.
8. 8. Robin M. Enquête sur le niveau de vie des populations rurales constantinoises de la conquête jusqu’en 1919. Essai d’histoire économique et sociale. 1962;

9. 9. Attoui N, Berroukeche F, Toul F. Effect of the roots of Algerian Bunium incrassatum on biological, biochemical and histological parameters of mature female rats. Plant Archives. 2021 Apr;21:201–9.
10. 10. Hayet EK, Hocine L, Meriem EK. Chemical composition and biological activities of the essential oils and the methanolic extracts of Bunium incrassatum and Bunium alpinum from Algeria. J Chil Chem Soc. 2017 Mar;62(1):3335–41.
11. 11. Khadidja D, Zouina D, Saliha D, Anis B, Abd Raouf M, Seddik K. A Contribution to the Valorization of Two Medicinal Plants: Atriplex Halimus Sub. Sp. Schweinfurthii and Bunium Incrassatum, Growing in the Region of M’sila (North-East Algeria). Indian Journal of Novel Drug Delivery. 2021;12(4):208–16.
12. 12. Bousetla A, Kurkcuoglu M, Konuklugil B, Baser KHC, Rhouati S. Composition of Essential Oil from Bunium incrassatum from Algeria. Chem Nat Compd. 2014 Oct;50(4):753–5.
13. 13. Singleton V. Colorimetry of total phenolics with phosphomolybdic-phosphotungstic acid reagents. Meth Enzymol. 1999;299:152–78.
14. 14. Zhishen J, Mengcheng T, Jianming W. The determination of flavonoid contents in mulberry and their scavenging effects on superoxide radicals. Food Chemistry. 1999 Mar;64(4):555–9.
15. 15. Julkunen-Tiitto R. Phenolic constituents in the leaves of northern willows: methods for the analysis of certain phenolics. J Agric Food Chem. 1985 Mar;33(2):213–7.
16. 16. Sánchez-Moreno C, Larrauri JA, Saura-Calixto F. A procedure to measure the antiradical efficiency of polyphenols. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture. 1998;76(2):270–6.
17. 17. Moure A, Franco D, Sineiro J, Domínguez H, Núñez MJ, Lema JM. Evaluation of Extracts from Gevuina avellana Hulls as Antioxidants. J Agric Food Chem. 2000 Sep 1;48(9):3890–7.
18. 18. Hertog MGL, Hollman PCH, Venema DP. Optimization of a quantitative HPLC determination of potentially anticarcinogenic flavonoids in vegetables and fruits. J Agric Food Chem. 1992 Sep;40(9):1591–8.
19. 19. Dai J, Mumper RJ. Plant Phenolics: Extraction, Analysis and Their Antioxidant and Anticancer Properties. Molecules. 2010 Oct 21;15(10):7313–52.
20. 20. Pedrosa MC, Ueda JM, Heleno S, Melgar B, Ivanov M, Soković M, et al. Antimicrobial Activity of Aqueous Plant Extracts as Potential Natural Additives. Proceedings. 2020 Nov 9;70(1):79.
21. 21. Toul F, Moussouni S, Ghembaza N, Zitouni A, Djendar A, Atik-Bekkara F, et al. Identification of phenolic compounds in the buds of Algerian Pistacia atlantica desf. Subsp. atlantica by antioxidant activity guided fractionation. Journal of Complementary and Integrative Medicine [Internet]. 2021 Sep 6 [cited 2022 Mar 5];0(0).
22. 22. Roselló-Soto E, Martí-Quijal F, Cilla A, Munekata P, Lorenzo J, Remize F, et al. Influence of Temperature, Solvent and pH on the Selective Extraction of Phenolic Compounds from Tiger Nuts by-Products: Triple-TOF-LC-MS-MS Characterization. Molecules. 2019 Feb 22;24(4):797.
23. 23. Adelifar N, Rezanejad F. A comparative study of essential oil constituents, total phenolics and antioxidant capacity of the different organs of four species of the genus bunium. Flavour Fragr J. 2021 May;36(3):384–94.
24. 24. Küçükbay FZ, Teki̇n Z. Evaluation of phytochemical contents and antioxidant activity of pomegranate flower. Journal of the Turkish Chemical Society Section A: Chemistry. 2020 Feb 15;7(1):37–42.
25. 25. Zengin G, Paksoy MY, Aumeeruddy MZ, Glamocilja J, Sokovic M, Diuzheva A, et al. New insights into the chemical profiling, cytotoxicity and bioactivity of four Bunium species. Food Research International. 2019 Sep;123:414–24.
26. 26. Benamar H, Marouf A, Bennaceur M. Phytochemical composition, antioxidant and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activities of aqueous extract and fractions of Pistacia atlantica subsp. atlantica from Algeria. Journal of Herbs, Spices & Medicinal Plants. 2018 Jul 3;24(3):229–44.
27. 27. Hajimehdipoor H, Shahrestani R, Shekarchi M. Investigating the synergistic antioxidant effects of some flavonoid and phenolic compounds. Research Journal of Pharmacognosy. 2014;1(3):35–40.
28. 28. Hou J, Liang L, Su M, Yang T, Mao X, Wang Y. Variations in phenolic acids and antioxidant activity of navel orange at different growth stages. Food Chemistry. 2021 Oct;360:129980.
29. 29. Kim JY, Jung KJ, Choi JS, Chung HY. Hesperetin: A Potent Antioxidant Against Peroxynitrite. Free Radical Research. 2004 Jul;38(7):761–9.
30. 30. Cayman Chemical 2021 [Internet]. Cayman Chemical. 2021. Available from: https://www.caymanchem.com/Home
31. 31. Heleno SA, Martins A, Queiroz MJRP, Ferreira ICFR. Bioactivity of phenolic acids: Metabolites versus parent compounds: A review. Food Chemistry. 2015 Apr;173:501–13. 32. Toul F, Belyagoubi-Benhammou N, Zitouni A, Atik-Bekkara F. Antioxidant activity and phenolic profile of different organs of Pistacia atlantica Desf. subsp. atlantica from Algeria. Natural Product Research. 2017 Mar 19;31(6):718–23.
32. 33. Ackland ML, Van De Waarsenburg S, Jones R. Synergistic antiproliferative action of the flavonols quercetin and kaempferol in cultured human cancer cell lines. In vivo. 2005;19(1):69–76.
33. 34. Campbell JK, King JL, Harmston M, Lila MA, Erdman JW. Synergistic Effects of Flavonoids on Cell Proliferation in Hepa-1c1c7 and LNCaP Cancer Cell Lines. J Food Science. 2006 May;71(4):S358–63.
34. 35. Mertens-Talcott SU, Talcott ST, Percival SS. Low Concentrations of Quercetin and Ellagic Acid Synergistically Influence Proliferation, Cytotoxicity and Apoptosis in MOLT-4 Human Leukemia Cells–. The Journal of Nutrition. 2003 Aug 1;133(8):2669–74.
35. 36. Baran A, Yildirim S, Ghosigharehaghaji A, Bolat İ, Sulukan E, Ceyhun S. An approach to evaluating the potential teratogenic and neurotoxic mechanism of BHA based on apoptosis induced by oxidative stress in zebrafish embryo (Danio rerio). Hum Exp Toxicol. 2021 Mar;40(3):425–38.
36. 37. Sharififar F, Yassa N, Mozaffarian V. Bioactivity of major components from the seeds of Bunium persicum (Boiss.) Fedtch. Pakistan journal of pharmaceutical sciences. 2010;23(3).
37. 38. Souilah N, Bendif H, Ullah Z, Hamel T. LC-MS/MS simultaneous determination of 37 bioactive compounds in Bunium crassifolium Batt. and its biological activities. Jrp. 2021;25(4)(25(4)):450–63.