Medicinal Plants
Mina Amani; Saeideh Sabzi-Nojadeh; Mohsen Sabzi Nojadeh; Mehdi Younessi Hamzekhanlu
Abstract
IntroductionMedicinal plants have long had a special place in the traditional agricultural system of Iran and the use of these plants as medicine to prevent and treat diseases has been considered by traditional medicine experts since ancient times. Medicinal plants with rich sources of secondary ...
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IntroductionMedicinal plants have long had a special place in the traditional agricultural system of Iran and the use of these plants as medicine to prevent and treat diseases has been considered by traditional medicine experts since ancient times. Medicinal plants with rich sources of secondary metabolites provide the basic active ingredients of many medicines. Although the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites is genetically controlled, but their construction is strongly influenced by environmental factors. One of the important climatic factors that affect the distribution of plants around the world and can cause morphological, physiological and biochemical changes in the plant is the lack of available water. Basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) seems to show little resistance to water stress. For this reason, there is a need for protective mechanisms for the basil plant against stress due to water shortage. Plants are able to reduce or eliminate the effects of water shortage stress by coexisting with a number of soil microorganisms. Coexistence relationship plant with T. harzianum fungi is one of the ways to reduce dehydration in plants. These mushrooms by altering some of the root properties and absorbing nutrients in the host plants, they reduce the destructive effects of water shortage stress. Observing the positive effect of these fungi in increasing the absorption of nutrients from the soil, improving plant water relations, increasing water use efficiency in plants and finally increasing plant resistance to water deficit stresses on the one hand and on the other hand. The existence of water crises in different countries has prompted researchers to further study this aspect of the symbiotic relationship between the host plant and Trichoderma harzianum. Materials and MethodsPresent study was performed to investigate the effect of T. harzianum on the antioxidant content of Ocimum basilicum under water deficit stress. It is also intended to evaluate the effects of an endophytic fungi namely T. harzianum on the shoot yield, photosynthetic pigments, content and yield of essential oil from O. basilicum under water deficit stress. All experiments were performed as the factorial based on completely randomized design blocks with three replications in greenhouse condition. The experimental factors were the different irrigation regimes including 100, 75, 50 and 25% of field capacity and two concentrations of the T. harzianum (106 and 109 CFU/ml). At the beginning of flowering, water deficit stress was applied at four levels of 25, 50, 75 and the control treatment (100 percent) of field capacity until three weeks later. The application of water stress was such that the pots were weighed daily and the moisture deficiency in each treatment was removed by watering the pots until reaching the desired treatment level. After applying the stress, sampling and measuring traits were done at the full flower stage. After the plants reach the full flowering period, various traits including plant height, number of leaves, fresh and dry weight yield of the plant (as the economic yield of basil) and fresh and dry weight yield of roots per square meter, chlorophyll a, b, total (T), carotenoid, colonization percentage, yield and essential oil content were measured in all the plants in the pots. Results and DiscussionIncreasing the level of water stress reduced the economic performance of basil (O. basilicum). Coexistence with Trichoderma reduced the destructive effects of dehydration on the plant. With the application of dehydration stress, the essential oil content increased in mild and moderate stresses, but the yield of essential oil did not differ significantly from the control and plant height, number of leaves and plant pigments decreased under dehydration stress. According to the experimental results, it can be said that Trichoderma with a population density of 106 (spores per ml of inoculum) had a better effect on most growth indices, while the effect Trichoderma with a population density of 109 (spores per milliliter of inoculum) on important traits such as shoot fresh weight yield (212.2 g), percentage (0.7%) and essential oil yield It was higher. According to the obtained results, it can be stated that inoculation of basil with Trichoderma increased the percentage and yield of essential oil in both water stress and non-stress conditions, and considering that in cultivation of plants the goal is to increase the effective substance. It is in these plants. ConclusionFinally, the results indicated that the use of Trichoderma mushroom in comparison with the control (without inoculation with the fungus) under water stress conditions has the ability to improve plant growth and leads to an increase in plant efficiency under water stress conditions.
Medicinal Plants
M. Amani; M. Sabzi-Nojadeh; S. Alizadeh-Salteh; M. Younessi Hamzekhanlu; B. Farmani; H. Hatef Heris; Sh. Mohammadian; S. Piretarighat
Abstract
Introduction
Medicinal plants have long had a special role in the traditional agricultural system of Iran and the use of these plants as medicine to prevent and treat diseases has been considered by traditional medicine experts since ancient times. Medicinal plants with rich sources ...
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Introduction
Medicinal plants have long had a special role in the traditional agricultural system of Iran and the use of these plants as medicine to prevent and treat diseases has been considered by traditional medicine experts since ancient times. Medicinal plants with rich sources of secondary metabolites provide the basic active ingredients of many medicines. Although the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites is genetically controlled, but their construction is strongly influenced by environmental factors. One of the important climatic factors that affect the distribution of plants around the world and can cause morphological, physiological and biochemical changes in the plant is the lack of available water. Basil seems to show little resistance to water stress. For this reason, there is a need for protective mechanisms for the basil plant against stress due to water shortage. Plants are able to reduce or eliminate the effects of water shortage stress by coexisting with a number of soil microorganisms. Inoculation of the plants with Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) has been exploited as an applicable strategy for reducing detrimental effects of water deficit stress. Present study was performed to evaluate the effects of three AMF on some physiological responses of Ocimum basilicum under water deficit stress.
Materials and Methods
The pot experiments were conducted as factorial based on completely randomized design blocks with three replications. The experimental factors were three AMF namely Glomus etunicatum, Glomus mosseae and Glomus intraradices and various soil moisture including severe stress, moderate stress, mild stress. Water stress was applied from the beginning to the end of flowering stage. After flowering stage, plants were harvested and traits such as total phenols and flavonoids, antioxidant capacity (DPPH), malondialdehyde (MDA), catalase and peroxidase enzymes were measured. To analyze the data, first the test of data normality and uniformity of variance within the treatment was performed and confirmed. The mean of treatments was compared by Duncan test at the level of 5% probability. SAS software (Ver. 9.3) was used to analyze the data and Excel software was used to draw the graphs.
Results and Discussion
The results of analysis of variance of the effect of mycorrhiza fungus and soil moisture on the studied parameters show that the effect of different levels of soil moisture on all traits was significant. The results of analysis of variance also showed that the effect of mycorrhiza on phenol and total flavonoids, antioxidant activity, catalase and peroxidase and malondialdehyde was significant at the level of one percent probability. According to the results of analysis of variance, the interaction effect of mycorrhiza on soil moisture on antioxidant activity was significant at 5% probability level and on total phenols and flavonoids, malondialdehyde, catalase and peroxidase at 1% probability level. Results showed that AMFs improve activity of catalase and peroxidase, antioxidant capacity and total phenols which led to decrease malondialdehyde content. Antioxidants as physiologically active compounds play an important role in plant resistance to stress. Increased oxygen species due to dehydration stress are a warning sign for plants and increase the activity of antioxidant enzymes. The plant's defense system increases the production of antioxidant enzymes to neutralize toxic oxygen forms, and fungi improve the intensity of this increase, which may be due to the chemical structure of the metal isoenzymes copper, zinc, and manganese. Factors sent to make antioxidant enzymes also contain the elements zinc and calcium. Mycorrhizal fungi increase the absorption of nutrients by sending more hormonal factors and increasing the activity of enzymes, all of which can be effective in increasing the activity of antioxidant enzymes.
Conclusion
When plants are exposed to dehydration stress, reactive oxygen species in them increase. The expression of antioxidant genes and the activity of antioxidants to eliminate reactive oxygen species are increased and the antioxidant defense system is improved and the tolerance to dehydration stress in the plant is increased. Scientists believe that peroxidase is involved in metabolic processes such as hormone catabolism, defense against pathogens, phenol oxidation, binding to cell structural proteins and cell wall polysaccharides. Present study revealed that application of AMFs can be good strategy for reducing harmful effects of water deficit stress in plants. Research has also shown that impregnating seeds with mycorrhiza increases antioxidants and reduces the amount of reactive oxygen species, a characteristic of resistance induction that occurs by this antagonist.
Medicinal Plants
H. Taghizadeh Baghchejooghi; S. Alizadeh Salteh; M. Matloobi
Abstract
Introduction
Marigold (Calendula officinalis) is an herbaceous plant belonging to the family Asteraceae. C. officinalis is always one of the most widely used medicinal plants and is widely cultivated for its extract in traditional and herbal medicine especially in Iran. Marigold extract has medicinal ...
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Introduction
Marigold (Calendula officinalis) is an herbaceous plant belonging to the family Asteraceae. C. officinalis is always one of the most widely used medicinal plants and is widely cultivated for its extract in traditional and herbal medicine especially in Iran. Marigold extract has medicinal effects such as wound healing, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, immune stimulating, anti-tumor and anti-AIDS. To achieve the higher yield and quality in this plant, it’s necessary to have enough nutrition. Fulvic acid stimulates plant metabolism, increases enzyme activity as a catalyst in plant respiration, and increases nutrient efficiency and cell pore permeability. On the other hand, triacanthanol is a type of alcohol with a 30-carbon chain and is found naturally in plant epicotyledonous waxes. The use of triacanthanol increases plant dry weight and reduces the content of sugar, amino acids and protein.
Materials and Methods
In order to evaluate the effect of fulvic acid and triacantanol and their interactions on some characteristics of C. officinalis, a factorial experiment with 16 treatments and 3 replications was conducted at greenhouse. Experimental treatments consisted of four levels of fulvic acid (0, 0.5, 1, 2 mg / l) as the first factor and four levels of triacantanol (0, 10-5, 5.5×10-4, 10-4 M) as the second factor. Treatments were sprayed on the plant three times in the form of foliar spray. Physiological factors were measured during the growing season and after applying the treatments. Finally, at the end of the growing season, plants were sampled to measure the parameters. Yield and fresh and dry weight (at flowering stage and in the form of fully opened flowers), shoot height with a ruler, number of leaves and leaf area were measured with a leaf gauge. Number of flowers by counting the number of flowers from the time of the first flower to the end of the experiment without taking into account the unopened buds, the time required for flowering (early flowering, late flowering) in terms of days by noting the date of the day At the time of emergence, the first flower in each treatment was examined. Acetone at 100% was used to measure photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll and carotenoids) and their absorption was measured at 470, 644.8 and 661.6 nm by spectrophotemeter. The measurement of total phenol was performed using a covalent folate reagent in the absorption spectrum of 765 nm in a spectrophotometer. The flavonoid content of all extracts was measured by aluminum chloride colorimetric method. The absorbance of the samples was read at 415 nm by spectrophotometer. Quercetin was used as the standard to obtain the calibration curve. The flavonoid content of the samples was reported as mg quercetin per 100 g fresh plant weight. DPPH free radical scavenger was used to measure antioxidant activity. The absorbance of the samples was read at 517 nm using a spectrophotometer.
Results and Discussion
Based on the results of this study, it was observed that the foliar application of 10-4 M triacantanol led to an increase in flower yield, leaf area, fresh weight, dry weight, number of flowers, flower height, antioxidant activity, and flavonoid content. On the other hand, the application of 10-5 M triacantanol increased the percentage of evergreen dry matter and phenol content more than the other concentrations. Among the different concentrations of fulvic acid tested, the concentration of 2 mg/l showed the greatest positive impact on the number of leaves, leaf area, fresh weight, dry weight, dry matter percentage, antioxidant activity, and total flavonoid content. Overall, the application of 10-4 M triacantanol and 2 mg/l fulvic acid as a leaf treatment significantly improved most of the measured traits in comparison to the control treatment. It is worth noting that plants treated with 2 mg/l fulvic acid flowered later than the other treatments, and there was a significant interaction between triacanthanol and fulvic acid on flower yield and height.
Conclusion
The results of this study in response to the use of the triacantanol and fulvic acid indicate that the use of these two compounds in foliar spraying can be very useful to achieve sustainable production and achieve organic farming. Triacanthanol promotes growth by regulating many of the genes involved in photosynthesis The use of fulvic acid increases the permeability of the cell membrane and better penetration of nutrients from the membrane. Also, soil permeability to nitrogen uptake increases by plant roots.
Medicinal Plants
S. Alizadeh Salteh; M. Amani
Abstract
Introduction: Nowadays, due to the decrease in rainfall and groundwater level, the cultivation of crops with low water requirements should be given priority. Different regions of Iran, especially the region of East and West Azerbaijan, have faced a decrease in rainfall in recent years, compared to previous ...
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Introduction: Nowadays, due to the decrease in rainfall and groundwater level, the cultivation of crops with low water requirements should be given priority. Different regions of Iran, especially the region of East and West Azerbaijan, have faced a decrease in rainfall in recent years, compared to previous years. Saffron could have relatively stable production in these areas due to low water demand and suitable economic efficiency. Special properties of saffron such as low water requirement, irrigation in non-critical times, water requirement of other plants, possible operation of farms for several years after one planting, ease of transportation and storage of the product, possibility of high employment, possibility of cultivation in areas that lack industrial talents and limited agricultural water, having medicinal properties and also, suitable domestic and foreign sales market has made this plant for cultivation. On the other hand, saffron cultivation in the Iran could increase employment and non-oil exports.If we pay attention to its production and processing processes, it could provide a significant currency to the country. Today the cultivation of saffron is under development in areas such as Azerbaijan. On the other hand, due to the harmful effects of the using synthetic antioxidants in the food and pharmaceutical industries, special attention has been paid for using of natural antioxidants. Considering the importance of compounds in saffron quality and the effect of climatic conditions in different years on the amount of secondary metabolites and antioxidant properties of this valuable plant, the present experiment were evaluated the yield and quality of saffron and compared antioxidant activity of different parts of saffron during two cropping years.Materials and Methods: The effect of climate of Marand city of East Azarbaijan province in different years on quality and antioxidant characteristics of different parts of saffron was investigated in this region. So, the climatic factors governing this region during two consecutive years of 2014 and 2015 in terms of temperature, rainfall and humidity were studied using meteorological data. Saffron yield in the region were obtained by using a questionnaire from saffron producers in the region. Meanwhile, the amount of crocin, picocrocin and safranal and the antioxidant activity of different parts of saffron, including stigma, style, stamen and petals, were examined.Results and Discussion: The results showed that the Marand city was classified as semi-arid in accordance the amount of crocin metabolites in 2014 (maximum: 306 mg/g in the stigma), picocrocin in 2015 (102.15 mg/g in the stigma), and Safranal in 2015 (highest: 49.95 mg/g in saffron petals) and the antioxidant activity of saffron and saffron petals were the highest in 2014 (30.43% and 88.32%, respectively). The results showed that the quality of different parts of saffron varied in different years. Due to the quality of different parts of saffron in different years, different parts could be used for exploitation.Conclusion: The amount of active ingredients in the plant were not constant at all and varied according to the growth and climatic conditions and harvest time. Changes in the amount of active ingredients in the plant over consecutive years or even hours a day emphasized the importance of collecting the medicinal plant when the plant contained the maximum amount of active ingredient. The quality of saffron depended on the amount of crocin, picrocrocin and safranal compounds and antioxidant activity. These compounds varied in different organs of saffron (stigma, style, stamen and petals) and over consecutive years. Bonab of Marand region of East Azerbaijan is suitable for saffron cultivation due to the climate change. The quality of different saffron organs were different in consecutive years of multi-year cultivation. The highest amount of crocin in the first year of cultivation in the stigma and its antioxidant activity in the stigma and petals were the highest and in the following year the amount of picrocrocin in the stigma and safranal in the petals were the highest. Therefore, different metabolites could be harvested according to the need in the maximum number of years.
Nasrin Farhadi; Saeideh Alizadeh Salteh
Abstract
Introduction: Allium hirtifolium commonly known as Persian shallot is an important wild medicinal plant from Alliaceae family. Persian shallot commonly known as mooseer in Iran is a perennial diploid plant that is native to Iran and grows as a wild plant throughout in the Zagross Mountains range, western ...
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Introduction: Allium hirtifolium commonly known as Persian shallot is an important wild medicinal plant from Alliaceae family. Persian shallot commonly known as mooseer in Iran is a perennial diploid plant that is native to Iran and grows as a wild plant throughout in the Zagross Mountains range, western and southwestern Iran. It is a bulbous herb and usually consists of a single main bulb or rarely two bulbs. Each bulb has a weight of about 8-15 times of a garlic clove. The bulbs of mooseer has been widely used as a traditional herb and spice plant, added to a variety of foods such as salads, pickles, yogurt and different sauces. Conventionally, Persian shallot propagates through bulbs and seeds but these two methods are not commercially efficient due to low growth rate of bulbs and deep dormancy, low viability and germination rate of seeds. In addition, the natural habitat of this plant is under increasing pressure as a result of excessive incorrect harvest that caused to damage the plant density in Iran rangelands. So, improving the efficiency of A. hirtifolium propagation is necessary. A number of positive effects on the growth and productivity of some plants through cytokinin application have been registered by earlier research. The current study aimed to evaluate the effects of pretreatment and foliar application of forchlorfenuron as a safe cytokinin on improving the bulb production, phytochemical compounds and antioxidant attributes of Persian shallot.
Materials and Methods: This experiment was done at research green house of Tabriz University in 2015-2016. For pretreated of Persian shallot bulbs, they were soaked in 0, 50 and 10 mg l-1 forchlorfenuron solutions for 24 h. Then they were cultured in pots contained perlite and vermicompost with 3:1 ratio. Foliar application was applied 2, 4 and 6 weeks after culture with 0, 50, 100 and 150 mg l-1 concentrations of forchlorfenuron. At the end of growth season the number of leaves, number of bublets, fresh and dry weight of bulblet were recorded. The phytochemical compound (protein, phenol and allicin), antioxidant enzymes (catalase, peroxidase, ascorbate peroxidases and superoxide dismutase) and antioxidant activity of bulbs were assayed with spectrophotometry methods.
Results and Discussion: Foliar applications of plant growth regulators such as cytokinins in agriculture crops are reported to be useful in controlling multiple physiological processes, including flower initiation, shoot elongation, bulb production, fruit set and as well as affected the quality characters of products. In this study despite the bulblets number that did not influence by treatments, pretreatment and foliar application of forchlorfenuron significantly increased the leaves number, fresh and dry weight of bulbs in comparison with control plants. The highest leaves number (4.49 per plant) was obtained from pretreatments. The highest fresh weight (91.77 g) was recorded at 5 and 10 mg l-1 pretreatment and 100 mg l-1 (91.63 g) foliar application. The interaction effect of treatments on dry weight was significant and the highest dry weight (19.75 g) was recorded at 10 mg l-1 pretreatment with 100 and 150 mg l-1 foliar application. Allicin content did not show significant variation between treatments and in average was 0.859 mg g-1 FW. Total phenol content significantly influenced by treatments and the highest phenol content (1.585 mg GAE g-1 FW) was recorded at 5 mg l-1 pretreatment with 100 mg l-1 foliar application. The antioxidant enzymes included catalase, peroxidase and ascorbate peroxidase that showed significant increasing under forchlorfenuron treatments. Due to significant effects of forchlorfenuron on antioxidant compounds and enzymes of Persian shallot bulbs, the assay of antioxidant activity also showed a significant increasing in treated bulbs. The maximum percent of antioxidant activity (74.522) was obtained from 100 mg l-1 foliar application. Exogenous application of cytokinins plays an effective role by protecting the fluidity and integrity of plant cell membranes. They properly mediate enzymatic (SOD, APX, and CAT) and non-enzymatic machinery with the result of preventing cell membrane damage by oxidative stress.
Conclusions: Considerable improvement in biochemical and antioxidant attributes of Persian shallot was recorded with pretreatment and foliar application of forchlorfenuron. The present data support the potential uses of the forchlorfenuron for improving the production of weighty bulbs with the high antioxidants attributes in Allium hirtifolium. Pretreated and foliar application at 5 mg l-1 and 100 mg l-1 concentrations of forchlorfenuron, respectively showed the best results and is recommendable for A. hirtifolim production.
