Medicinal Plants
Mahtab Salehi; Ramezan Kalvandi; Foroozan Salehi
Abstract
IntroductionThe medicinal plants have been used in traditional medicine for a long time all over the world. Over 80% of the world population depends on herbal medicines and products for healthy living, and also, a large part of pharmaceutical materials are derived directly or indirectly from plant sources. ...
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IntroductionThe medicinal plants have been used in traditional medicine for a long time all over the world. Over 80% of the world population depends on herbal medicines and products for healthy living, and also, a large part of pharmaceutical materials are derived directly or indirectly from plant sources. According to the new approach to the use of medicines and herbal products, the investigation of the medicinal properties of endemic plants in each region, is of particular importance. Morphological and phytochemical traits of medicinal plants are affected by the different environmental conditions as well as genetic variations. Therefore, investigating the changes in morphological and phytochemical traits of different populations of these plants in various regions and identifying the amount and constituents of their essential oils, can be effective for creating a suitable field for their planting or breeding, as well as standardizing their derived medicine products. The Achillea genus, a medicinal plant belonging to the Asteraceae family, is highly diverse in terms of morphological characteristics and essential oil constituents. 19 species of herbaceous and aromatic plants of this genus have been identified in Iran, of which 7 species are endemic. Some of the Achillea species have therapeutic properties such as reducing blood pressure and lipids, sedative, antispasmodic, analgesic, wounds treatment, antiseptic properties, treatment of stomach pain and diarrhea, stopping bleeding, etc. Materials and MethodsThis study was conducted in May 2022 in order to evaluate the diversity of morphological traits and essential oil constituents of A. santolinoides subsp. wilhelmsii (K. Koch) Greuter populations in 11 regions of Hamedan province. The plant samples were collected in the flowering stage and after measuring some morphological traits (plant height, number of flowering stem, stem diameter, inflorescence diameter, fresh and dry weight of plant, number of inflorescence, number of leaf, etc.), they were dried in shade condition. In order to investigate the physical and chemical properties of soil, soil samples were collected from a depth of 30 cm. and were transferred to the soil laboratory. The essential oils were extracted using hydro-distillation method which lasted for 4 hours. Then they were analyzed by GC and GC/MS in the Institute of Medicinal Plants in Karaj. Gas chromatography was carried out on Agilent 6890. The grouping of populations based on morphological traits and essential oil constituents, was done by cluster analysis in SPSS using the Ward method. Also, the traits correlation (quantitative) was done using the Pearson method. Results and DiscussionThe results indicated that the Vahnan population exhibited the tallest plant height at 23.20 cm, a significant difference compared to other populations. Conversely, the Nazool population displayed the lowest plant height at 13.60 cm. Regarding stem diameter, the Yalfan population showed the greatest diameter at 2.50 mm, a measure not significantly different from the populations of Islamabad, Nazool, and Varayeneh. In contrast, the Koohani population had the smallest stem diameter at 1.52 mm. The highest inflorescence diameter (4.30 cm) belonged to the Islamabad population, which statistically had no significant difference with the populations of Koohani, Vahnan and Yekan Abad, and the lowest (2.30 cm) was observed in Joorab population. The Vahnan population had the highest number of inflorescence (6.20), which statistically had no significant difference with Islam Abad, Zanganeh, Koohani, Yekan Abad and Nazool populations, and the lowest was related to the Yalfan population (3.40). The maximum leaf length was related to Varayeneh population (3 cm), which was statistically not significantly different from Yalfan, Islam Abad and Vahnan populations, and the lowest was related to Naseh Abad population (1.70 cm). Varayeneh and Yekan Abad populations respectively had the largest leaf width (4 mm and 3.80 mm) and the lowest leaf width (2 mm) was observed in the Joorab population. The highest number of flowering stems (13.80) and the maximum number of leaves (168) were belonged to Nazool population, and the lowest number of flowering stems (3.80) was related to Naseh Abad population and the lowest number of leaves (61) was related to Koohani population. Regarding the fresh and dry weight of the plant, the highest values of these traits (3.92 and 2.24 gr, respectively) was related to the Yalfan population and the lowest (1.60 and 0.79 gr, respectively) was related to the Naseh Abad population. Analysis of the essential oils chemical compositions using GC-MS, showed 28 compounds. Camphor, Fragranol, a-pinene, 1,8-cineole and Sabinene were the main constituents of the essential oil. The essential oils yield varied from 0.3 to 0.6% which the highest was related to Varayenh and Nazool populations (0.6%) and the lowest belonged to Heydareh Bala Shahr population (0.3%). Also, Islam Abad population (with the highest altitude), had the highest percentage of fragranol (43.29%). This indicates that environmental factors similar to genetic factors are effective in creating diversity in morphological and phytochemical characteristics of this plant. ConclusionIdentifying the compounds in the Iranian native plants, can provide a suitable field for the practical use of its plant resources and may be the basis of breeding programs. The various studies conducted on different species and populations of Achillea genus, have mentioned the valuable use of their extracts and essential oils in various fields such as pharmaceutical industries (in order to standardizing medicinal products), food, health cosmetics, making insecticides, etc. Researchers who have studied the essential oils of different populations of Achillea species in many regions of Iran, have emphasized on the significant difference between type and amount of the essential oil constituents. In this study, compounds such as Camphor, Fragranol, a-pinene, 1,8-cineole and Sabinene were the main components of the populations essential oils. Since fragranol is used in manufacturing the insecticides and pheromones, Islam Abad population can be used in this industry due to having high fragranol (43.29%). Also, due to the high amount of camphor in the essential oils of most of the studied populations and many uses of this compound, it can be used as an important economic resource in the health-cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries to make various creams and ointments.
Medicinal Plants
Mahtab Salehi; Ramezan Kalvandi
Abstract
Introduction Medicinal plants have played an essential role in the development of human culture. Medicinal plants are resources of new drugs and many of the modern medicines are produced indirectly from plants. Although the production of secondary metabolites is controlled by genes, their production ...
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Introduction Medicinal plants have played an essential role in the development of human culture. Medicinal plants are resources of new drugs and many of the modern medicines are produced indirectly from plants. Although the production of secondary metabolites is controlled by genes, their production is considerably influenced by environmental conditions, so environmental factors cause changes in the growth of medicinal plants as well as the amount of active substances. Essential oil quantity and quality are affected by the different environmental conditions. Physiological, morphological and genetic variations were seen in populations of species that occurred in different habitats. These variations were created in response to contrasting environmental conditions. In many plant species, studies on the pattern of variation in populations have shown the localized populations are adapted to the particular environmental conditions of their habitat. The genus Phlomis L. (Lamiaceae) includes about 113 perennial herbs or shrubs distributed in Asia, Europe, and Africa. Some of the Phlomis species have been reported for their traditional uses as analgesic, diuretic, tonic, anti-diarrheic agents and to treat various conditions such as gastric ulcer, inflammation, diabetes, hemorrhoids and wounds. In Flora of Iran, this genus is represented by 20 species, including Phlomis olivieri Benth.Materials and Methods This study was conducted to evaluate the morphological and phytochemical diversity of eleven populations of P. olivieri Benth. from different districts of Hamedan province in 2021. Traits such as plant height, stem diameter, leaf length and width, fresh and dry weight of the flowering branch, inflorescence length, fresh and dry weight of the plant, number of inflorescence cycles, essential oil percentage were measured. In order to investigate the physical and chemical properties of soil, soil samples were collected from a depth of 30 cm. Then they were transferred to the soil laboratory. Plants samples were collected in the flowering stage and were dried at 25-30°C. They were stored in envelopes at 22±3°C away from the sun. For extracting the essential oil of the samples, 100 gr of the plant was milled and then distilled with water. Hydrodistillation lasted for 4 hours. The main components of essential oil were identified and determined by gas chromatography in the Institute of Medicinal Plants in Karaj. Gas chromatography was carried out on Agilent 6890 with capillary column 30m*0.25 mm, 0.25 mm film thickness. The grouping of populations based on morphological and phytochemical traits was done by cluster analysis in SPSS using the Ward method. Also, the traits correlation (quantitative) was done using the Pearson method.Results and Discussion According to the results, the highest fresh and dry weight of flowering branch (6.96 g and 3.48 g) and also the highest fresh and dry weight of the plant (11.77 g and 5.86 g) belonged to the Koohani population. The tallest inflorescence (24.2 cm) belonged to the Jowzan population and the shortest inflorescence belonged to the Gammasiab population (8.9 cm). The highest stem diameter (4.45 mm) was observed in the Garin population. The maximum plant height (49.4 cm) was related to the Rahdarkhaneh population, which was not significantly different from the Garin population, and the minimum was related to the population of Garmak (31 cm), which was not significantly different from the population of Gammasiab (33.50 cm). Also, 31 compounds were identified in this plant essential oil that caryophyllene, germacrene D, and (E)-b-Farnesene had the highest percentage of essential oil constituents. In this study, the highest amount of essential oil (0.04%) was related to the Koohani population which had the lowest altitude among other populations. Therefore, it seems that environmental factors, as well as genetic factors, have been effective in creating diversity in morphological and phytochemical characteristics of this plant.Conclusion The results obtained from this study showed that P. olivieri Benth. populations gathered from different regions of Hamedan province, had a high diversity in terms of essential oil content. The results showed that in addition to genetic factors, environmental and climatic factors also affect phytochemical traits. In this study, the highest amount of essential oil was produced in the Koohani population (located in Nahavand city) with the lowest altitude among other populations. According to the research on the essential oil components of P. olivieri in different regions of Iran, the components of its essential oil and their percentages are completely different; so, some of the components that are seen in one region, are not observed in another region, and this issue emphasizes on the effect of climatic conditions. This difference is quite evident even in the studied populations in a province.
Mahtab Salehi; Ramezan Kalvandi
Abstract
Introduction: Medicinal plants are rich sources of the main active substances in many drugs. Although the production of secondary metabolites is controlled by genes, their production are considerably influenced by environmental conditions, so that environmental factors cause changes in the growth of ...
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Introduction: Medicinal plants are rich sources of the main active substances in many drugs. Although the production of secondary metabolites is controlled by genes, their production are considerably influenced by environmental conditions, so that environmental factors cause changes in the growth of medicinal plants as well as the amount of active substances. In different habitats, physiological, morphological and genetically variations are seen in populations of species. These variations are created in response to contrasting environmental conditions. Studies of population in many plant species regarding to the pattern of variation have showed the occurrence of localized populations which adapted to the particular ecological conditions of their habitat. Iran as a center of diversity of Stachys houses about 35 species. The majority of species prefers alpine and subalpine habitats and grows under various ecological conditions in habitats like rocky places, mountain steppes, and stream banks or sometimes in forests. S. inflata Benth. is a medicinal plant from Lamiaceae family which is used extensively in folk and traditional remedies to treat infection, asthma, rheumatism and other inflammatory diseases.
Materials and Methods: This study was conducted to evaluate the morphological and phytochemical diversity of seven populations of S. inflata Benth. from different districts of Hamedan province in 2017. Traits such as plant height, stem diameter, leaf length and width, fresh and dry weight of floral branch, inflorescence length, fresh and dry weight of flower, essential oil percentage and phenol and flavonoid content were measured. In order to investigate physical and chemical properties of soil, soil samples were collected from a depth of 30 cm. Then they were transferred to the soil laboratory. Plants samples were collected in flowering stage and were dried in 25-30 °C. They were stored in envelopes in 22±3 °C away from the sun. For extracting essential oil, 50 gr of shoots were milled and then mixed with distilled water. This process lasted for three hours. Main components of essential oil were identified and determined by gas chromatography. The grouping of populations based on morphological and phytochemical traits was done by cluster analysis. The correlation between the elevations of studied areas above the sea level and soil properties was also done by Pearson method.
Results and Disscution: The results showed that the highest essential oil content was related to Avarzaman, Aznaveleh and Koohani populations (0.2%) and the lowest amount was obtained from Asadabad (0.11%). Although 22 compounds were identified in the essential oil, there was a great deal of variation in the percentage and type of components of the essential oil in the studied populations. The main components of essential oil were Spathulenol (26.25%), Octanol acetate (14.03%), Germacrene D (13.96%), Incensole acetate (13.41%), Bicyclogermacrene (10.66%) and Phytol (9.52%). Avarzaman population had the highest total phenol (141.9 mg GAE/gr) and flavonoid content (109.4 mg routine/gr) and the lowest content of phenol (86.9 mg GAE/gr) and flavonoid (68.8 mg routine/gr) was related to Asadabad and Koohani populations respectively. Avarzaman had the highest plant height (47.2 cm) and was significantly differed with other populations. The highest dry weight of floral branches (1.16 mm) was related to Asadabad population that was not significantly differed with Aznaveleh and Avarzaman population and the lowest dry weight of floral branch (0.57 mm) was observed in Koohani population. There was a significant negative correlation (-0.86) between the height of the studied habitats and the level of phosphorus in these areas. According to the morphological traits dendrogram analysis, seven studied populations were divided into two main groups. The populations of Avarzaman, Ekbatan, Ghazi Khan, Aznaveleh and Asadabad were in group A and Koohani and Gammasiab populations were in group B. Based on phytochemical traits dendrogram analysis, the populations of Ekbatan, Ghazi Khan, Asadabad, Koohani and Gammasiab were in group A and Avarzaman population was in group B.
Conclusion: In this study, the highest amount of essential oil content was obtained from populations which were collected from areas with the lowest elevation above the sea level. The soil of these areas had more phosphorous content. Therefore, the environmental factors as well as genetic factors have contributed in creating diversity in morphological and phytochemical characteristics of this plant.
