title: Wulfenia carinthiaca Jacq., antioxidant and pharmacological activities.
abstract: Relative antioxidant activities of a methanolic extract of three phenylpropanoid glycosides and three iridoid glycosides from Wulfenia carinthiaca were evaluated using the Briggs-Rauscher (BR) reaction method. This method is based on the inhibitory effects by antioxidants on oscillations of the BR reaction. The total extract showed a certain antioxidant activity with respect to resorcinol chosen as standard. The three phenylpropanoid glycosides showed a very high relative antioxidant activity while iridoid glycosides had practically no activity. These experimental results were confirmed by empirical calculations based on the BDE (Bond Dissociation Enthalpy) theory. The total phenolic content was also measured for the phenylpropanoid glycosides using the Folin-Ciocalteu reagent. The obtained values as gallic acid equivalents were in perfect agreement with the relative antioxidant activities. From a pharmacological point of view the results obtained demonstrate that the methanolic extract of W. carinthiaca have antinociceptive and antiedematogenic effects in the different models adopted. The plant extract produced a significant inhibition, dose related, of the rat paw edema induced by carrageenin. The anti-inflammatory activity is probably due to the phenylpropanoid compounds present in the plant. The histological sections of paw tissue in animals treated with Wulfenia carinthiaca extract confirmed the anti-inflammatory effects. The results of the antinociceptive assay indicated a significant reduction on the number of abdominal writhes of mice, induced by acetic acid.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Chimica 'G. Ciamician', Università di Bologna, Via Selmi 2, 1-40126 Bologna, Italy. rinaldo.cervellati@unibo.it
authors.forename: Rinaldo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cervellati
authors.forename: Ester
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Speroni
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Govoni
authors.forename: Maria Clelia
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Guerra
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.forename: Ulrike W
authors.initials: UW
authors.lastname: Arnold
authors.forename: Hermann
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Stuppner
mesh_terms: D000700:Analgesics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D004487:Edema / Q000517:prevention & control; D005121:Extremities; D019686:Lamiaceae / Q000737:chemistry*; D000432:Methanol; D008968:Molecular Conformation; D015394:Molecular Structure; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship; D013816:Thermodynamics
chemical_list: D000700:Analgesics; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D000975:Antioxidants; D010936:Plant Extracts; D000432:Methanol