title: Ethnobotany, chemical constituents and biological activities of the flowers of Hydnora abyssinica A.Br. (Hydnoraceae).
abstract: Hydnora abyssinica A.Br. (Hydnoraceae), a holoparasitic herb, is for the first time recorded for Abyan governorate of South Yemen. Flowers of this species were studied for their ethnobotanical, biological and chemical properties for the first time. In South Yemen, they are traditionally used as wild food and to cure stomach diseases, gastric ulcer and cancer. Phytochemical analysis of the extracts showed the presence of terpenes, tannins, phenols, and flavonoids. The volatile components of the air-dried powdered flowers were identified using a static headspace GC/MS analysis as acetic acid, ethyl acetate, sabinene, α-terpinene, (+)-D-limonene and γ-terpinene. These volatile compounds that characterize the odor and taste of the flowers were detected for the first time in a species of the family Hydnoraceae. The flowers were extracted by n-hexane, dichlormethane, ethyl acetate, ethanol, methanol and water. With exception of the water extract all extracts demonstrated activities against Gram-positive bacteria as well as remarkable radical scavenging activities in DPPH assay. Ethyl acetate, methanol and water extracts exhibited good antifungal activities. The cytotoxic activity of the extracts against FL cells, measured in neutral red assay, was only weak (IC50 > 500 μg/mL). The results justify the traditional use of the flowers of Hydnora abyssinica in South Yemen.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Al-Fatimi
authors.forename: N A A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Ali
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kilian
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Franke
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Arnold
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kuhnt
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Lindequist
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic / Q000494:pharmacology; D001419:Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds / Q000737:chemistry; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D003890:Desiccation; D004354:Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor; D019448:Ethnobotany; D035264:Flowers / Q000737:chemistry*; D016166:Free Radical Scavengers / Q000494:pharmacology; D005658:Fungi / Q000187:drug effects; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D010851:Picrates / Q000737:chemistry; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D010946:Plants, Medicinal / Q000737:chemistry*; D015006:Yemen
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D000935:Antifungal Agents; D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds; D016166:Free Radical Scavengers; D010851:Picrates; D010936:Plant Extracts; C004931:1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl