Identification and quantification of phenolic compounds in Salvia cadmica Boiss. and their biological potential

Abstract

Natural phenolic compounds exhibit a lot of beneficial health effects in humans including antioxidant, anti-aging, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial activity. Plant family Lamiaceae and its largest genus Salvia are one of the richest sources of antioxidant and antimicrobial phenolics. In the present study the aerial parts and roots of Salvia cadmica Boiss., an underexplored species endemic to Turkey and cultivated in Poland, were investigated for phenolic composition and antioxidant, antibacterial, and antifungal effects, as well as for biological safety. The UPLC-DAD/ESI-MS/MS analysis showed a total of 14 phenols in the hydromethanolic extract of the aerial parts: three flavonoids and 11 phenolic acid derivatives. In the root extract 10 phenolic acid derivatives were identified. Among the detected compounds, rosmarinic acid (RA) and salvianolic acid K (SAK) predominated in the aerial parts and roots, respectively. Both aerial parts and root extracts demonstrated antioxidant potential, indicated by radical scavenging assays towards DPPH and O2•-; they also demonstrated antimicrobial activity against two Candida species and several Gram-positive bacteria, including Bacillus cereus and four strains of Staphylococcus spp. However, the aerial parts demonstrated stronger antioxidant potential, while the roots exhibited stronger antimicrobial activity The tested extracts show low cytotoxicity against mouse L929 fibroblasts in MTT assay. Thus, S. cadmica extracts offer promise as herbal drug, and as a source of bioactive secondary metabolites.