Abstract
The decoction of Tessaria absinthioides is used in traditional medicine of South America as hypocholesterolemic, balsamic, and expectorant; but it is also useful for the prevention of hepatitis, renal insufficiency, and diabetes, and is used as digestive. A lyophilized decoction from the aerial parts of this plant (TLD) collected in San Juan (TLDSJ) and Mendoza (TLDM) provinces (Argentina) and one collection from Antofagasta, Chile (TLDCH) were characterized regarding antioxidant and antibacterial activities, phenolics and flavonoids content, and ultrahigh resolution liquid chromatography Orbitrap MS analysis UHPLC–PDA–OT-MS/MS metabolite profiling. The antioxidant properties were carried out "in vitro" using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and trolox equivalent antioxidant activity (TEAC) methods, ferric-reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and lipoperoxidation in erythrocytes (LP). The antibacterial activity was evaluated following the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) rules. TLDSJ, TLDM, and TLDCH displayed a strong DPPH scavenging activity (EC50 = 42, 41.6, and 43 µg/mL, respectively) and inhibition of lipoperoxidation in erythrocytes (86–88% at 250 µg TLD/mL), while a less effect in the FRAP and TEACantioxidant assays was found. Additionally, the decoctions showed a content of phenolics compounds of 94 mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g, 185 GAE/g, and 64 GAE/g, for TLDSJ, TLDM, and TLDCH samples, respectively. Regarding the flavonoid content, the Chilean sample was highlighted with 19 mg quercetin equivalents (QE)/g. In this work, several phenolic compounds, including sesquiterpenes, flavonoids, and phenolic acids, were rapidly identified in TLDSJ, TLDM, and TLDCH extracts by means UHPLC–PDA–OT-MS/MS for the first time, which gave a first scientific support to consider this medicinal decoction from both countries as a valuable source of metabolites with antioxidant effects, some with outstanding potential to improve human health.
Highlights
The complementary and alternative medicine consisting of the use of extracts, decoctions, infusions, waxes, exudates, tinctures, creams, emulsions, and propolis obtained from local medicinal plants is either the mainstay of healthcare delivery in developing countries or serves as a complement to standard medical care [1]
The samples from the three locations were stored in a freezer at −40 ◦ C until its use in the antioxidant assays, phenolics and flavonoids quantification, as well as in UHPLC–PDA–OT-MS analysis
MS spectra and MSn experiments, several compounds were tentatively identified in T. absinthioides decoction (TLD), including phenolic acids, two fatty acids, and several characteristic eudesmane sesquiterpenoids
Summary
The complementary and alternative medicine consisting of the use of extracts, decoctions, infusions, waxes, exudates, tinctures, creams, emulsions, and propolis obtained from local medicinal plants is either the mainstay of healthcare delivery in developing countries or serves as a complement to standard medical care [1]. Secondary natural products from plants have, in the last century, become important compound leads for the development of new drug candidates for rational clinical therapy, exhibiting a variety of biological activities in experimental pharmacology, and serving as structural templates in medicinal chemistry. Interest in endemic Andean medicinal plants is high, as they represent a big source of potential novel biologically/pharmacologically active extracts or compounds, which are very little explored, that can offer potential candidates for the study of new drugs, and preparation of functional foods and food additives. Extracts, decoctions, and infusions of medicinal plants and fruits native to Argentina and Chile have been analyzed using quadrupole Orbitrap spectrometry (Q-OT-MS), updating their polyphenols compositions significantly [17,18,19,20,21,22]. The main goals and novelty of this work are the antioxidant and antibacterial effects complemented with the full metabolic polyphenolic profile using a hybrid high-resolution mass spectrometer of the lyophilized decoctions from the medicinal plant Tessaria absinthiodes, to support the reputed medicinal properties of this plant
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