Psychoactive Plant Database - Neuroactive Phytochemical Collection

1. Germs. 2024 Jun 30;14(2):136-148. doi: 10.18683/germs.2024.1426. eCollection 
2024 Jun.

Linoleic acid acts as a potential anti-virulence agent in Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Wangkheimayum J(1), Banerjee T(2), Baishya S(3), Sharma S(2), Choudhury MD(3), 
Laskar MA(3), Bhattacharjee A(4).

Author information:
(1)Department of Microbiology, Assam University Silchar, India.
(2)Department of Microbiology, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu 
University, Varanasi, India.
(3)Department of Life Science and Bioinformatics, Assam University, Silchar, 
India.
(4)Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology, Assam University Silchar, 
India.

INTRODUCTION: The rise in antimicrobial resistance among bacterial pathogens is 
a global concern, and anti-virulence therapy may be an alternative strategy to 
address the issue. Multidrug resistant (MDR) hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae 
(HvKp) is known to be associated with healthcare associated infections. These 
are often challenging to treat and here anti-virulence therapy may be a 
treatment option. The study of anti-virulence compounds against HvKp by 
in-silico prediction, in-vitro experiments and in-vivo assay enables to 
determine which anti-virulence compounds are suitable for an alternative 
approach MDR HvKp.
METHODS: Modeling of the proteins, ligand binding and molecular docking were 
performed targeting different hypervirulence genes viz., rmpA, rmpA2 and, iroC 
by in-silico analysis using different bioinformatics tool and software. Minimum 
inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined for six anti-virulence compounds; 
curcumin, eugenol, reserpine, linoleic acid, ε-anethole, and α-thujone by 
standard protocol. Quantitative real-time PCR was performed selecting two 
isolates harboring rmpA, rmpA2 and iroC genes. Galleria mellonella larva killing 
assay was used for in-vivo experiment.
RESULTS: In-silico analysis observed that linoleic acid could be the best fit in 
comparison with the other compounds. None of the anti-virulence compounds showed 
any inhibitory activity and upon transcriptional expression analysis of the 
hypervirulence genes; rmpA was marginally increased for both the isolates when 
linoleic acid exposure was given.
CONCLUSIONS: In-vivo study revealed that linoleic acid and reserpine showed 
anti-virulence activity.

GERMS.

DOI: 10.18683/germs.2024.1426
PMCID: PMC11527491
PMID: 39493740

Conflict of interest statement: Conflicts of interest: All authors – none to 
declare.


2. Plants (Basel). 2024 Oct 10;13(20):2834. doi: 10.3390/plants13202834.

Chemical Composition, Enantiomeric Distribution, and Physical Properties of the 
Fruit Essential Oil from Zanthoxylum lepidopteriphilum (Reynel) Rutaceae from 
Ecuador.

Morocho V(1), Aguilar Y(1), Cruz C(1), Cumbicus N(2), Andrade JM(1)(3), 
Montalvan M(1).

Author information:
(1)Departamento de Química, Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja, Loja 110150, 
Ecuador.
(2)Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias, Universidad Técnica 
Particular de Loja (UTPL), San Cayetano s/n, Loja 1101608, Ecuador.
(3)Instituto Universitario de Bio-Orgánica Antonio González (IUBO AG), 
Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), Avda. Astrofísico F. Sánchez 2, 38206 La Laguna, 
Tenerife, Spain.

The essential oil was obtained by steam distillation, using a Clevenger 
apparatus, from the pericarp of the fruit of Zanthoxylum lepidopteriphilum from 
Ecuador. The qualitative and quantitative analyses were performed by gas 
chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and flame ionization 
detection (GC-FID) on two capillary columns with non-polar DB-5ms and a polar 
HP-INNOWax stationary phase. Thirty-three components were identified, accounting 
for 99.62% and 99.30% total essential oil. The essential oil was dominated by 
oxygenated monoterpenes (90.21-89.21%), respectively. The main constituents of 
the essential oil were α-thujone (70.26-70.38%), β-thujone (10.78-10.90%), 
terpinen-4-ol (4.15-4.06%), and sabinene (3.60-4.02%). Enantioselective analysis 
by GC was realized on a β-cyclodextrin-based chiral column 
(2,3-diethyl-6-tert-butyldimethylsilyl-β-cyclodextrin) in this analysis, 
determining three couples of enantiomers, which exhibited the compound 
(1R,4S,5S)-(+)-α-thujone with an enantiomeric excess of 84.40%.

DOI: 10.3390/plants13202834
PMCID: PMC11510802
PMID: 39458781

Conflict of interest statement: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.


3. Ann Pharm Fr. 2024 Sep 18:S0003-4509(24)00141-X. doi: 
10.1016/j.pharma.2024.09.007. Online ahead of print.

Study of the toxicity of the essential oil of Brocchia cinerea.

Ben Moussa MT(1), Nadji S(2), Achachi N(3), Chaira S(3), Laiche R(2), Boudjemaa 
S(2), Bounab A(4), Harkat H(3), Hadef Y(5).

Author information:
(1)Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Batna, Batna, 
Algeria. Electronic address: texto.sarl@gmail.com.
(2)Laboratory of Toxicology, University hospital of Batna, Batna, Algeria.
(3)Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Batna, Batna, 
Algeria.
(4)Laboratory of Mineral chemistry, Department of pharmacy, University of 
Algiers, Algiers, Algeria.
(5)Laboratory of Analytical chemistry, Department of pharmacy, Faculty of 
Medicine, University of Annaba, Batna, Algeria.

Brocchia cinerea is a North African plant belonging to the Asteraceae family, 
widely utilized in Algerian folk medicine to treat a variety of illnesses. These 
therapeutic virtues are mainly due to the plant essential oil. The chemical 
components of this oil were identified using GC-MS, and the variability in these 
components' levels was examined in nine samples that were taken at different 
times from two locations in Algeria's northern Sahara. The contents of the 
essential oil were found to consist of eight components, varying in 
concentrations: beta-thujone (46.80%), 1-Methyl-2-(1' methylethenyl) -3'- 
ethenylcyclopropylmethanol (14.59%), 1,8-Cineole (12.63%), limonen-10-ol 
(9.47%), 1(7),3,8 o Menthatriene (3.45%), and (-)-Camphor (2.11%). Toxicity 
studies were conducted in order to assess the safety of the essential oil, 
namely: LD50 estimation and biochemical blood parameters evaluation. The results 
showed an LD 50 of 507.5mg/kg close to the LD50 of Beta-thujone (442mg/kg): the 
main component of the essential oil, making it accountable for the major 
toxicity. The apparition of seizures as toxic manifestations for higher 
concentrations confirmed that. The essential oil of Brocchia was noted to be 
classified as slightly, weakly toxic, and the Beta-thujone contents showed to be 
within the regulatory accepted values, which makes the use of Brocchia safe 
within the indicated standards.

Copyright © 2024 Académie Nationale de Pharmacie. Published by Elsevier Masson 
SAS. All rights reserved.

DOI: 10.1016/j.pharma.2024.09.007
PMID: 39303810


4. Sage.

Drugs and Lactation Database (LactMed®) [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): National 
Institute of Child Health and Human Development; 2006–.
2024 Aug 15.

Sage (Salvia officinalis) leaf contains tannins (salviatannin), essential oils 
(including alpha-thujone, beta-thujone, 1,8 cineole, and camphor), flavones, 
phenolic acids, phenylpropanoid glycosides, triterpenoids, and diterpenes. 
Spanish sage (Salvia lavandulaefolia) is a related species with similar 
components, although its thujone content is lower. Sage is often misidentified 
and adulterated; Salvia bertolonii or Salvia pratensis are sometimes used in 
instead of Salvia officinalis or as an adulterant. Sage purportedly reduces 
lactation and has been used to aid with weaning or an overabundant milk 
supply;[1-4] although Salvia nemorosa is reportedly used in Türkiye to increase 
milk supply.[5,6] No scientific studies could be located that evaluate the 
effect of sage on the milk supply. No data exist on the safety of sage in 
nursing mothers or infants. In general, sage is well tolerated, with occasional 
nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, dizziness, agitation, and wheezing. Thujone 
and camphor are both neurotoxic in high doses. Dietary supplements do not 
require extensive pre-marketing approval from the U.S. Food and Drug 
Administration. Manufacturers are responsible to ensure the safety, but do not 
need to prove the safety and effectiveness of dietary supplements before they 
are marketed. Dietary supplements may contain multiple ingredients, and 
differences are often found between labeled and actual ingredients or their 
amounts. A manufacturer may contract with an independent organization to verify 
the quality of a product or its ingredients, but that does not certify the 
safety or effectiveness of a product. Because of the above issues, clinical 
testing results on one product may not be applicable to other products. More 
detailed information about dietary supplements is available elsewhere on the 
LactMed Web site.

PMID: 30000875


5. J Toxicol Environ Health A. 2024 Oct 17;87(20):836-854. doi: 
10.1080/15287394.2024.2379856. Epub 2024 Jul 19.

Integrating ADMET, enrichment analysis, and molecular docking approach to 
elucidate the mechanism of Artemisia herba alba for the treatment of 
inflammatory bowel disease-associated arthritis.

Wahnou H(1), Hmimid F(2)(3), Errami A(4), Nait Irahal I(2), Limami Y(1)(5), 
Oudghiri M(1).

Author information:
(1)Laboratory of Immunology and Biodiversity, Faculty of Sciences Ain Chock, 
Hassan II University, Casablanca, Morocco.
(2)Laboratoire Santé et Environnement, Faculté des Sciences Ain Chock, 
Université Hassan II de Casablanca, Casablanca, Morocco.
(3)Équipe de Biotechnologie, Environnement et Santé, Faculté des Sciences El 
Jadida, Université Chouaïb Doukkali, El Jadida, Morocco.
(4)Laboratoire de Génie des Procédés et de l'Environnement, École Supérieure de 
Technologie, Université Hassan II de Casablanca, El Jadida, Morocco.
(5)Laboratory of Health Sciences and Technologies, Higher Institute of Health 
Sciences, Hassan First University of Settat, Settat, Morocco.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease-Associated Arthritis (IBD-associated arthritis) poses 
a significant challenge, intertwining the complexities of both inflammatory 
bowel disease (IBD) and arthritis, significantly compromising patient quality of 
life. While existing medications offer relief, these drugs often initiate 
adverse effects, necessitating the requirement for safer therapeutic 
alternatives. Artemisia herba-alba, a traditional medicinal plant known for its 
anti-inflammatory properties, emerges as a potential candidate. Our 
computational study focused on examining 20 bioactive compounds derived from A. 
herba-alba for potential treatment of IBD-associated arthritis. These compounds 
detected in A. herba-alba include camphor, alpha-thujone, eucalyptol, 
cis-chrysanthenyl acetate, vicenin-2, 4,5-di-O-caffeoylquinic acid, chlorogenic 
acid, hispidulin, isoschaftoside, isovitexin, patuletin-3-glucoside, vanillic 
acid, rutin, schaftoside, lopinavir, nelfinavir, quercetin, artemisinin, gallic 
acid, and cinnamic acid. Following rigorous analysis encompassing 
pharmacokinetics, toxicity profiles, and therapeutic targets, compounds with 
favorable, beneficial characteristics were identified. In addition, comparative 
analysis with disease-gene associations demonstrated the interconnectedness of 
inflammatory pathways across diseases. Molecular docking studies provided 
mechanistic insights indicating this natural plant components potential to 
modulate critical inflammatory pathways. Overall, our findings indicate that A. 
herba-alba-derived compounds may be considered as therapeutic agents for 
IBD-associated arthritis, warranting further experimental validation and 
clinical exploration.

DOI: 10.1080/15287394.2024.2379856
PMID: 39028276 [Indexed for MEDLINE]