Psychoactive Plant Database - Neuroactive Phytochemical Collection

1. Int Microbiol. 2024 Jul 1. doi: 10.1007/s10123-024-00548-0. Online ahead of 
print.

Unveiling the potential of native arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi for growth 
promotion and phytochemical enrichment in Valeriana jatamansi Jones.

Tapwal A(1), Kumar A(2)(3), Sharma S(2), Sharma YP(4).

Author information:
(1)ICFRE-Himalayan Forest Research Institute, Shimla, 171013, India. 
ashwanitapwal@gmail.com.
(2)ICFRE-Himalayan Forest Research Institute, Shimla, 171013, India.
(3)Present Address: M.C.M. D.A.V College Kangra, 176001, Himachal Pradesh, 
Kangra, India.
(4)Dr. Y.S, Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Solan, 173230, 
India.

Medicinal plants are rich sources of pharmaceutically important compounds and 
have been utilized for the treatment of various diseases since ancient times. 
Valeriana jatamansi Jones, also known as Indian valerian, holds a special place 
among temperate Himalayan medicinal plants and is renowned for its therapeutic 
properties in addressing a variety of ailments. The therapeutic potential of V. 
jatamansi is attributed to the presence of valuable compounds such as 
valepotriates, sesquiterpenoids, valeriananoids, jatamanins, lignans, 
cryptomeridiol, maaliol, xanthorrhizzol, and patchouli alcohol found in its 
rhizome and roots. This study employed various treatments, including the 
cultivation of V. jatamansi with the inoculation of Funneliformis mosseae, F. 
constrictus, and a consortium of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), to 
investigate their influence on biomass production, chlorophyll content, and the 
accumulation of bioactive compounds in V. jatamansi. The results revealed 
significant improvement in these parameters in the inoculated plants. The 
parameters of plants inoculated with F. mosseae were the highest, followed by 
those of plants inoculated with F. constrictus and a mixture of AMFs. This study 
not only underscores the potential of native AMF for promoting the growth of V. 
jatamansi but also elucidates their role in influencing the synthesis of 
bioactive compounds. The cultivation of V. jatamansi with native AMF has emerged 
as a sustainable and eco-friendly approach, providing the dual benefit of 
enhancing both the medicinal and economic value of this valuable plant. This 
research contributes valuable insights into the practical application of 
mycorrhizal associations for the cultivation of medicinal plants, bridging the 
realms of agriculture and pharmaceuticals.

© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland 
AG.

DOI: 10.1007/s10123-024-00548-0
PMID: 38951390


2. Plants (Basel). 2020 Nov 13;9(11):1570. doi: 10.3390/plants9111570.

Prostanthera (Lamiaceae) as a 'Cradle of Incense': Chemophenetics of Rare 
Essential Oils from Both New and Forgotten Australian 'Mint Bush' Species.

Sadgrove NJ(1), Padilla-González GF(1), Telford IRH(2), Greatrex BW(3), Jones 
GL(3), Andrew R(4), Bruhl JJ(2), Langat MK(1), Melnikovova I(5), 
Fernandez-Cusimamani E(5).

Author information:
(1)Jodrell Science Laboratory, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Richmond TW9 3DS, UK.
(2)Botany and N.C.W. Beadle Herbarium, School of Environmental and Rural 
Science, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia.
(3)School of Science and Technology and School of Rural Medicine, University of 
New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia.
(4)Ecosystem Management, School of Environmental and Rural Science, University 
of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia.
(5)Department of Crop Sciences and Agroforestry, Faculty of Tropical 
AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 16500 
Prague, Czech Republic.

The highly aromatic Australian mint bushes from the genus Prostanthera Labill. 
produce a high yield of essential oil on hydrodistillation. Together with its 
rich history, horticultural potential, iconic flowers, and aromatic leaves, it 
achieves high ornamental and culinary value. Species in the genus express highly 
diverse and chemically unique essential oils that demonstrate intra- and 
inter-specific patterns that have inspired taxonomic reinterpretation for over a 
hundred years. Previous studies have conveyed that phenoplastic expression of 
volatiles creates chemotypes within taxa, adding complexity to chemophenetic 
exploration. The current study chemically characterised essential oils from 64 
highly aromatic specimens, representative of 25 taxa, giving yields as high as 
>2% g/g. The chemical profiles of essential oils are diverse, but generally 
include 1,8-cineole and signatory compounds such as sesquiterpene oxides, 
caryophyllene oxide, kessane and cis-dihydroagarofuran; sesquiterpene alcohols, 
globulol, epiglobulol, maaliol, prostantherol, spathulenol and ledol; and 
monoterpene derivatives of common scaffolds, borneol, bornyl acetate, bornanone, 
linalool and linalyl acetate. As in previous studies, analysis of chemical data 
confirms that the chemistry strongly agrees with taxonomic classifications. 
Importantly, as in classical taxonomy, the current chemical study complemented 
morphological analysis but conveys chemovariation, obscuring the taxonomic 
agreement. Nevertheless, variation within taxa may be due to environmental 
factors, meaning that cultivation of species in gardens will create different 
chemical profiles as compared to those published here.

DOI: 10.3390/plants9111570
PMCID: PMC7696040
PMID: 33202983

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


3. Plants (Basel). 2019 Jun 15;8(6):176. doi: 10.3390/plants8060176.

Insect Antifeedant Components of Senecio fistulosus var. fistulosus-Hualtata.

Ruiz-Vásquez L(1)(2), Reina M(3), Fajardo V(4), López M(5), González-Coloma 
A(6).

Author information:
(1)Natural Resources Research Center (CIRNA), National University of the 
Peruvian Amazon (UNAP), Iquitos, Peru. lilyruizv@gmail.com.
(2)Institute of Natural Products and Agrobiology (IPNA), Spanish Research 
Council (CSIC), 38206 Tenerife, Spain. lilyruizv@gmail.com.
(3)Institute of Natural Products and Agrobiology (IPNA), Spanish Research 
Council (CSIC), 38206 Tenerife, Spain. mreina@ipna.csic.es.
(4)Faculty of Sciences, University of Magallanes (UMAG), Punta Arenas 01855, 
Chile. victor.fajardo@umag.cl.
(5)University Institute of Bio-Organic Antonio González (IUBO), University of La 
Laguna, 38206 Tenerife, Spain. mlopez@ull.es.
(6)Institute of Agricultural Sciences (ICA), Spanish Research Council (CSIC), 
28006 Madrid, Spain. azu@ica.csic.es.

From a bioactive methanolic extract of Senecio fistulosus, the antifeedant 
effects of the alkaloidal and non-alkaloidal fractions were tested against the 
insects Spodoptera littoralis, Myzus persicae and Rhopalosiphum padi, with the 
non-alkaloidal fraction being antifeedant. The phytochemical study of the 
non-alkaloidal fraction of S. fistulosus, resulted in the isolation of four 
compounds, two 9-oxo-furanoeremophilanes (1, 2), an eremophilanolide, 
1β,10β-epoxy-6-acetoxy-8α-hydroxy-eremofil-7(11)-en-8β,12-olide (3) and a 
maaliol derivative (4). The alkaloidal fraction yielded two known pyrrolizidine 
alkaloids (5, 6). Compounds 1, 3 and 4 are new natural products. 
Furanoeremophilane 2 was a strong antifeedant against S. littoralis and maaliane 
4 inhibited the settling of M. persicae.

DOI: 10.3390/plants8060176
PMCID: PMC6631464
PMID: 31208057

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


4. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2018 Aug 10;18(1):237. doi: 
10.1186/s12906-018-2302-x.

Phytochemical analysis and evaluation of the cytotoxic, antimicrobial and 
antioxidant activities of essential oils from three Plectranthus species grown 
in Saudi Arabia.

Mothana RA(1), Khaled JM(2), Noman OM(3), Kumar A(4), Alajmi MF(3), Al-Rehaily 
AJ(3), Kurkcuoglu M(5).

Author information:
(1)Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, P.O. 
Box 2457, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia. rmothana@ksu.edu.sa.
(2)Departments of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud 
University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
(3)Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, P.O. 
Box 2457, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
(4)Vitiligo Research Chair, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, 
Saudi Arabia.
(5)Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Anadolu University, 
Eskisehir, Turkey.

BACKGROUND: Cancers and microbial infections are still a major health problem, 
therefore research on new anticancer and antimicrobial agents ought to be 
continued. Natural products including essential oils from medicinal plants 
continue to be an important resource to manage various diseases. Thus, the 
particular objectives of this study are to investigate the chemical composition, 
cytotoxic, antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of three Plectranthus 
species namely P. cylindraceus Hocst. ex Benth., P. asirensis JRI Wood and P. 
barbatus Andrews grown in Saudi Arabia.
METHODS: The essential oils of the three Plectranthus species were obtained by 
hydrodistllation and analyzed using GC/FID and GC-MS. The essential oils were 
further assessed for their cytotoxic, antimicrobial and antioxidant activities. 
Determination of the cytotoxic activity was carried out against Hela, HepG2 and 
HT-29 cancer cell lines by utilizing MTT-assay. The antimicrobial activity was 
assessed against six bacterial and fungal strains by using broth micro-dilution 
assay. In addition, the antioxidant activity was evaluated utilizing the DPPH 
and β-Carotene-linoleic acid assays.
RESULTS: The GC/FID and GC-MS analysis led to the identification of 59, 60 and 
42 compounds representing 89.0% 95.0 and 97.1% of the total essential oils of P. 
cylindraceus, P. asirensis and P. barbatus, respectively. The essential oils 
were characterized by a high content of oxygenated sesquiterpenes in P. 
cylindraceus, sesquiterpene hydrocarbons in P. asirensis and monoterpene 
hydrocarbons in P. barbatus where maaliol (42.8%), β-caryophyllene (13.3%) and 
α-pinene, (46.2%) were the predominant compounds. Additionally, the oils 
particularly of P. cylindraceus and P. barbatus exhibited remarkable cytotoxic 
and antimicrobial activities with IC50-values between 3.8 and 7.5 μg/mL and 
MIC-values ranging from 0.137 to 4.40 mg/mL. Moreover, the oils showed moderate 
to high radical scavenging and antioxidative activities ranging from 52 to 75% 
at the highest concentration of 1 mg/mL.
CONCLUSIONS: The observed results back the suggestion that these three 
Plectranthus species represent a promising source of cytotoxic and antimicrobial 
agents.

DOI: 10.1186/s12906-018-2302-x
PMCID: PMC6086039
PMID: 30097042 [Indexed for MEDLINE]

Conflict of interest statement: Not applicable. Not applicable. The authors 
declare that they have no competing interests. Springer Nature remains neutral 
with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional 
affiliations.


5. Nat Prod Res. 2018 Apr;32(7):804-809. doi: 10.1080/14786419.2017.1363750. Epub
 2017 Aug 8.

Isolation and validated HPTLC analysis of four cytotoxic compounds, including a 
new sesquiterpene from aerial parts of Plectranthus cylindraceus.

Amina M(1), Alam P(1), Parvez MK(1), Al-Musayeib NM(1), Al-Hwaity SA(1), 
Al-Rashidi NS(1), Al-Dosari MS(1).

Author information:
(1)a Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy , King Saud University , 
Riyadh , Saudi Arabia.

We report isolation of a new sesquiterpene (compound 2: plectranol A) along with 
three known compounds (1: maaliol, 3: penduletin and 4: chrysosplenol D) from 
the aerial parts of Plectranthus cylindraceus Hoechst. Ex. Benth ethyl acetate 
extract (PCEAE). Their structures were established by UV, IR, NMR (1H & 13C), 
HRESIMS and HSQC methods. The MTT cell proliferation assay of the compounds and 
the extract performed on human breast, skin and cervical cancer cell lines 
showed high toxicity, and their IC50 (μg/mL) values were determined. The 
validated HPTLC analyses of maaliol and PCEAE (method I) and, penduletin, 
chrysosplenol D and PCEAE (method II) furnished sharp and compact peaks. The 
estimated high contents (μg/mg) of maaliol (17.06), penduletin (39.36) and 
chrysosplenol D (31.66) in PCEAE approved the plant's cytotoxic property. Since, 
P. cylindraceus contains a variety of cytotoxic terpenoids and flavonoids; our 
data warrant its further phytochemical and biological characterisation towards 
developing promising anti-cancer drugs.

DOI: 10.1080/14786419.2017.1363750
PMID: 28783981 [Indexed for MEDLINE]