Emmanuel Cabañas-García

Melissa officinalis is recognized as a rich source of phenolic compounds with antioxidant properties. However, although its phytochemical composition has been extensively investigated, comparative studies integrating phytochemical characterization, antioxidant properties, and LC-MS metabolite profiling across commonly used extraction systems remain limited. This study comparatively evaluated aqueous, hydroacetonic, and hydroethanolic extracts of M. officinalis leaves by determining total phenolic (TPC), flavonoid (TFC), and tannin (TTC) contents, antioxidant activity (DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP assays), and metabolite profiling using UPLC-QToF-MS. The hydroethanolic extract exhibited the highest TPC (442.17 mg GAE/g DE), TTC (221.17 mg TAE/g DE), and antioxidant activity, whereas the hydroacetonic extract showed the highest TFC (178.52 mg CE/g DE). UPLC-QToF-MS-based metabolite profiling aided in the tentative annotation of 15 metabolites, including phenolic acids (rosmarinic, gallic, and ellagic acids) and flavonoids (catechin, rutin, quercetin, and apigenin). Among the evaluated conditions, the hydroethanolic and aqueous extracts yielded a higher number of metabolites than the hydroacetonic extract. Our findings demonstrate that solvent selection substantially influences phytochemical recovery, metabolite coverage, and antioxidant properties, providing an integrated framework for selecting extraction systems for phytochemical characterization and antioxidant-oriented applications.

Hampea rovirosae Standl. is traditionally used by local communities to treat infections, pain-related conditions, and to reduce blood sugar levels. In this investigation, we produced aqueous, ethanolic, and hydroethanolic extracts of H. rovirosae and assessed their antioxidant, antibacterial, and antihyperglycemic properties in addition to their phytochemical profiles and contents. The phytochemical characterization was performed through a targeted chromatographic and mass spectrometric analysis of phenolic compounds and the quantitation of total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), and total tannin content (TTC) by spectrometric assays. The antioxidant capacity was assessed using the DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP assays, and the antibacterial activity was determined by disk diffusion (DD) and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) methods. In addition, antihyperglycemic activity was evaluated by inhibiting α-amylase and α-glucosidase. Phytochemical analysis was performed using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS), employing a targeted analysis approach based on comparing retention times and fragmentation patterns with standards and databases. This analysis revealed a phytochemical profile dominated by phenolic compounds, with quercetin-3-glucoside (155,930.2), caffeic acid (134,399.1), catechin (98,408.8), procyanidin B2 (85,661.7), protocatechuic acid (83,824.3), and epicatechin (53,704.1) being the major metabolites. The hydroethanolic extract exhibited the highest phenolic (426.70 mg GAE/g), flavonoids (119.17 mg CE/g), and tannin (324.46 mg GAE/g) contents, as well as the strongest antioxidant capacity in the DPPH and FRAP assays. Regarding the antibacterial effects, the aqueous extract inhibited Salmonella typhimurium and Escherichia coli, while the hydroethanolic extract was active against S. aureus, B. cereus, and B. subtilis. In enzyme inhibition assays, the hydroethanolic extract showed strong α-glucosidase inhibition and moderate α-amylase inhibition. The findings provide preliminary scientific evidence of the antioxidant and biological activities of Hampea rovirosae in vitro, supporting its traditional use, which should be validated through vivo trials.

: The cytotoxic effect of four extracts obtained from the wild plant and two from a culture of Ag-eratina pichinchensis calluses on cell lines: prostate carcinoma, cervical cancer, hepatocellular car-cinoma, human hepatoma, lung cancer and cellular keratinocytes was evaluated; the extracts were obtained with ethyl acetate and methanol, leaves and stems were used from the wild plant. The results of the cytotoxic evaluation showed that only the ethyl acetate extract obtained from the callus culture showed an effect on the cervical cancer cell line (HeLa) with an IC50 of 94.79 ± 2.0 µg/mL. The purification of this extract allowed obtaining a benzofuran type compound as the main product, which was identified as 2,3-dihydrobenzofuran. The cytotoxic evaluation of this compound showed an important effect against the HeLa cell line with an IC50 of 23.86 ± 2. .5µg/mL. These results contribute to the development of alternatives for the production of com-pounds for the treatment of cancer.

Contamination of soils by automotive residual oil represents a global environmental problem. Bioremediation is the technology most suitable to remove this contaminant from the medium. Therefore, this work aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of bioremediation of automotive residual oil-contaminated soils by biostimulation with enzymes, surfactant, and vermicompost. The bioremediation efficiency was examined using a factorial design of 2⁴ to determine the effect of the time, pH and temperature conditions, biostimulation with enzyme-vermicompost, and biostimulation with enzyme-surfactant. Enzymes obtained from Ricinus communis L. seeds, commercial vermicompost, and Triton X-100 were used. Results showed that the highest removal efficiency (99.9%) was achieved at 49 days, with a pH of 4.5, temperature of 37 °C, and using biostimulation with enzyme-vermicompost (3% w/v–5% w/w). The addition of surfactant was not significant in increasing the removal efficiency. Therefore, the results provide adequate conditions to bioremediate automotive residual oil-contaminated soils by biostimulation using enzymes supported with vermicompost.

Ageratina pichinchensis (Kunth) R.King & Ho.Rob. is a plant used in traditional Mexican medicine, and some biotechnological studies have shown that its calluses and cell suspension cultures can produce important anti-inflammatory compounds. In this study, we established a cell culture of A. pichinchensis in a 2 L airlift bioreactor and evaluated the production of the anti-inflammatory compounds 2,3-dihydrobenzofuran (1) and 3-epilupeol (2). The maximum biomass production (11.90 ± 2.48 g/L) was reached at 11 days of culture and cell viability was between 80% and 90%. Among kinetic parameters, the specific growth rate (µ) was 0.2216 days⁻¹ and doubling time (td) was 3.13 days. Gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of extracts showed the maximum production of compound 1 (903.02 ± 41.06 µg/g extract) and compound 2 (561.63 ± 10.63 µg/g extract) at 7 and 14 days, respectively. This study stands out for the significant production of 2,3-dihydrobenzofuran and 3-epilupeol and by the significant reduction in production time compared to callus and cell suspension cultures, previously reported. To date, these compounds have not been found in the wild plant, i.e., its production has only been reported in cell cultures of A. pichinchensis. Therefore, plant cell cultured in an airlift reactor can be an alternative for the improved production of these anti-inflammatory compounds.