Journal of Medicinal Plants and By-products
Volume:9 Issue: 2, Summer and Autumn 2020

Ferula L. as one of the most economically important genera of Apiaceae comprises many species with numerous aromatic and bioactive compounds used in traditional and modern medicine. Based on these features of Ferula that were subject to phytochemical studies, we compare recent molecular phylogenetic findings inferred from nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (nrDNA ITS) and cpDNA regions (rps16, rpoC1 introns and rpoB-trnC intergenic spacer) with the secondary metabolites inferred from available phytochemical data to investigate the phylogenetic relationships within the Iranian species of the genus. Totally 40 species including six species of Leutea and 34 species of Ferula belonging to three subgenera and seven sections in Iran were examined by phytochemical data that inferred from above 150 publications. Phytochemical compounds were typified in nine groups as 40 binary characters. The last phylogenetic tree was pruned for those Iranian species and the phytochemical data were mapped over. The phytochemical analyses indicate that the major chemical components such as organic sulphur, monoterpen and sesquiterpene compounds have concentrated within five sections of subgen. Narthex of the Ferula genus and the economically important species mostly placed closely within the sections Merwia and Scorodosma.

The composition of essential oils in six accessions of Achillea biebersteinii Afan., transferred from the natural habitats in various townships of Kurdistan province, Iran to the cultivated conditions, were analyzed by GC/MS. Twenty-nine components were identified, of which the main constituents of the essential oil of A. biebersteinii Afan. contained 1,8-cineole (17-34%), Bornyl acetate (0.7-39%), and p-cymene (2.2-19.2%). The cultivated accessions produced more 1,8-cineole and bornyl acetate than those of the natural habitats, while the highest amount of p-cymene was found in A. biebersteinii Afan., collected from natural habitats. The essential oils were characterized by the highest amount of 1,8-cineole (24.9-37.9%), bornyl acetate (13.7-26.9%), and p-cymene (2.7-9%) in all cultivated accessions. When transferred to the field conditions, the accession Khan gorge of Baneh City was demonstrated as the best in terms of 1,8-cineole, and the accession Booein village of Baneh produced the largest amount of bornyl acetate. The accessions from Janevareh village and Ney village in Marivan city had the largest amount of p-cymene in both fields and in both years of cultivation. The results of the study of the pharmaceutical ingredients, extracted from cultivated conditions and natural habitats, could be very important for the next stages of cultivation and domestication of A. biebersteinii Afan..

Melissa officinalis L. is used since ancient times in folk medicine because of its sedative, digestive, carminative, spasmolytic and analgesic effects. Its therapeutic impact is due to the essential oil content and rosmarinic acid. This study was designed to determine chemical composition of essential oil and rosmarinic acid content of M. officinalis cultivated in Fars province in south of Iran. The essential oil was obtained by hydro-distillation of dried aerial parts of harvested M. officinalis and analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Rosmarinic acid content was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis. The results showed that essential oil content was 0.37% and its main constituents were geranial (28.9%), neral (21.5%), geranyl acetate (19.3%), caryophyllene oxide (7.0%), (E)-caryophyllene (6.8%), thymol (3.1%) and citronellal (2.9%). Rosmarinic acid content was 3% in dry weight. Our findings show south of Iran has suitable potential for production of M. officinalis with high quality for therapeutic usages.

Seedsoffour Satureja species; S. laxiflora (Hayata) Sasaki, S. macrantha (Makino) Kudô,S. sahendicaBornm. and  S. macrosiphonia Bornm. were collected from the different regions of Iran. The samples were transferred to seed technology laboratory of natural resource gene bank at Research Institute of Forest and Rangeland (RIFR), Tehran, Iran. The seeds samples were subjected to different treatments including: pre-chilling (4 °C), Gibberlic acid (250 and 500 ppm), Potassium nitrate (2 and 4%) and distilled water (control). The treated seeds were sown in pots using a factorial experiment based on a completely randomized design with three replications in a glass house experiment. The seed emergence characteristics, including: emergence percentage, emergence speed, length of root and shoot, seedling length, root/shoot length ratio, vigor index, seedling fresh and dry weight, dry/fresh weight were evaluated during 45 days. The results showed that S. machrantha had higher mean values of seed emergence characteristics than to the other three species. The effect of treatment was significant on seed emergence characteristics of the species, it was concluded that priming technique using Gibberlic acid was more effective than the other priming techniques.

Dorema ammoniacum D.Don (Apiaceae) is a monocarpic species with bulky root and stem height by 1-2 meters, which its gum resin flows in phloem issues. Gum resin has pharmaceutical and industrial properties. In traditional medicine, it has been described as a sputum (expectorant), anticonvulsant, anti-cough, antispasmodic and gastrointestinal drug. In order to compare the different root cutting methods for gum extraction, a factorial experiment was carried out based on randomized complete block design with four replications on 4-year-old Dorema plants in south of Sabzevar city, Iran, in 2016. Treatments consisted of cutting methods (surface and concave), number of root cutting (1 to 4 times) and stopping time after root cutting (2 to 10 days). The results showed that the gum yield in concave method (14.73 gr plant-1) was 56% more than the surface method (9.41 g / plant). In addition, in the surface method, by increasing the number of root cutting from 1 to 4, the amount of gum increased from 6 to 11.8 g per plant. Whereas in the concave method this value was increased from 10.2 to 18 g per plant (p≤0.05). The interaction between number of cutting and stopping time after root cutting showed that two times of cutting with 6 days stopping caused 16 g gum per plant. In terms of survival, 85% of plants (95 bushes) with more than 2 times cutting or 8 to 10 days stopping after root cutting died in the next year.

Leucojum aestivum L. is a perennial and bulbous plant. Its bulbs are used in the medical industry because of having alkaloids. This study was conducted as split plot in a completely randomized design with 3 replications in 2018 at the University of Gilan in field conditions. The main factor included bulbs collected from three regions of Lahijan, Tonekabon and Langrood. The sub-factor included 10 levels of organic fertilizers, biochar (3, 6 and 12 tons per hectare), inoculation of Glomus intraradices, Glomus mosseae and Glomus intraradices + Glomus mosseae fungi, inoculation of Azospirillum, Azotobacter and Pseudomonas bacteria and the control. Data collected and analysed for morphological traits and absorbed macro and micro as elements by plants. There was significant difference between genotypes in terms of the plant height, leaf area per plant, leaf weight per plant, bulb weight, flowering stem weight, root weight and total plant weight (p<0.01). A significant difference was observed in the types of fertilizers used for all morphological traits and yield (p<0.01) and for phosphorus, potassium and iron content (p<0.05). The genotype by treatments interaction effect was significant for leaf number, leaf area per plant, leaf weight per plant, bulb weight, flowering stem weight, root weight and total weight showed a difference (p<0.01). Lahijan genotype plants had the highest plant height (57.6 cm), leaf length (52.5 cm) and plant leaf weight (27.2 g/per plant). The highest root weight (9.5 g) and total plant weight (74.1 g/per plant) was for biochar treatment of 12 ton/h. The study results indicated that Leucojum aestivum L. had good adaptation to crop conditions, and using biochar fertilizer and some biofertilizers improved various crop traits of this plant.

Camelina is low input and re-emergent medicinal and oilseed crop that it needs a lot of research to make the most of its genetic potential. This study aimed to evaluate the water deficit tolerance of six genotypes (Soheil cultivar and DH083, DH095, DH111, DH116, and DH133 doubled haploid lines)of camelina for some traits in the greenhouse and laboratory conditions. In the greenhouse condition, the response of camelina genotypes to irrigating regime (once every 4, 7 and 10 days) was investigated for some agro-morphological traits. This experiment was done in a randomized complete block design. Analysis of variance showed that the studied genotypes, as well as drought stress levels, were significantly different in terms of plant height, root length, root weight, grain yield, biological yield and harvest index. Mean comparison results also showed that the Soheil cultivar had the highest grain yield (3.03 g/m2). At the laboratory section and the cotyledon culture and callus induction experiment, six lines were evaluated by four levels of PEG 6000 (0, 10, 20 and 30%) for water-deficit stress in a randomized completely design. The callus growth rate, relative callus growth rate and relative callus water content under stress conditions were also studied. There was a significant difference between studied genotypes in studied traits under stress conditions and between different stress levels. In this section, the Soheil cultivar was identified as high tolerant cultivar among other genotypes due to its relative water content (8.3%) and higher callus growth rate (4.2%). So the cultivar Soheil is considered as the least susceptible to dehydration in terms of greenhouse studies and callus induction.

Rosa damascena Mill from the Rosaceae family plays an important role in the perfume and rose making industries in the Iran and the World. The aim of this study that was performed at Islamabad-e-Gharb Research Station in Kermanshah province was selection of adaptive and elite genotypes. The research was conducted in the form of a complete randomized block design with 3 replications for 5 years (2012-2016).The results showed that the average dry weight of petals in different Accsessions include: Fars 1, West Azerbaijan 1, Lorestan 1 and Kermanshah 9 genotypes was highest and in contrast, in Isfahan 5, Isfahan 7 and Kermanshah 10 genotypes, was lowest. Compare the average of the studied traits of different accessions such as average dry weight of flowers, wet weight of flowers, dry weight of petals, wet weight of petals, average small and large diameter, average plant height and average number of flowers showed varies in different genotypes. Statistical analysis of the inter Accsessions of two factors of year and genotype also showed that except two chemical compounds of essential oil (y-elemene and a-cadinene); other compounds had a significant difference (statistical level of 1% and 5%).

Nepeta binaludensis Jamzad is an endemic and rare perennial plant belonging to the Lamiaceae family which grows in a limited area in Binaloud Mountain in northeast of Iran. In order to study the effect of drying methods on its essential oil content and composition, the aerial parts were collected in flowering stage from its habitat at altitude of 2650 m above sea level in July 2018. Seven drying methods as sun drying, shade drying, oven drying at 30oC, 40oC and 50oC and microwave drying (180W and 360W) were applied in three replications. The essential oils of all samples were obtained using a Clevenger type apparatus during 3 h. The essential oils were analyzed using gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Data statistically analyzed using one way ANOVA (CRD) with three replications and mean comparison were made using the Tukey method. The highest oil yield was obtained in oven drying 50 °C (2.16%) followed by shade drying (1.96%). In contrast, the lowest values of essential oil content, 1.09 and 0.65%, were obtained in sun drying and microwave 360W, respectively. Twenty-four compounds were identified in the essential oils of N. binaludensis with various drying methods with neptalactone (23.1-54.0%), 1,8-cineol (25.5-51.0%) and myrcene (2.0-4.0%) as major components. The highest percentage of 1,8-cineole (51%) was obtained from sample dried in oven 50 °C, while, the highest amount of neptalactone (54.0%) was obtained from sample dried by the microwave 180 W. The results demonstrated that drying the aerial parts of N. binaludensis in the shade and oven 50oC are the best optimal methods to obtain the highest oil yield, while drying in microwave at 180 W is recommended to enhance higher neptalactone content in the oil.

The use of medicinal plants, as favorite sources of different metabolites for human health, has become more popular, worldwide. It is accordingly important to find methods, which may enhance the growth and quality of medicinal plants including the important medical Zarrin-giah (Dracocephalum kotschyi Boiss). The plant is used for the treatment of different diseases including cancer and Alzheimer. In the presented research, the effects of different biostimulants including seaweed extracts (Wuxal Ascofol, 1 (A1), 2 (A2), and 3 (A3) g/L) and algaton amino acid (1 (J1), 2 (J2), and 3 (J3) g/L) on the biochemical properties of Zarrin-giah were investigated in the greenhouse. Different plant biochemical properties including chlorophyll contents (a, b, and total), carotenoid, flavonoid, total phenol, antioxidant activity and leaf greenness were determined. The results indicated the positive effects of the experimental treatments on the quality of Zarrin-giah by improving the biochemical properties of the plant. The algal and the amino acid treatments significantly increased the chlorophyll a content of the plant, compared with the control treatment (0.34 mg/g). This was also the case for chlorophyll b and total chlorophyll. Although there was not much difference among the algal and amino acid treatments, on the content of carotenoid, treatments A1 (0.118 mg/g) and J1 (0.116 mg/g) resulted in the higher carotenoid content, significantly different from the other treatments including control (0.102 mg/g). The highest and significantly different flavonoid contents were resulted by the A2 (0.28%) and the J2 (0.276%) treatments. Interestingly, the least flavonoid content was related to the A3 (0.22%) treatment, even significantly less than the control treatment (0.236%) The J3 treatment (6076.336 mg/kg) resulted in the highest and significantly different content of total phenol. However, the least contents of the total phenol were related to the A3 (3510.556 mg/kg) and the control (3637.984 mg/kg) treatments. Algal treatments were more effective on the increased activity of the antioxidants. Accordingly, treatment A3 (77.167%) resulted in the highest and significantly different activity of antioxidant, followed by A2 (58.974%), and the least one was resulted by control (27.473%). The highest leaf greenness (SPAD) was related to the A2 treatment (39.933), significantly higher than the other treatments including J2 (31.733), J3 (27.033) and A1 (20.067). If the proper concentrations of biostimulants including seaweed extract and amino acid treatments tested in this research are used, it is possible to enhance the quality of Zarrin-giah, because at the higher rates, they may not favorably affect the plant quality.

Portulaca oleracea L. is a medicinal plant belonging to Portulacaceae family, which exhibited a wide scope of pharmaceutical properties such as pain killer, antipyretic, anti-viral and anti-fungal. The aim of the present study was evaluation of morphological diversity 18 populations of P. oleracea. The seeds of 18 populations were cultivated based on a completely randomized design with three replicates in the research farm of Medicinal Plants Research Center, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran. The morphological traits, chlorophyll and protein contents were measured in the vegetative stage. The analysis of variance showed that there was a significant difference among populations of P. oleracea in terms of the most studied morphological and biochemical traits. The highest shoot dry weight (84.84±12.70 g per plant) belonged to the Zanjan population, while the lowest shoot dry weight (18.89±1.72 g per plant) belonged to the population of Lourdgan. The correlation between most of the studied traits was positively significant. The cluster analysis of the 18 P. oleracea populations based on morphological and biochemical traits produced three main clusters. Overall, the outcomes of the present study were indicated the presence of high genetic variability among the P. oleracea populations. Our findings suggested that collection of the plants from different regions can be used for hybridization to generate useful recombinants in the segregating generations and improve breeding varieties of P. oleracea and can be utilized for preservation and maintenance the germplasm of this medicinal plant.

The aim of this study was to extend the shelf life of refrigerated chicken using carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) film containing essential oils (EOs). The samples included a sample without wrapping film (control), a sample wrapped with pure film (CMC), one wrapped with CMC film containing Zataria multiflora Boiss EO (CMC-Z), and one wrapped with Satureja khuzistanica jamzad EO (CMC-S). The films containing 2.4% EOs were selected for this study. The shelf life of the CMC-Z and CMC-S treatments was extended from 6 to about 12 days when compared with the control sample. The film containing EOs reduced the TBA value compared to the CMC and control samples. Sensory evaluation of the cooked meat revealed that CMC-Z slightly decreased the overall acceptability compared to the control. The CMC-S samples did not show acceptable organoleptic properties (p < 0.05). Packaging containing ZEO can extend the shelf life of refrigerated chicken with the least undesirable effect on sensory properties.