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Dittrichia graveolens (Asteraceae) is an aromatic and annual plant. The aim of this study is the evaluation of total phenolic, flavonoid and flavonol content, the antioxidant activities and other important medicinal secondary metabolites of this plant. According to the results, the total amount of phenols and flavonoid in different plant organs of D. graveolens were different in a way that the content of total phenols and flavonoid in the flowers and leaves were significantly more than the stems and roots. The content of flavonol in the flowers, leaves and stems were not significantly different, and the lowest content was observed in the roots. In addition, the linear and significant correlation coefficient was found between the antioxidant activity and the phenolic compounds in the extracts of different organs of the plant. The main components in different extracts were Bornyl acetate and α-Cadinol in flower extract, Borneol, Bornyl acetate, Thymol and Calarene in leaf extract and PMAMOMPE, Safrole, Carvacryl acetate, Vulgarone B and Bornyl acetate in root extract. On the whole, the current results compared with the results of other researchers indicates the remarkable impact of plant habitat on the quality and quantity of pharmaceutical compounds in different organs of the plant

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In this study, water stress was applied by polyethylene glycol at a concentration of 20 perecentage. To improve the resistance of the plants, the samples were treated by potassium nitrate at concentrations 5, 10, and 15 mM within 9 days. Changes in proline, total protein, photosynthetic pigments, carotene, anthocyanin, malondialdehyde, phenols, flavonols, flavonoids, soluble sugars and potassium ion were examined. The results showed that tobacco plants which had been exposed to drought used the accumulation of osmolytes such as proline, soluble sugars and potassium in order to balance their osmotic pressure. Drought stress also caused oxidative stress and increased the production of active forms of oxygen. As a result, non-enzymatic antioxidant defense system of tobacco plants including anthocyanins, flavonoids, flavonols and beta-carotene increased, which could be considered to be a major step for resistance to drought. The results also showed that the concentration of 15 mM potassium nitrate in particular, could significantly improve some of the harmful effects of stress and reduced photosynthetic pigments and proteins. Potassium nitrate could also bring down the MDA and beta-carotene levels to equivalent levels in control plants. As a result, it seems that using potassium can affect plant resistance to drought and plays an important role to reduce some harmful effects of stress.

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Application of some chemical components including plant hormones such as methyl jasmonate causes resi-stance to increase in environmental stresses. In this study, the effect of metyl jasmonate in different concentrations (10, 20 and 30 uM) on the elevation of the plant resistance was investigated in drouht stress. Tobacco seedlings were studied under drought stress caused by polyethylene glycol (20%) during periods of 3, 6 and 9 days. The results revealed that the imposed stress significantly increased soluble sugar content, MDA and non-enzymatic defense factors such as ant-hocyanin and proline. In contrast, it is reduced the amount of photosynthetic pigments, carotenoids and flavonoids. On the other hand, the use of methyl jasmonate decreased malondialdehyde as a marker of lipid peroxidation and values of some detent factors such as proline, beta-carotene and MDA. Meanwhile, it increased the amount of soluble sugars and photosynthetic pigments, anthocyanins, flavonoids and flavonols. As a result of the simultaneous reduction of lipid pe-roxidation and some antioxidants, it seems that using exogenous methyl jasmonate can help the plant withstand against drought stress conditions.

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Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus L.) has antioxidant, anti-diabetic, anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory proper-ties. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of tarragon hydro-alcoholic extract on anxiety and depression in male rats exposed to chronic restraint stress. Forty eight male rats were randomly divided into six groups including 1) control, 2) stress, 3) tarragon 100, 4) tarragon 500, 5) stress-tarragon 100 and 6) stress-tarragon 500. Groups 2, 5, and 6 were placed in restrainer for 21 consecutive days, 6 hours a day. Groups 3, 4, 5, and 6 were gavaged with tarragon extract of different do-ses (100 and 500mg/kg). At the end of this 21-day period, anxiety and depression were evaluated by elevated plus maze and forced swimming test. Data analysis was performed using one-way ANOVA, p<0.05 being considered significant. The pe-rcentages of open arm entry and time spent in open arm increased significantly in tarragon-stress groups compared with st-ress group (p<0.05). Tarragon extract decreased significantly the immobility time in rats exposed to stress in forced swim-ming test (p<0.01). The results suggested that hydro-alcoholic extract of Artemisia dracunculus L. reduced the anxiety and depression in rats exposed to chronic immobilization stress, probably due to its anti-oxidant compounds

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Of different types of bio-compatible nano‌particles, iron oxide nanoparticle has attracted attention for its applications especially in medicine and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We decided to study histological changes in testis and spermatogenesis in mature male mice that are affected by ironoxide nanoparticles (Fe₂O₃) during fetal period. In this study, the mice were divided into three experimental and two control and sham groups. Iron oxide at do-ses of 10, 30, 50 mg/kg were injected into pregnant mice during 10th, 12th and 14th days of the critical period of fetus testis development. After the maturation of the mice which were born, slices with the thickness of 0.06 µm were prep-ared from adult male testis and epididymis, stained with hematoxylin and eosin. The cells were counted, then the obta-ined data was analyzed with one-way ANONA and Tukey testes. The results showed that the number of epididymis sp-erms at the doses of 10 and 30 mg/kg, testis weight at the dose of 30 mg/kg, primary spermatocytes at the dose 10mg/kg had increased, while the testis diameter in all the three experimental groups and the volume of the testis at the dose of 50 mg/kg had decreased. Disorganization and vacuolization were observed at high doses. Passing through the cell me-mbrane, and considering its oxidation and reduction potentials, it was observed that Iron oxide nanoparticle acts as anti-oxidant at low doses and shows toxicity at high doses. The fact obtained in the paper reflects the dual potential of the ir-on oxide nanoparticle.

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Strictosidine synthase-like (SSL) is a group of gene families in the Arabidopsis genome, which whose orthologues in other plants are key enzymes in mono-terpenoid indole-alkaloid biosynthesis pathway. The SSL7 is upregulated upon treatments of Arabidopsis plants with signaling molecules such as SA, methyl jasmonate and ethylene. To find the functional role of the gene, a T-DNA-mediated knockout mutant (ssl7) along with the wildt ype were treated with different concentrations of NaCl. The expression level of salt stress genes including P5CS1, NCED3, AAO3 and RD29A at 150 mM NaCl demonstrated that the expression was significantly higher in ssl7 compared with the expression in Col-0. The activities of Catalase (CAT), Ascorbate Peroxidase (APX), Peroxidase (POD) and Superoxide Dismutase (SOD) were measured in different concentrations of NaCl. The results suggested that the enzymes activities were significantly higher in ssl7 compared with wild-type Col-0. In total, the results suggest that SSL7 might have a salicylic acid-dependent negative regulatory role in plant resistance to salt stress.
 

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With the increase of cancer disease and the side-effects of the current treatments, researchers are attempting to find methods with less side-effect. The fern Adiantum capillus-veneris L. has triterpenoid compounds which have anti-tumor characteristics. This study aims to investigate the fatal effect of the extract of this plant on breast cancer (MCF-7) and normal (MRC-5) cell lines using MTT method. A. capillus-veneris specimens were collected from Marzoon Abad Village and were dried at the temperature of 40° C by the use of Soxhlet and Ethanol % 96. Hydroalcoholic extract was produced from the aerial and underground parts of this plant and 3 fractions, i.e., Hexane, Chloroform and Ethyl acetate, were prepared from the extract. The compounds of the plant extract were identified by GC-Mass. The results demonstrate the presence of polyphenolic compounds, terpenoid, fatty acids, wax, alkaloid, N-oxide and fibers, with strong antioxidant effect. The results of the MTT test proved that this extract had a dose-depending fatal effect on the MCF-7 cells and is capable of eradicating the cancer cells. On the other hand, its effect on cancer cells is more than its effect on normal cells. Also, IC₅₀ in both of cell lines induced by the extracts of aerial and underground parts showed a significant difference. The fatal characteristics of the extract are comparable with the cisplatin anti-cancer drug.
 

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To understand the Eco physiological adaptation mechanisms of Fagus orientalis Lipesk to altitude changes, the activities of Peroxidase (POD), Catalase (CAT), and Ascorbate peroxidase (APX) in leaves of Fagus orientalis in different altitudes (A1: 700 m, A2: 1200 m, A3: 1700 m above sea level)  Was studied in the forests of Guilan. The sampling of leaves was collected from southern and northern parts of the crown of healthy and mature trees. The results of analysis variance showed that there was a significant difference between and within the population for the activity of catalase and peroxidase enzymes at the probability level of 0.05 and with increasing altitude, the activity of catalase and peroxidase were increased but the activity of Ascorbate peroxidase enzyme was initially increased and its level of activity decreased from the middle altitude with increasing altitude. Also, the results showed that the enzymatic activity of peroxidase and catalase in the northern leaves was more than the southern leaves that collected in crown of the trees.

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Melissa officinalis is a medicinal plant belong to  lamiacea family.  This plant has been cultivated in many parts of the world due to its therapeutic effects. This study was conducted to improve antioxidant activities of proliferated shoots from tissue culture. The seeds of plant   were cultured in MS hormone free medium in order to obtain   seedlings. Then the  shoots were transfer to MS medium supplemented with 2 mg/ L  BAP.After 45 days salicylic acid (SA) was added to the medium at concentrations of 0, 50, 100 and 200 µM. The antioxidant activity and phenolics, flavonoids and rosmarinic acid content in proliferated shoots were evaluated 4,7,10 and 14 days after treatment. As a result the highest free radical scavenging and reducing power activity, as well as the highest value of total phenolic   and rosmarinic acid were observed in shoots   after 14 days of treatment with 100 µM salicylic acid. The elevated level of superoxide anion scavenging activity      and total flavonoids        were obtained from the shoots treated with 50 µM salicylic acid for 14 days. Over all treatment with100 µM salicylic acid for 14 days was better in order to antioxidant activity and compounds with recognized antioxidant activity.

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Parkinson is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. Pain and emotional disorders due to Parkinson negatively affect the quality of the patient’s life. Biarum carduchrum is an antioxidant plant with some application in traditional medicine. The aim of this study is to evaluate the protective effects of Biarum carduchrum extract on pain and emotional disorders caused by 6-hydroxydopamine injection. Rats were randomly divided into 5 groups of 8 animals. The control group received normal saline. Parkinson's groups were subjected to the injection of 6- OHDA in the right anterior mid-brain (MFB). In third, fourth and fifth groups, rats received Biarum carduchrum extract at doses of 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg via gavage 7 days after induction of Parkinson for 14 days. On day 15^th, behavioral tests including forced swimming test and tail flick were performed. Treatment of Parkinsonian rats with Biarum carduchrum extract at doses of 100, 200 and 400 mg dramatically reduced the duration of immobility time in the forced swimming test. Rats treated by Biarum carduchrum extract at doses of 100, 200 and 400 mg showed significantly increased resistance to pain compared with Parkinsonian rats. The results of this study show that the Biarum carduchrum extract improves depression and pain induced by Parkinson, which is probably related to its antioxidant effects.

 

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Epilobium minutiflorum belongs to the genus Epilobium with important medicinal properties. In this study, the natural variation of phytochemical compounds of E. minutiflorum at different altitudes has been investigated. Aerial parts of plants were collected at flowering stage from natural habitats at different altitudes of 2387, 2569 and 2813 masl. The plant extracts were obtained with 80% methanol and several phytochemical properties were measured. The properties included the total flavonoid content (TFL), total phenol (TPH), antioxidant capacity (AOX) and anthocyanin content (ACY) measured by the AlCl3, the Folin-Ciocalteu, the Ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and the differential PH methods, respectively. In addition, phytochemical components were identified by the GC/MS method. The results of photometric analysis indicated that the population of Shemshak, located at the highest altitude showed the highest content of TFL, TPH and AOX with 30.39 mg/gr DW, 938.91 mg/gr DW and 77.77 mM/gr DW, respectively. The TFL, TPH and AOX values showed a positive correlation with altitude. The results of GC/MS analysis revealed the presence of 41 compounds in E. minutiflorum, which were separated into flavonoids, phenolic acid and its derivatives, steroids and terpenes groups. Shemshak population showed the highest value in all identified compounds. A positive correlation was also observed between altitude and 30 compounds identified by the GC/MS method including mainly flavonoids and phenolics. The results of this study indicated that environmental factors at higher altitudes may influence the elevation of the flavenols and phenol content in E. minutiflorum. The identification of these influential factors on phytochemical content at higher altitudes requires further studies.

 
 

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In order to study the effects of magnetopriming on the physiological and phytochemical characteristics of Hyssopus officinalis plants, this research was conducted as a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design. Results showed that magnetopriming (particularly at 200mT/5 min) increased the level of shoot dry weight (82.6 percent), root dry weight (86.5 percent), total chlorophyll (32.8 percent), carotenoids concentration (32.4 percent) and polyphenols content (2 folds) in 60-day-old Hyssopus officinalis. Also, electrolyte leakage and lipid peroxidation decreased by 27.6 and 45 percent, respectively. In addition, reducing power, DPPH and superoxide anion scavenging activities significantly augmented. However, higher activities of superoxide dismutase (76 percent), catalase (4.2 folds), ascorbate peroxidase (2.4 folds) and guaiacol peroxidase (48 percent) were found at 90 mT. Results suggested that the application of magnetopriming promoted growth in H. officinalis through augmentation of cellular membrane integrity as well as biomass and photosynthetic pigments content. Furthermore, it was found to enhance the antioxidative system. Magnetopriming might apparently improve the medicinal properties via increasing the level of polyphenols and antioxidant capacity in H. officinalis.

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Phosphorus is an essential nutrient for plant growth and productivity. Since agricultural soils in Iran are predominantly calcareous with very low available Pi content, Pi deficiency has been considered to be a major nutritional constraint for crop production, thus, the application of Pi-fertilizers is essential for satisfactory crop production. The application of Pi-fertilizers contaminates soil and water resources. Therefore, the application of Pi-fertilizers should be reduced through some efficient strategies. The identification of genotypes more tolerant to Pi deficiency is an important low-cost strategy to promote sustainable agriculture in low fertility soils. In this study, the morphological and biochemical responses of five cultivars of common bean (Talash, Mahali Khomein, Sadri, Kosha and Line Ks21191) were evaluated under Pi sufficiency and Pi deficiency. Under Pi-deficient conditions, fresh and dry weights and shoot length were lower while root length was higher in comparison with Pi-sufficient conditions. Under Pi-deficient conditions, the highest and lowest levels of total P were observed in Mahali Khomein and Talash, respectively. The activities of superoxide dismutase and peroxidase in root and catalase in leave showed remarkable increase under Pi-deficient conditions. In conclusion, Mahali Khomein and Talash were the most and the least Pi-deficient tolerant cultivars, respectively.
 
 

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Malathion is one of the commonest type of organophosphate insecticide whose toxicity in human body is mainly considered to result from the induction of oxidative stress. The aim of this study was to investigate the antioxidant effect of Quercetin, a flavonoid compound, on the spatial memory and oxidative stress parameters during Malathion poisoning in male Wistar rats. This study was performed on nine groups, each of which consisted of eight male rats. Three days after intra-peritoneal injection of Quercetin, Malathion or a combination of these two drugs, the Moris Water-Maze apparatus was used to measure spatial memory parameters. The hippocampus was sampled and the oxidative stress parameters were measured in this area. Intra-peritoneal injection of Malathion (100 and 200 mg/kg) significantly reduced spatial memory parameters (P<0.01) and induced oxidative stress (P<0.001), whereas intra-peritoneal injection of quercetin (50 mg/kg) improved spatial memory in Malathion-poisoned experimental rats (P<0.05). Also, oxidative stress parameters in Malathion-treated groups showed a significant reduction in quercetin treatment (P<0.01). Quercetin was observed to restore the function of spatial memory and the level of oxidative stress parameters of the treated groups with Malathion to the normal level.
 
 

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One of the major abiotic stresses that negatively affects plants is the presence of heavy metals. Soil pollution with heavy metals, resulting from the industrial development and use of fertilizers containing heavy metals, has become a major environmental concern in human societies. Mercury is a toxic heavy metal that causes pollution in agricultural lands. Accumulation of Hg by plants may disrupt many cellular functions and block growth and development. Under such conditions, the enzymatic and non-enzymatic defense systems of plants are activated. Several defense systems are cooperating together in plants to cope with stressful situations. In this study, the effect of different concentrations of mercury on the photosynthetic pigments content and non-enzymatic defence systems in Nicotiana tabacum was studied. After planting the plants under the same conditions in the hydroponic medium and feeding the plants with Hoagland solution, treatments with different concentrations of mercury nitrate (0.5, 1 and 3 mM and a control group) were applied to the seedlings in three replications. Ten days after the application of the treatments, the plants were harvested and examined. The results showed that tobacco plants which had been exposed to heavy metal used the accumulation of osmolytes such as proline and soluble sugars in order to balance their osmotic pressure. The decrease in the amounts of photosynthetic pigments and increase in the levels of malondialdehyde in the leaves indicated the elevation of oxidative damage. Increased activity of non-enzymatic antioxidants in tobacco leaves, including anthocyanins, phenol, flavonols and flavonoids, can be interpreted as the mechanisms of resistance to heavy metal stress induced by mercury.
 

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Peroxidase catalyzes different oxidation of substrates using hydrogen peroxide, a reactive oxygen specie (ROS). ROS, at low concentrations, act as messenger to regulate intracellular signaling, whereas, at high concentrations, they can overcome the immune system by creating oxidative stress. Some common beverages such as coffee, tea and soft drinks contain high levels of xanthine alkaloids including theophylline and theobromine. In this study, the effect of theophylline and theobromine on peroxidase activity was kinetically studied by measuring the absorption of 4-aminoantipyrine, oxidized in the presence and absence of theophylline and theobromine at 510 nm for 3 minutes. The results showed that theobromine and theophylline acted as inhibitors with IC₅₀ of 0.50 and 0.55 mM, respectively. K_m and V_max values showed that both compounds are non-competitive inhibitors. The values of K_i were calculated as 0.03 and 0.045 mM for theobromine and theophylline, respectively. Lower values of K_i and IC₅₀ for theobromine compared to theophylline indicates that theobromine has a higher inhibition strength and binding tendency to the enzyme-substrate complex. Hence, it is concluded that theobromine has a stronger inhibitory effect on POD activity.
 
 

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Basil is an important medicinal plant, belonging to the Lamiaceae family. Basil is used for the treatment of different diseases such as stomachache, headache, constipation, fever and infections, as well as to reduce and regulate the blood sugar. Moreover, Basil is known for its antibacterial, antifungal and antioxidant properties. In this study, the impact of drought stress on phenols and flavonoids concentrations, as well as the antioxidant activities of leaf extract of three basil cultivars were investigated. Seeds of basil cultivars (mikhak, green, purple) were cultivated in sand-loamy soil and drought stresses (75%, 50% and 25% of the field capacity) were applied on six-leave plants. Experiments were conducted in a completely randomized design and three repeats. Total phenols, total flavonoids and flavonols concentrations of basil leaf extracts and their antioxidant activities were measured. The maximum values (with significant differences) of three groups of non-enzymatic antioxidants and the highest levels of antioxidant activities were observed for green cultivars under mild stresses (75% of the field capacity). It was observed that antioxidant activities were elevated by the increase of the concentration of the plant extract. Drought stress results in oxidative stress in basil plants. Phenols, flavonoids and flavonols are well-known as strong antioxidants have a role in the plant’s protection against the oxidative stress. In thrice cultivars of basil which were investigated, concentrations and abilities of these compounds to inhibit free radicals were decreased by the increase of the levels of drought stresses. It seems that both basil genotypes and drought stress levels affected the production of antioxidants studied and, consequently, have impacts on the plant inhibitory abilities against the oxidative stress.

 

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Quinoa seed (Chenopodium quinoa) is considered a unique food source due to its rich protein content and high antioxidant activity related to polyphenols. In the present study, with the aim of selecting the quinoa seeds to send to space, the response of protein content, phenol, flavonoid, antioxidant capacity, and the germination index of its seeds to simulated vacuum conditions of space was evaluated. The results showed a significant increase in the seed germination index for the vacuum-treated group compared to the control group. Total phenolic and flavonoid content was higher in vacuum-treated seeds compared to the control group. Vacuum conditions significantly increased the antioxidant capacity of quinoa seeds. The total seed protein content in the vacuum-treated and control groups was 25 and 35 mg/ml, respectively. The seed protein profile showed 13 distinct protein bands in the molecular weight range of 15 to 70 kilodaltons. The intensity of protein bands was significantly different between vacuum treatment and control groups. Structural changes in the seed pericarp as well as water and oil exit from the seeds under vacuum conditions can be the causes of different biochemical and physiological responses of quinoa seeds in the present study.