An-Najah Staff

Background: The safety and the therapeutic efficacy of plants medic ations are mainly dependent on the quality controls and standards by which they are made for , to give powerful actions when prescribing them. Medicinal plants and their extracts have been used as sources of medicine , cosmetics and food in virtually all nations and cultures and the usage of plants as a source of cosmetics and medications among differen t population seems to never stop, even with the recent chemical synthetic medicines revolution. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the standard of crude extracts yields of the active constituents for all species of Urtica plants leaves ( Urtica kiovien sis Rogow. , Urtica membranacea Poir. ex Savigny , Urtica pilulifera L. and Urtica urens L. ) growing wildly in Palestine and used for treatment of various diseases as well as used in cosmetics and food . Method: Serial exhaustive extraction method using polar and nonpolar solvents for four species of Urtica leaves without boiling to avoid the hydrolysis of the active phytochemical compound. Results : The best percentage of the aqueous extract yield was for Urtica kioviensis 609 mg (24.36% of the total starting p owder weight), while the best organic extract yield was also for Urtica kioviensis 72 mg (2.88% of the total starting powder weight). Conclusion: Urtica kioviensis, Urtica pilulifera, Urtica urens aqueous serial exhaustive extraction yield and Urtica kiovie nsis organic exhaustive extraction yield can pass the quality control for manufacturing of cosmetics formulations and pharmaceutical preparations Standardization the Crude Extracts of all Urtica plant Species Growing in Palestine for Quality Control of Cosmeceutical and Pharmaceutical Formulations.

Objective: Antioxidant activity of natural compounds in food and in dietary supplements plays an important role in healthy life. Scientific evidences suggest that antioxidants reduce the risk for chronic diseases including cancer, diabetes mellitus and heart diseases.
Methods: The antioxidant activity of wild Cyclamen persicum, Malva sylvestris and Urtica pilulifera leaves and their cultivated species were studied using 2, 2-diphenylpicrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity and compared to Trolox antioxidant activity. The exhaustive extractions yields for these samples were estimated by using polar and nonpolar solvents.
Results: The results showed that the wild Cyclamen persicum, Malva sylvestris and Urtica pilulifera leaves have higher exhaustive extraction yield and as well the higher antioxidant activity (IC50) comparing with their cultivated species.
Conclusions: Both of cultivated, as well the wild natural growing forms of Cyclamen persicum, Malva sylvestris and Urtica pilulifera are a good source for natural foods supplements, pharmaceutical industry purposes and for organic food rich with antioxidant compounds.

Objective: Antioxidant activity of natural compounds in food and in dietary supplements plays an important role in healthy life. Scientific evidences suggest that antioxidants reduce the risk for chronic diseases including cancer, diabetes mellitus and heart diseases.
Methods: The antioxidant activity of wild Cyclamen persicum, Malva sylvestris and Urtica pilulifera leaves and their cultivated species were studied using 2, 2-diphenylpicrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity and compared to Trolox antioxidant activity. The exhaustive extractions yields for these samples were estimated by using polar and nonpolar solvents.
Results: The results showed that the wild Cyclamen persicum, Malva sylvestris and Urtica pilulifera leaves have higher exhaustive extraction yield and as well the higher antioxidant activity (IC50) comparing with their cultivated species.
Conclusions: Both of cultivated, as well the wild natural growing forms of Cyclamen persicum, Malva sylvestris and Urtica pilulifera are a good source for natural foods supplements, pharmaceutical industry purposes and for organic food rich with antioxidant compounds.
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Ethanolic extracts of six plants: Arum palaestinum Bioss, Urtica pilulifera L., Thymbra capitata (L.) Cav., Origanum syriacum L., Teucrium creticum L., and Teucrium polium L., used in Traditional Arabic Palestinian Herbal Medicine were evaluated for their antibacterial, anti-candida, and antidermatophyte activities using well diffusion, micro-dilution and food poisoned techniques. The extracts were tested against: six bacterial strains including Staphylococcus aureus, Proteus vulgaris, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi, Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae; five Candida albicans isolates, and two dermatophytes: Microsporum canis, and Trichophyton rubrum. The most active plants extracts were T. capitata and O. syriacum against the tested bacteria, while the remaining plant extracts did not express any activity or exhibited only very low activity against tested bacteria species and candida isolates. O. syriacum was also the most active plant against all Candida strains with inhibition zones that ranged from 22.5 to 29.5 mm. On the other hand, T. capitata extract showed the highest activity against the test dermatophytes (producing a complete inhibition at = 45 µg/mL).

Ethanolic extracts of six plants: Arum palaestinum Bioss, Urtica pilulifera L., Thymbra capitata (L.) Cav., Origanum syriacum L., Teucrium creticum L., and Teucrium polium L., used in Traditional Arabic Palestinian Herbal Medicine were evaluated for their antibacterial, anti-candida, and antidermatophyte activities using well diffusion, micro-dilution and food poisoned techniques. The extracts were tested against: six bacterial strains including Staphylococcus aureus, Proteus vulgaris, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi, Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae; five Candida albicans isolates, and two dermatophytes: Microsporum canis, and Trichophyton rubrum. The most active plants extracts were T. capitata and O. syriacum against the tested bacteria, while the remaining plant extracts did not express any activity or exhibited only very low activity against tested bacteria species and candida isolates. O. syriacum was also the most active plant against all Candida strains with inhibition zones that ranged from 22.5 to 29.5 mm. On the other hand, T. capitata extract showed the highest activity against the test dermatophytes (producing a complete inhibition at = 45 µg/mL).