Journal of
Medicinal Plants Research

  • Abbreviation: J. Med. Plants Res.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1996-0875
  • DOI: 10.5897/JMPR
  • Start Year: 2007
  • Published Articles: 3843

Full Length Research Paper

Pharmaco-toxic characterization of the aqueous extract from Pereskia grandifolia leaves

Anderson Assaid Simão*
  • Anderson Assaid Simão*
  • Chemistry Department, Biochemistry Laboratory, Universidade Federal de Lavras ? UFLA, Lavras, MG, Brazil.
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Angelita Duarte Corrêa
  • Angelita Duarte Corrêa
  • Chemistry Department, Biochemistry Laboratory, Universidade Federal de Lavras ? UFLA, Lavras, MG, Brazil.
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Thaís Cristina Lima de Carvalho
  • Thaís Cristina Lima de Carvalho
  • Chemistry Department, Biochemistry Laboratory, Universidade Federal de Lavras ? UFLA, Lavras, MG, Brazil.
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Pedro Henrique Souza Cesar
  • Pedro Henrique Souza Cesar
  • Chemistry Department, Biochemistry Laboratory, Universidade Federal de Lavras ? UFLA, Lavras, MG, Brazil.
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Carlos Henrique de Moura Oliveira
  • Carlos Henrique de Moura Oliveira
  • Chemistry Department, Biochemistry Laboratory, Universidade Federal de Lavras ? UFLA, Lavras, MG, Brazil.
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Silvana Marcussi
  • Silvana Marcussi
  • Chemistry Department, Biochemistry Laboratory, Universidade Federal de Lavras ? UFLA, Lavras, MG, Brazil.
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  •  Received: 15 October 2014
  •  Accepted: 09 February 2015
  •  Published: 17 February 2015

Abstract

Medicinal plants are rich sources of bioactive compounds with potential for therapeutic, cosmetic and food use, and the species Pereskia grandifolia is widely used by low-income populations for nutritional and medicinal purposes. The objective of this study was to evaluate the pharmaco-toxic potential of the aqueous extract from P. grandifolia leaves, in order to obtain information on the safety of its use. P. grandifolia leaves were dried, ground and the obtained flour was subjected to decoction at a 1:25 (wv-1) ratio. The extract was then centrifuged and the supernatant was collected and lyophilized. The genotoxic potential on human leukocytes (comet assay) was evaluated, as well as phospholipase, hemolytic, coagulant and fibrinogenolytic activities, besides potential interactions with isolated hyaluronidases (evaluated in polyacrylamide gel). The evaluated doses of the aqueous extract from P. grandifolia leaves did not induce damage to the genetic material of human leukocytes, phospholipase, coagulant and fibrinogenolytic activities, nor altered the electrophoretic migration profile of hyaluronidases in polyacrylamide gel. However, the extract induced in vitro hemolysis, in doses higher than 10 µg. Therefore, it is premature to recommend the use of this plant for therapeutic purposes regarding possible risks and benefits to human health and additional studies of toxicity, efficacy and safety are necessary, especially using in vivo assays.

 

Key words: Pereskia grandifolia, genotoxicity, hemolysis, coagulation, molecular interactions.

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This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0

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