Romanian Society of Pharmaceutical Sciences
 

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PRELIMINARY ASSESSMENT OF THE ANTIOXIDANT, ANTIFUNGAL AND GERMINATION INHIBITORY POTENTIAL OF HERACLEUM SPHONDYLIUM L. (APIACEAE)

RADU CLAUDIU FIERASCU1, IOANA MARCELA PADURE2, SORIN MARIUS AVRAMESCU3, CAMELIA UNGUREANU4, RALUCA IOANA BUNGHEZ1, ALINA ORTAN5, CRISTINA DINU-PIRVU6, IRINA FIERASCU1*, LILIANA CRISTINA SOARE7

1.Nanomedicine Research Group, The National Institute for Research & Development in Chemistry and Petrochemistry, ICECHIM, Bucharest, Romania
2.Faculty of Horticulture, University of Agronomic Science and Veterinary Medicine, Bucharest, Romania
3.Research Center for Environmental Protection and Waste Management, University of Bucharest, Romania
4.Faculty of Applied Chemistry and Material Science, University Politehnica of Bucharest, Romania
5.Faculty of Land Reclamation and Environmental Engineering, University of Agronomic Science and Veterinary Medicine, Bucharest, Romania
6.Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy “Carol Davila”, Bucharest, Romania
7.Department of Natural Sciences, University of Pitesti, Pitesti, Romania

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The present work studies potential viable applications of the hydroalcoholic extract of a Romanian native Heracleum species, such as antifungal, antioxidant and germination inhibitory effect. The plants were collected in June 2014 and a voucher specimen was deposited at BUAG Herbarium, Bucharest, Romania. The hydroalcoholic extract obtained was characterized by analytical techniques and in terms of phytochemical assays. The analytical characterization of the extract revealed its chemical composition. The antioxidant potential of the extract was determined by the DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) assay. The hydroalcoholic extract revealed an important in vitro antifungal activity on the studied fungal lines, as well as a very interesting germination inhibitory effect, the extract influencing the growth in length of embryonary roots, lateral roots formation and the embryonary stem growth for Cucumis sativus.