Unravelling Phytochemical and Bioactive Potential of Three Hypericum Species from Romanian Spontaneous Flora: H. alpigenum, H. perforatum and H. rochelii
Mihai Babotă, Oleg Frumuzachi, Andrei Mocan, Mircea Tămaş, María Inês Días, José Pinela, Dejan Stojković, Marina Sokóvić, Alexandru Sabin Bădărău, Gianina Crișan, Lillian Barros, Ramona Păltinean
Abstract
Hypericum perforatum L., also known as St. John’s Wort, is recognized worldwide as a valuable medicinal herb; however, other Hypericum species were intensively studied for their bioactive potential. To fill the research gap that exists in the scientific literature, a comparative evaluation between H. alpigenum Kit., H. perforatum L. and H. rochelii Griseb. & Schenk was conducted in the present study. Two types of herbal preparations obtained from the aerial parts of these species were analyzed: extracts obtained through maceration and extracts obtained through magnetic-stirring-assisted extraction. LC-DAD-ESI-MSn analysis revealed the presence of phenolic acids, flavan-3-ols and flavonoid derivatives as the main constituents of the above-mentioned species. Moreover, all extracts were tested for their antioxidant, enzyme-inhibitory and antimicrobial potential. Our work emphasizes for the first time a detailed description of H. rochelii phenolic fractions, including their phytochemical and bioactive characterization. In comparison with the other two studied species, H. rochelii was found as a rich source of phenolic acids and myricetin derivatives, showing important antioxidant, anticholinesterase and antibacterial activity. The study offers new perspectives regarding the chemical and bioactive profile of the less-studied species H. alpigenum and H. rochelii.