Antimicrobial activity and cytotoxicity of triterpenes isolated from leaves of Maytenus undata (Celastraceae)

dc.contributor.authorMokoka, Tsholofelo Abednego
dc.contributor.authorMcGaw, Lyndy Joy
dc.contributor.authorMdee, Ladislaus Kakore
dc.contributor.authorBagla, Victor Patrick
dc.contributor.authorIwalewa, Ezekiel Olugbenga
dc.contributor.authorEloff, Jacobus Nicolaas
dc.contributor.emaillyndy.mcgaw@up.ac.zaen
dc.date.accessioned2014-01-23T07:50:56Z
dc.date.available2014-01-23T07:50:56Z
dc.date.issued2013-05-20
dc.description.abstractBACKGROUND: Plants of the genus Maytenus belong to the family Celastraceae and are widely used in folk medicine as anti-tumour, anti-asthmatic, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and anti-ulcer agents, and as a treatment for stomach problems. The aim of this study was to isolate and identify active compounds with antifungal activity from Maytenus undata after a preliminary study highlighted promising activity in crude extracts. METHODS: Sequential extracts of M. undata leaves prepared using hexane, dichloromethane (DCM), acetone and methanol (MeOH) were tested for activity against Cryptococcus neoformans, a fungal organism implicated in opportunistic infections. Bioassay-guided fractionation of the hexane extract using C. neoformans as test organism was carried out to isolate antifungal compounds. The cytotoxicity of compounds isolated in sufficient quantities was evaluated using a tetrazolium-based colorimetric cellular assay (MTT) and a haemagglutination assay (HA). RESULTS: The hexane extract was most active with an MIC of 20 μg/ml against C. neoformans. The triterpene compounds friedelin (1), epifriedelanol (2), taraxerol (3), 3-oxo-11α-methoxyolean-12-ene-30-oic acid (4), 3-oxo-11α- hydroxyolean-12-ene-30-oic acid (5) and 3,11-dihydroxyolean-12-ene-30-oic acid (6) were isolated. Compound 6 was isolated for the first time from a plant species. The antimicrobial activity of compounds 1, 3, 5 and 6 was determined against a range of bacteria and fungi implicated in opportunistic and nosocomial infections. Compounds 5 and 6 were the most active against all the tested microorganisms with MIC values ranging between 24 and 63 μg/ml, except against Staphylococcus aureus which was relatively resistant. Compounds 1 and 3 had a low toxicity with an LC50 > 200 μg/ml towards Vero cells in the MTT assay. Compounds 5 and 6 were toxic with LC50 values of 6.03±0.02 and 2.98±0.01 μg/ml, respectively. Compounds 1 and 3 similarly were not toxic to the red blood cells (RBCs) but compounds 5 and 6 were toxic, showing HA titer values of 1.33 and 0.67 respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Compounds 5 and 6 were the most active but were also relatively cytotoxic to monkey kidney cells and red blood cells, while the other isolated compounds were less active and less cytotoxic.en
dc.description.librarianam2014en
dc.description.librarianmn2014
dc.description.urihttp://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6882/13/111en
dc.identifier.citationMokoka et al.: Antimicrobial activity and cytotoxicity of triterpenes isolated from leaves of Maytenus undata (Celastraceae). BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2013 13:111.en
dc.identifier.issn1472-6882
dc.identifier.other10.1186/1472-6882-13-111
dc.identifier.other55952645400
dc.identifier.other7005589445
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2263/33075
dc.language.isoenen
dc.publisherBioMed Centralen
dc.rights© 2013 Mokoka et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licenseen
dc.subjectMaytenus undataen
dc.subjectCelastraceaeen
dc.subjectAntibacterialen
dc.subjectAntifungalen
dc.subjectCytotoxicityen
dc.subjectHaemagglutination assayen
dc.subject.lcshAlternative medicine -- South Africaen
dc.subject.lcshMateria medica, Vegetableen
dc.subject.lcshMedicinal plantsen
dc.titleAntimicrobial activity and cytotoxicity of triterpenes isolated from leaves of Maytenus undata (Celastraceae)en
dc.typeArticleen

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