apigenin and apigetrin

Chamomile tea composed of dried flower heads of Matricaria recutita L. (Asteraceae) is one of the most popular single ingredient herbal teas. Tea industries, spice shops or public bazaars are mostly supplied chamomile as a raw material via cultivation or through nature-picking. However, one of the drawbacks of nature-picking is adulteration. This could be either due to false authentication of the plant materials by ingenuous pickers or intentional/unintentional substitution with other flowers resembling to chamomile in appearance during harvesting. Therefore, quality control of raw chamomile materials before marketing should be carefully considered not only by quantification of apigenin 7-O-glucoside (active marker) but also by fingerprinting of chemical composition. This work presents both quantification of apigenin 7-O-glucoside and chemical fingerprinting of commercial chamomile tea products obtained from different food stores and spice shops by a validated HPTLC method. In addition, HPTLC profiles of investigated chamomile tea samples were compared with HPLC method stated in the European Pharmacopoeia and it was found that HPTLC method was superior to HPLC method in the field of adulteration confirmation. Therefore, fingerprint profiles performed on the silica gel 60 NH

Topics: Apigenin; Asteraceae; Chamomile; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Flowers; Food Analysis; Gels; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; Matricaria; Multivariate Analysis; Plant Extracts; Quality Control; Silicon Dioxide; Teas, Herbal

Brewed tea of chamomile flowers (Matricaria recutita L.) (Asteraceae) has been extensively consumed for centuries due to either its pleasant taste or medicinal purposes. On the other hand, the major problem is difficulty in distinguishing the genuine specimen when supplying chamomile through nature-picking. Consequently flowers of other Asteraceae members resembling to chamomile in appearance may frequently be practiced by lay people or marketed in spice shops or bazaars. Evidently detection of such adulterations plays a vital role in terms of public health to avoid risk of toxicity (i.e. pyrazolidin alkaloids) and ineffective treatments (lack or insufficient concentration of the active constituents). This work presents either development and validation of a high performance thin-layer chromatographic (HPTLC) method for apigenin 7-O-glucoside which is one of the active markers in chamomile flowers or its application for the fingerprint discrimination of chamomile-like materials i.e. Anthemis spp., Bellis spp., Chrysanthemum sp. and Tanacetum sp. gathered by local people assuming as chamomile. Separation was performed on the silica gel 60 NH2 F254s HPTLC plates using the developing solvent system of ethyl acetate-formic acid-acetic acid-water (30:1.5:1.5:3, v/v/v/v). The proposed HPTLC method may also be a leading guide for the quality assessment of chamomile tea products on the market.

Topics: Apigenin; Asteraceae; Chamomile; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Chromatography, Thin Layer; Flowers; Matricaria; Plant Extracts; Solvents

Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla), a popular herb valued for centuries as a traditional medicine, has been used to treat various human ailments; however, its anticancer activity is unknown. We evaluated the anticancer properties of aqueous and methanolic extracts of chamomile against various human cancer cell lines. Exposure of chamomile extracts caused minimal growth inhibitory responses in normal cells, whereas a significant decrease in cell viability was observed in various human cancer cell lines. Chamomile exposure resulted in differential apoptosis in cancer cells but not in normal cells at similar doses. HPLC analysis of chamomile extract confirmed apigenin 7-O-glucoside as the major constituent of chamomile; some minor glycoside components were also observed. Apigenin glucosides inhibited cancer cell growth but to a lesser extent than the parent aglycone, apigenin. Ex vivo experiments suggest that deconjugation of glycosides occurs in vivo to produce aglycone, especially in the small intestine. This study represents the first reported demonstration of the anticancer effects of chamomile. Further investigations of the mechanism of action of chamomile are warranted in evaluating the potential usefulness of this herbal remedy in the management of cancer patients.

Topics: Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic; Apigenin; Apoptosis; Cell Division; Cell Line, Tumor; Chamomile; Flowers; Humans; Male; Neoplasms; Plant Extracts; Prostatic Neoplasms

In vivo skin penetration studies of the Camomile flavones apigenin, luteolin and apigenin 7-O-beta-glucoside were carried out with nine healthy, female volunteers. During seven hours the decline of flavonoid concentration in a saturated aqueous alcoholic solution filled in glass application chambers were repeatedly measured by spectrophotometry at fixed time periods. The maximal fluxes were calculated. From the graph of the maximal flux values as a function of time it was concluded, that the flavonoids are not only adsorbed at the skin surface, but penetrate into deeper skin layers. This is important for their topical use as antiphlogistic agents.

Topics: Administration, Topical; Apigenin; Chamomile; Female; Flavonoids; Humans; Luteolin; Oils, Volatile; Plants, Medicinal; Skin Absorption

Topics: Administration, Oral; Apigenin; Chamomile; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Female; Flavonoids; Humans; Oils, Volatile; Plant Extracts; Plants, Medicinal; Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet; Umbelliferones