Chemical composition, in vitro cytotoxic and antioxidant activities of the essential oil and major constituents of Cymbopogon jawarancusa (Kashmir)

The chemical composition of the hydrodistillate of aerial parts of Cymbopogon jawarancusa, a natural grass considered as major forage for animal nutrition, used in food because of the presence of sufficient concentration of minerals like calcium and potassium was analysed by capillary GC–FID, GC–MS and ¹³C NMR. Seventeen constituents representing 97.8% of the total oil with piperitone (58.6%) and elemol (18.6%) as major constituents were identified. In vitro cytotoxicity of the oil and its constituents on human cancer cell lines THP-1 (leukemia), A-549 (lung), HEP-2 (liver) and IGR-OV-1 (ovary) was evaluated by Sulphorhodamine-B assay. The oil was found to be more potent than its components against cancer cell lines tested with IC₅₀ of 6.5 μg/ml (THP-1), 6.3 μg/ml (A-549), 7.2 μg/ml (HEP-2) and 34.4 μg/ml (IGR-OV-1). Antioxidant activity of oil and its constituents was evaluated by DPPH assay. In conclusion, the results demonstrate potent cytotoxic and antioxidant effects of oil, and its components like piperitone, α-pinene, β-caryophyllene and β-elemene.     

Heraclenin: A Potential Optoelectronic Device Material from Prangos pabularia

Heraclenin (C₁₆H₁₄O₅), a linear furanocoumarin, was isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of the roots of Prangos pabularia. The compound was characterized using x-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), optical microscopy, ultraviolet (UV)–visible, and photoluminescence (PL) measurements. Structural analysis confirmed the orthorhombic structure of the system. Exploration by SEM and optical images predicted that the compound contains microcrystals with irregular morphology. From UV–visible spectroscopy, high transmission was displayed by these crystals in the entire visible range. The optical band gap (E _g) was found to be around 3.91 eV and exhibited indirect allowed transitions. Photoluminescence data showed good emission at certain wavelengths in the visible region. The observed optical properties could be due to intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) when excited by any suitable light. The present properties of the compound can be explored for use in optoelectronics and as fluorophores in biological imaging applications.