Wild jujube “Ziziphus lotus (L.) Desf.” belongs to the Rhamnaceae family and is a traditionally herbaceous medicinal plant. It is very common in arid and semi-arid regions and is currently used for its antidiabetic, sedative, analgesic, anti-inflammatory and hypoglycemic activities. The aim of the present work was to characterize the physico-chemical properties and the phytochemical profile of wild jujube sample collected from the Guercif region, in order to determine the polyphenolic compounds and the antioxidant ability Analyses were carried out directly after the harvest for the determination of pH, refractive index, total soluble solid (°Brix), dry matter, sugar/acidity, total sugars, reducing sugars, as well as lipid and protein content. Results showed that the investigated fruit is acidic (pH 4.9 ± 0.23) and rich in sugars (80.2 g/100 g ± 3.81). The GC-MS analysis of the fruit revealed a number of volatile compounds, as many as 97, belonging to different chemical classes. The HPLC-DAD-ESI/MS analysis showed the presence of a total of 20 polyphenolic compounds in both EtOAc and MeOH-water extracts. Among them, p-Hydroxybenzoic acid was the most abundant in the EtOAc extract (185.68 µg/100 mg ± 0.5) whereas Quercetin 3-O-rhamnoside-7-O-glucoside was found in higher amounts in the MeOH-water extract (25.40 µg/100 mg ± 0.5). These components have medical interest, notably for human nutrition, as well as health benefits and therapeutic effects. Therefore, Moroccan jujube “Zizyphus lotus (L.)” fruit may have potential industrial applications for food formulations.

The aim of this study was to characterize the phytochemical content as well as the antioxidant ability of the Moroccan species Chamaerops humilis L. Besides crude ethanolic extract, two extracts obtained by sonication using two solvents with increased polarity, namely ethyl acetate (EtOAc) and methanol-water (MeOH-H₂O) 80:20 (v/v), were investigated by both spectroscopy and chromatography methods. Between the two extracts, the MeOH-H₂O one showed the highest total polyphenolic content equal to 32.7 ± 0.1 mg GAE/g DM with respect to the EtOAc extract (3.6 ± 0.5 mg GAE/g DM). Concerning the antioxidant activity of the two extracts, the EtOAc one yielded the highest value (1.9 ± 0.1 mg/mL) with respect to MeOH-H2O (0.4 ± 0.1 mg/mL). The C. humilisn-hexane fraction, analyzed by GC–MS, exhibited 69 compounds belonging to different chemical classes, with n-Hexadecanoic acid as a major compound (21.75%), whereas the polyphenolic profile, elucidated by HPLC–PDA/MS, led to the identification of a total of sixteen and thirteen different compounds in both EtOAc (major component: ferulic acid: 104.7 ± 2.52 µg/g) and MeOH-H₂O extracts (major component: chlorogenic acid: 45.4 ± 1.59 µg/g), respectively. The attained results clearly highlight the potential of C. humilis as an important source of bioactive components, making it a valuable candidate to be advantageously added to the daily diet. Furthermore, this study provides the scientific basis for the exploitation of the Doum in the food, pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries.

In the present work, the antioxidant properties of methanolic (MeOH), ethyl acetate (EtOAc) and chloroformic (CHCl3) fractions of Rosa damascena petals were evaluated. Antioxidant capacity was assessed by free radical scavenging assays (DPPH center dot) and ferrous ions (Fe2+) chelating activity. Antibacterial activity was evaluated using minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) and IC50. Qualitative analysis of chemical composition was carried out by HPLC and showed variability in the chemical constituents with a richness in flavonones and phenolic acids. Acute toxicity study and hemolysis test were also assessed. The MeOH and EtOAc fractions are of real and potential interest by their antioxidant activities. Furthermore, the microbiological study of the fractions showed a high activity of the EtOAc fraction which possesses bactericidal properties, followed by a moderate activity of the methanolic MeOH. The most sensitive strains were S. aureus and B. cereus while the most resistant were P. aeruginosa and E. coli (R). On the other side, no cytotoxicity was observed towards erythrocytes isolated from human blood and on a warm-blooded animal model. Therefore, the R. damascena petals constitute a promising source of molecules for clinical use without cytoxicity.