The in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of two Achillea millefolium (Adanson) Koch s.l species essential oils (A. collina Becker ex Heimerl s.l. and A. pannonica Scheele, Asteraceae) originating from the Golija and Radan mountains (Serbia) were investigated. The chemical profiles of the essential oils were evaluated by GC-MS. Antioxidant activity was assessed as free radical scavenging capacity (RSC) towards 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazil (DPPH) radicals, together with effects on lipid peroxidation (LP). Antibacterial activity was examined on 21 bacterial strains. Based on the chemical composition of the essential oil, A. collina s.l. from Mount Golija was classified as a chamazulene chemotype (tetraploid). The high percentage of oxygenated monoterpenes and absence of azulene in the essential oil obtained from A. pannonica from Radan pointing that this population is octaploid. Essential oil of A. pannonica expressed stronger antimicrobial activity on almost all tested bacteria. Furthermore, this essential oil expressed higher scavenging effects on DPPH radical (IC₅₀ = 0.52 comparing to 0.62 μg/mL). Only in the LP evaluation, essential oil of A. collina s.l. from Golija exhibited stronger antioxidant activity (IC₅₀ = 0.75 comparing to 2.12 μg/mL).

Trametes versicolor and Flammulina velutipes, after submerged cultivation, with intermittent exposure to ultraviolet light (UV), were studied for Total Phenolic content (TP) and Total Proteins (TPR) contents and antioxidant properties against free radicals. The TP and TPR were determined by a spectrophotometric method and Lowry’s assay, respectively. Liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) was used to quantify polyphenols. Different in vitro assays determined the antioxidant activities of the extracts. Mycelia extract from F. velutipes after 14 days and filtrate from T. versicolor after 21 days of incubation gave the highest TP 59.60 ± 0.14 and 50.03 ± 0.66 mg GAE/g d.w., respectively. Mycelia extract from T. versicolor after 28 days of incubation had the highest TPR (183.53 ± 2.84 mg BSAE/g d.w.). The LC-MS/MS analysis indicated that p-hydroxybenzoic and protocatechuic acids are the most abundant. Trametes versicolor filtrate after 14 days and F. velutipes filtrate after 21 days (71.29 ± 0.54% and 73.5 ± 1.81, respectively) had the highest scavenging activity in SOA. Correlation analysis indicated that all extracts’ antioxidant (AO) potential strongly correlated with TP (R² = 0.83–1.0). The data confirmed that stress factors such as UV exposure could stimulate the production of secondary metabolites and natural AOs, especially phenolic acids in test fungi.

Objective. In this study, we tried to determine whether the activities of the primary antioxidant enzymes are detectable in amniotic fluid and whether they can be used as early biomarkers of complications in pregnancy such as pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH), gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), and bacterial vaginosis. Methods. This was a prospective study in which amniotic fluid was taken between 16 and 19 week of gestation. In all, 161 pregnant women were divided into two groups: study group – patients with the treated local infection, PIH, and GDM, and control group – healthy pregnant women. Levels of reduced glutathione (GSH) and activities of supeoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), glutathione reductase (GSHR), glutathione S-transpherase (GST), xanthine oxidase (XOD) and lipid peroxidation (LP) were determined spectrophotometrically in amniotic fluid samples. Results. Concentration of malondialdehyde varied greatly between investigated groups. XOD and SOD activities, though very low, were present in amniotic fluid samples. Also, enzymes of glutathione cycle and GSH concentrations were detectable and showed certain variations. Conclusion. Parameters of oxidative stress in amniotic fluid could be altered in certain pathological conditions. Their use as clinical biomarkers is limited due to great variations of amniotic fluid volume between patients which gives favor to hemolysate or serum of pregnant women.

Aim: To determine the existence and level of oxidative stress caused by lipid peroxidation in pregnancy. Methods: The research was conducted as prospective examination that included 60 healthy women (age 18–45). The women included in the examination were divided into two groups. The group I (N-31) included women in the first trimester of normal, healthy pregnancy. The group II included healthy nongravid women (N-29). Concentrations of markers of lipid peroxidation malondialdehyde (MDA) and thiobarbituric acid (TBARS) were determined using commercial ELISA tests OxiSelect^™ TBARS Assay Kit and OxiSelect^™ MDA ELISA Kit. Results: The results of this research indicate that the concentrations of the markers of lipid peroxidation TBARS and MDA are detectable in both groups. Higher mean values of MDA (>20 pmol/mg) were measured in the group of pregnant women, than in the group of nongravid women. The results indicate that mean values of TBARS markers are lower in pregnant women (≤50 µM) than in nongravid women (>100 µM). Conclusion: The marker of lipid peroxidation MDA proved to be a sensitive marker for following lipid peroxidation during pregnancy, therefore it can be considered as a good predictor of possible complications during pregnancy.

St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum, Hypericaceae) has long been used in traditional medicine as a potent remedy, while many other species of this genus have not been thoroughly investigated. The study aimed to detect the biological activity, including antioxidant, antihyperglycemic, anticholinergic, antimicrobial and monoaminoxidase inhibitory potential, of water-alcoholic extracts of three species autochthonous for Serbia and Greece from plant genus Hypericum (section Hypericum—H. tetrapterum, H. maculatum ssp. immaculatum and H. triquetrifolium), followed by phytochemical profiling. The highest amount of phenolics was recorded in H. maculatum subsp. immaculatum extract, while the highest abundance of flavonoids was characteristic of H. tetrapterum extract. Hypericin and hyperforin, quercetin, and its flavonoid, rutin, were present in all of the evaluated species. The evaluated species were good scavengers of DPPH, OH and NO radicals, as well as potent reducers of ferric ions in FRAP assay. Furthermore, the evaluated species were shown as potent inhibitors of monoaminoxidase A and α-glucosidase and modest inhibitors of acetylcholinesterase, monoaminoxidase B and α-amylase. No anti-Candida activity was recorded, but the extracts were effective against MRSA Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus sp., as well as against Proteus mirabilis. The obtained results strongly highlight the need for further in vivo studies in order to better define the potential of the medicinal application of the studied species.