In this study, various extracts obtained different parts of Tanacetum cilicicum were investigated for in vitro antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity. Antioxidant activity was tested with three methods; namely 2.2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging capacity, 2.2′‐azinobis (3‐ethylbenzothiazolin‐6‐sulphonic acid) (ABTS) radical cation scavenging capacity, and ferric-reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents of extracts were determined by Folin-Ciocalteu and aluminum chloride methods, respectively. Also, anti-inflammatory activity of these extracts was evaluated by 5-lipoxygenase inhibition assay. Ethyl acetate extract of capitula of T. cilicicum (TCCEA) showed the highest antioxidant activity with IC50 values of 22.44 and 30.86 µg/mL against DPPH and ABTS radicals, respectively. At the same time, the highest ferric reducing power was found in the TCCEA (42.2 mg TE/g extract). The highest total phenolic contents have been detected in TCCEA and ethyl acetate extract of leaves of T. cilicicum (TCLEA) with value of 174.1 and 175.6 mg GAE/g extract, respectively. Similarly, the highest total flavonoid contents have been detected in TCCEA and TCLEA with values of 26.94 and 30.48 mg QE/g extract, respectively. TCCEA exhibited strong anti-inflammatory activity with IC50 value of 9.44 µg/mL when compared to standard indomethacine (22.39 µg/mL). These results demonstrate that TCCEA has a significant antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity. Also, the results show that TCCEA is a good candidate for further bioactivity-guided fractionation in the search for new active anti-inflammatory and antioxidant compounds.

The aim of this study was to investigate the antioxidant, cytotoxic, and antibacterial activities of ethanol extract (SRE) and its hexane (SRH), chloroform (SRC), ethyl acetate (SREA), and aqueous ethanol (SRAE) sub-extracts obtained from the fruits of Scabiosa rotata M. Bieb. Molecular docking studies were also performed to evaluate the interactions of the most active sub-extract with the human mitochondrial ABC transporter (ABCB10) protein, plays an important role in cellular oxidative stress regulation and mitochondrial function. Total phenolic (TPC) and flavonoid (TFC) contents and antioxidant radical scavenging activities (1, 1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl [DPPH] and 3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6 sulfonic acid [ABTS]) of all extracts were determined. Cytotoxic activity was evaluated on different cell lines, such as HepG2 (liver cancer), MCF-7 (breast cancer), and HeLa (cervical cancer) cells. Antibacterial activity was tested against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterococcus faecalis, and Staphylococcus aureus. SREA showed the best antioxidant activity with IC50 values of 54.20 μg/ml and 48.56 μg/ml for DPPH and ABTS, respectively, and also had high TPC (499.06 mg GA/g) and TFC (327.45 mg QE/g). Furthermore, SREA showed significant cytotoxicity comparable to cisplatin with IC50 values of 51.29, 51.41, and 52.89 μg/ml for HepG2, MCF-7, and HeLa cells, respectively. However, none of the extracts showed antibacterial activity. The analysis using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS–MS) on SREA found that the main phenolic compounds are chlorogenic acid, hesperidin, quinic acid, and isoorientin. Molecular docking of the major compounds showed that chlorogenic acid (2.21 mM) exhibited the strongest binding affinity, followed by hesperidin (5.83 mM), quinic acid (8.86 mM), and isoorientin (13 mM). These findings indicate the potential of SREA to be used as a natural antioxidant and anticancer agent.

In this study, in vitro biological activities and total phenol/flavonoid contents of methanol extract (ISM) and its hexane (ISH), chloroform (ISC), ethyl acetate (ISEA) and aqueous methanol (ISAM) fractions obtained from aerial parts of Inula salicina were investigated. ISEA showed the highest antioxidant activity against DPPH and ABTS radicals with an IC50 value of 0.014 mg ml-1for both assays. ISEA exhibited a good anti-inflammatory activity with an IC50 value of 0.060 mg ml-1. ISEA was found to exhibit a moderate level of antidiabetic activity against α amylase enzyme with an IC50 value of 0.290 mg ml-1. ISEA and ISM presented low and moderate inhibitory activity against acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase enzymes with IC50 values of 0.577 and 0.279 mg ml-1, respectively. ISC with MIC values of 78 and 156 µg ml-1 displayed a significant antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and S. epidermidis, respectively. Almost all extracts had moderate effect against Candida species. The highest total phenolic and flavonoid contents were determined in ISEA with 574.8 mg GAE (gallic acid equivalent) g-1 extract and 30.48 mg QE (quercetin equivalent) g-1 extract, respectively. These results showed that ISEA had a good antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity with moderate α-amylase and butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory activity. Also, ISC exhibited a significant antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus species.