The selection of appropriate solvents is crucial for determining both the composition and quantity of secondary metabolites extracted from medicinal plants. This study investigates the influence of solvent polarity on the extraction yield and phytochemical profile of Heracleum persicum fruits. Various solvents were tested as extragents, including polar (methanol, ethanol, acetone, acetonitrile), non-polar (hexane), and binary mixtures (ethanol/hexane, ethanol/water). Gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) were employed to analyze the extracts. Hexane, the least effective solvent, extracted only one compound, which can be isolated in pure form. Methanol, the most efficient solvent for quantitative extraction, yielded 7 out of 12 extracted compounds. However, ethanol extracted the highest number of compounds, with a total of 16. Additionally, a new criterion for assessing solvent extraction power is proposed, based on the sum of peak areas in the chromatograms, providing an objective measure of solvent effectiveness.

The present study investigated the anion composition of drinking water from various cities and villages in Armenia, including spring water and tap water samples. The simultaneous separation was achieved for fluoride, chloride, bromide, nitrite, nitrate, sulfate, and phosphate anions with the correlation coefficients >0.998. Validation of the method was carried out in accordance with the requirements of guidelines in terms of selectivity, specificity, system suitability, linearity, accuracy, precision, lower limits of detection and quantitation, robustness, and stability. The method was suitable for routine drinking water quality assessment in line with the national or World Health Organization (WHO) regulations. The validated method was further used to analyze drinking water samples from different regions of Armenia. The observed concentrations for the anions in drinking water complied with the WHO limits for drinking water with some exceptions. The test method can be submitted to quality control laboratories as a convenient and practical tool for routine analysis and monitoring studies.

Medicinal and edible plants are valuable sources of biologically active compounds whose composition may vary with botanical identity, geographical origin, environmental conditions, and post-harvest processing. In addition to essential mineral constituents, such plants may accumulate non-essential and potentially toxic elements relevant to exogenous chemical exposure and xenobiotic research. This study characterized the phytochemical composition, essential and non-essential elemental profile, and antioxidant activity of rosehip (Rosa spp.) and sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.) fruits collected from different locations in Armenia. Soluble sugars and vitamin C were determined by HPLC, elemental composition by ICP-OES, and radical-scavenging activity by the DPPH assay. In fresh rosehip, vitamin C ranged from 130 to 900 mg/100 g, compared with 11.9–40.0 mg/100 g in sea buckthorn. Potassium was predominant in both fruits. In the analyzed samples, the measured Ca and Mg concentrations were numerically higher in rosehip, whereas higher Fe concentrations were observed in sea buckthorn. Potentially toxic elements, including As, Cd, and Pb, were detected at different concentrations among the analyzed samples. In the selected paired rosehip samples, lower DPPH radical-scavenging activity was measured in the shade-dried materials than in the corresponding fresh materials, while the analyzed sea buckthorn samples showed high DPPH radical-scavenging activity under the applied assay conditions. These findings provide a comparative characterization of the phytochemical and elemental profiles of the investigated fruits and highlight the xenobiotic relevance of the detected non-essential elements.

Background A number of health system problems have arisen due to the coronavirus. Apart from these problems, the pharmaceutical sector was not left out either, as prescriptions for new virus treatments were unplanned and purchases were irregular. Aim To carry out an economic analysis of the drugs used in the COVID-19 department of the hospital. Methods For the study we used the clinical-economic methods: ABC/VEN analysis, ATC/DDD methodology and DU90% analysis method. Materials for the study were data on the use of drugs by one of the multidisciplinary hospitals in Armenia in the department of COVID-19. Results The ABC/VEN analysis of the drugs revealed that group A did not have non-essential drugs, and group B had non-essential drugs - 18.75%. The combination of the ABC/VEN and DU90% analysis revealed that the DU90% group lacked non-essential drugs, indicating that the hospital had purchased and used the most vital and essential drugs for the COVID-19 department. Conclusion Based on the results, a recommendation was made and sent to the pharmacist of the hospital, who will take into account these results when planning the purchase of drugs for the next year, aiming to reduce the use of non-essential drugs in the hospital.