Garlic is a health promoter that has important bioactive compounds. The bioactive extraction is an important step in the analysis of constituents present in plant preparations. The purpose of this study is to optimize the extraction with the best proportion of solvents to obtain total phenolic compounds (TPC) and thiosulfinates (TS) from dried garlic powder, and evaluate the antioxidant activities of the optimized extracts. A statistical mixture simplex axial design was used to evaluate the effect of solvents (water, ethanol, and acetone), as well as mixtures of these solvents, after two ultrasound extraction cycles of 15 min. Results showed that solvent mixtures with a high portion of water and pure water were efficient for TPC and TS recovery through this extraction procedure. According to the regression model computed, the most significant solvent mixtures to obtain high TPC and TS recovery from dried garlic powder are, respectively, the binary mixture with 75% water and 25% acetone and pure water. These optimized extracts presented oxygen radical absorbance capacity. Pure water was better for total antioxidant capacity, and the binary mixture of water–acetone (75:25) was better for DPPH scavenging activity. These optimized extracts can be used for industrial and research applications.

Green manure (GM) may reduce the use of chemical fertilizers, been an ecologically appropriate strategy to cultivation of medicinal plants. Crotalaria juncea, is one of the most used because it adapts to different climatic and high nitrogen content. Origanum vulgare. is widely used in cooking, pharmaceutical, cosmetic industries and food products. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the GM on biomass, essential oil (EO), phenolic and antioxidant. The experiment consisted: control; 150, 300, 450, and 600 g (Sh= leaves+steam) more 200 g roots (R); 600 g aerial part; 200 g roots; and soil with 300 g cattle manure per pot. The highest dry weights were observed in the presence of GM and cattle manure (90 days). The control had an EO production 75% lower in relation to the dose of 450 g GM (Sh+R). Principal component analysis showed that GM and cattle manure positively influenced the dry weight, content, yield, and EO constituents, and total flavonoids. The GM contributed to the accumulation of the major EO compounds (trans-sabinene hydrate, thymol, terpinen-4-ol). The GM management may be beneficial for cultivating, because it can increase the production of biomass and the active components, in addition to being an inexpensive resource.

This study aimed to evaluate different intensity of irradiance and cytokinins concentration which can be influential in growth and volatile compounds production in vitro for Dysphania ambrosioides L., a plant present in the RENISUS list for medicinal plants with high interest in research and use. The irradiance intensities of 16.5, 36.6, 47.6 and 73.2 µmol m^-2s^-1 in the growth room were evaluated for nodal segments development. Three kinds of cytokinin (BAP, TDZ and Kinetin) in four different concentrations (0.0, 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 mg L^-1) were studied. Nodal segments were kept in growth room under 47.6 µmol m^-2s^-1 of irradiance and without cytokinin was found suitable for nodal segment growth in vitro. The number of volatile compounds of this species was not affected by irradiance intensity or cytokinin, however, the concentrations were affected.

As espécies de Digitalis lanata e Digitalis mariana são exploradas industrialmente para a produção de digoxina e digitoxina, cardenolídeos empregados clinicamente na insuficiência cardíaca congestiva. Fatores ambientais, principalmente os fatores bióticos, interferem na produção vegetal. Problemas na produção convencional de Digitalis mariana por sementes têm afetado a produção de cardenolídeos pela planta. A cultura de tecidos vegetais é baseada na totipotencialidade das células e aplica diversas formas de cultura in vitro. Essa técnica tem sido usada para criar variabilidade genética e também micropropagação em larga escala de plantas para o mercado comercial. Em plantas, o selênio (Se) em baixas concentrações é benéfico para o metabolismo, e estimula o crescimento. Além disso há relatos que o Se pode ajudar as plantas a se manterem por mais tempo fisiologicamente ativas, aumentando a produção vegetal. Desta forma, objetivou-se avaliar a influência da aplicação de fontes de selênio no crescimento, teor de cardenolídeos totais e de pigmentos fotossintéticos de Digitalis mariana subsp. heywoodii cultivada in vitro. Foram testadas duas fontes de selênio: selenato de sódio e selenito de sódio nas concentrações de 0, 1, 10, 20, 50, 100 mg L-1. Após 40 dias foram avaliados o crescimento, produção dos pigmentos fotossintéticos e a cardenolídeos . A fonte mais indicada para a espécie é o selenato, bem como a melhor concentração é a de 1mg L-1, que promoveu crescimento na maior parte das variáveis avaliadas, além de aumentar a produção de clorofila a, clorofila b, carotenoides e cardenolídeos. O uso de selênio no meio de cultivo de D. mariana subsp. heywoodii pode ser uma alternativa para otimizar o cultivo da espécie in vitro.

Fungi of the genus Muscodor have received considerable attention for producing volatile and non-volatile organic compounds with biological activity. The objective of this study was to determine the total phenolic content and antioxidant capacity in two coffee cultivars (Catuaí Vermelho and Topázio) inoculated with the endophytic fungi Muscodor coffeanum and Muscodor sp. and in fungal extracts, as well as to characterize the phenolic compounds and trigonelline produced by isolates of Muscodor. Seeds of Coffea arabica (Catuaí Vermelho and Topázio cultivars) were inoculated with twelve fungal isolates and grown in a greenhouse for 24 months. The results showed that the cultivars inoculated with M. coffeanum (CML 4019) had the highest production of total phenolic content and antioxidant capacity. The presence of total phenolic content showed a direct correlation with antioxidant activity. Total phenolic content and antioxidant capacity varied among different Muscodor isolates. The phenolic profile of Muscodor extract determined by HPLCDAD showed the production of catechin, vanillin, and the caffeic, chlorogenic, ferulic, gallic, o-coumaric, p-coumaric, and syringic acids and the alkaloid trigonelline. These endophyte fungi associated with the coffee fruit can improve the quality of the beverage. Key words: Antioxidant po tential; bioactive compounds; endophytic fungi; Muscodor coffeanum; trigonelline.