Since some synthetic insecticides cause damage to human health, compounds in plants can be viable alternatives to conventional synthetic pesticides. Dittrichia viscosa L. is a perennial Mediterranean plant known to possess biological activities, including insecticidal properties. The chemical composition of an essential oil (EOD) from D. viscosa, as well as its antioxidant, antimicrobial, and insecticidal effects on the cowpea weevil (Callosobruchus maculatus) were determined. Forty-one volatile compounds were identified in EOD, which accounted for 97.5% of its constituents. Bornyl acetate (41%) was a major compound, followed by borneol (9.3%), α-amorphene (6.6%), and caryophyllene oxide (5.7%). EOD exhibited significant antioxidant activity in all tests performed, with an IC₅₀ of 1.30 ± 0.05 mg/mL in the DPPH test and an EC₅₀ equal to 36.0 ± 2.5 mg/mL in the FRAP assay. In the phosphor-molybdenum test, EOD results ranged from 39.81 ± 0.7 to 192.1 ± 0.8 mg AAE/g E. EOD was active on E. coli (9.5 ± 0.5 mm), S. aureus (31.0 ± 1.5 mm), C. albicans (20.4 ± 0.5 mm), and S. cerevisiae (28.0 ± 1.0 mm), with MICs ranging from 0.1 mg/mL to 3.3 mg/mL. We found that 1 µL of EOD caused 97.5 ± 5.0% insect mortality after 96 h in the inhalation test and 60.0 ± 8.3% in the ingestion assay. The median lethal concentration (LC₅₀) was 7.8 ± 0.3 μL EO/L, while the effective concentration in the ingestion test (LC₅₀) was 15.0 ± 2.1 μL EO/L. We found that 20 µL of EOD caused a reduction of more than 91% of C. maculatus laid eggs.

In this work, two varieties of Anacyclus pyrethrum (L.) including Anacyclus pyrethrum var. pyrethrum (L.) and Anacyclus pyrethrum var. depressus (Ball) Maire were evaluated for their mineral and chemical compositions, total phenolic and flavonoid contents, and antimicrobial and antioxidant activities using hydroalcoholic extracts from their different parts (leaves, capitula, roots, and seeds). The phytochemical and mineral compositions were carried out using standard methods. The antioxidant activity was determined using the DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl), ABTS (2,2-azino-bis 3-ethylbenzothiazolin-6-sulfonic acid), and FRAP (ferric reducing antioxidant power) tests. The antimicrobial activity was assayed using the agar diffusion, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum bactericidal concentration methods. The results of the chemical analysis showed that both varieties contained interesting mineral and chemical compositions with potentially active compounds; among them, N-isobutyl-2,4-heptadiene-6-monoynamide and cinnamic acid were detected in the Anacyclus pyrethrum var. pyrethrum (L.) only while thiadiazolo [5,4-d] pyrimidin-7-amine and N-isobutyl-2,4-undecadiene-8,10-diynamide compounds were limited to the Anacyclus pyrethrum var. depressus (Ball) Maire. In vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of the two varieties demonstrated that the different parts had prominent antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. The principal component analysis (PCA) showed great similarity in the activity of the leaves, capitula, and seeds of both plants and a high difference in roots. Anacyclus pyrethrum var. pyrethrum roots were characterized by a high content in phenols and flavonoids and better antibacterial activities compared to Anacyclus pyrethrum var. depressus (Ball) Maire roots, which were characterized by better antioxidant activities. From this study, it can be concluded that the two varieties of Anacyclus pyrethrum (L.) showed promising mineral and chemical compositions with antioxidant and antimicrobial properties.

Caralluma europaea (Guss.) N.E.Br.: (C. europaea) is a wild medicinal plant belonging to the family Apocynaceae. It is commonly used in traditional medicines for treating several diseases. The present work aims to evaluate the anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antifungal potentials of C. europaea fractions including hydro ethanol (ET CE), n-butanol (But CE), and polyphenol (Poly CE). The chemical composition of hydroethanol, n-butanol, and polyphenol-rich fractions from C. europaea were determined using GC-MS after silylation. The anti-inflammatory effect of hydroethanol, n-butanol, and polyphenol-rich fractions was studied by carrageenan-induced paw edema. Antibacterial and antifungal activities of hydroethanol, n-butanol, and polyphenol-rich fractions against Gram-positive bacteria, Gram-negative bacteria, and yeasts were assessed using the disc diffusion and micro-dilution assays. The findings of the chemical characterization affirmed the presence of interesting bioactive compounds in C. europaea fractions. The polyphenol-rich fraction was the best inhibitor of edema by75.68% after 6 h of treatment. The hydroethanol fraction was the most active against both bacteria and yeasts. This study contributes to society as it provides potential bioactive compounds in C. europaea extract, which may help in fighting nosocomial antibiotic-resistant microbes.

Vinegar is a natural product widely used in food and traditional medicine thanks to its physicochemical properties and its richness in bioactive molecules. However, its direct use by consumers can have complications and undesirable effects. Therefore, this study contributes to investigating the physicochemical and biological properties of eleven vinegars marketed in Morocco. Determination of pH, acetic acid, conductivity, total soluble solids and alcohol content in vinegar was carried out. The polyphenols (TP), flavonoids (TF), and condensed tannins (CT) content was determined, and their antioxidant activities were evaluated using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl Hydrazyl (DPPH), Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) and Phosphomolybdenum Reduction Assay (TAC). Then, the antimicrobial activity was studied against four pathogenic bacteria and two fungal strains, using the disk diffusion and the microdilution method. This study showed a wide range of acetic acid values from 0.65 ± 0.29 to 5.15 ± 0.20%. The high value of TP, TF, and CT in our samples V10, V9, and V4 was 655.00 ± 22.2 µgGAE/mL, 244.53 ± 11.32 µgQE/mL and 84.63 ± 1.00 µgTAE/mL, respectively. The tested strains showed variable sensitivities to the different samples with inhibition zones ranging from 6.33 ± 2.08 to 34.33 ± 0.58 mm. The lowest minimum inhibition concentrations were recorded against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC29213 ranging from 1.95 to 7.81 µL/mL. While Aspergillus niger ATCC16404 showed resistance against all of the analyzed samples. In general, vinegar commercialized in Morocco presents a variable range of products with variable properties. Indeed, must take into account this diversity when using it. A future study is needed to identify the phytochemical composition that will further the comprehension of this variability and contribute to its valorization.

Research on lemon grass (Cymbopogon citratus L.) revealed a variety of active molecules and examined their biological characteristics. However, most of these studies were conducted on wild varieties, while cultivated plants were addressed less. This study aimed to characterize the biomolecules and biological activities of lemon grass growing under North African conditions in Morocco. Phenolic compound profiles of aqueous (AE), ethanol (EE), and methanol (ME) extracts and their fractions were obtained with steric exclusion chromatography on Sephadex G50 gel and identified by LC-MS/MS. Then, total polyphenols (TPC), flavonoids (TFC), and antioxidant activities (FRAP: scavenging value and TAC: Total Antioxidant Capacity) of the fraction were evaluated, as well as the antimicrobial activity. The obtained results showed that the ME contained eight major compounds (i.e., apigenine-7-O-rutinoside and myricitine-3-O-rutinoside). The AE showed the presence of five molecules (i.e., kaempferol-3-O-glucuronide), while EE showed the presence of three molecules (i.e., quercetine-3-O-rutinoside). Regarding the chemical characterization, the highest value of total phenolic content (TPC) was obtained in AE (25) (4.60 ± 0.29 mg/g), and the highest value of total flavonoid content (TFC) was obtained in ME (29) (0.7 ± 0.08 mg/g). Concerning the antioxidant activity, the highest FRAP was obtained in ME (29) (97.89%), and the highest total antioxidant capacity (TAC) was obtained in ME (29) (89.89%). Correlation between FRAP, TPC, and TFC was noted only in fractions of AE and ME. All tested extracts of C. citratus and their fractions showed a significant antimicrobial effect. The lowest minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was recorded for ME against E. coli. Extracts’ biological activities and their fractions were governed by their active molecules. These data are new and clarify a novel aspect of bioactive molecules in the extracts of cultivated C. citratus. Equally, throughout this research, we clarified the relationship between identified molecules and their biological properties, including antioxidant and anti-microbial activities, which is new for the study area. This study is suggested as a reference for comparative studies and other assays of other biological activities for the study plant.

Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) is a valuable forage and soil stabilisation crop. Perennial crops have long been associated with good environmental performance and ecosystem stability. Vascular wilt diseases caused by Fusarium species are the most damaging plant diseases affecting both woody perennials and annual crops. Therefore, the aim of the present study was the assessment of the preventive and growth-promoting effects of carvacrol against Fusarium oxysporum, F. solani, and F. nivale (phylogenetically analyzed on the basis of internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions) causing vascular wilt of ryegrass in vitro and under greenhouse conditions. To accomplish this aim, various parameters were monitored including coleoptile development, rhizogenesis, the incidence of coleoptile lesions, disease index, the visual appearance of ryegrass health, ryegrass organic matter and soil fungal load. The results obtained showed that F. nivale was highly harmful to ryegrass seedlings compared to other Fusarium species. Furthermore, carvacrol with 0.1 and 0.2 mg/mL protected significantly the seedlings against Fusarium wilt diseases both in vitro and in the greenhouse. Simultaneously, carvacrol also functioned as a seedling growth promoter, as is reflected in all monitored parameters, such as the recovery of seedling height and root length, and the development of new leaf buds and secondary roots. Carvacrol proved to be effective plant growth promoter and a bio-fungicide against Fusarium vascular diseases.