Antioxidant and Anti α-amylase Activities of Polar Extracts of Mitracarpus hirtus and Saba senegalensis and the Combinason of their Butanolic Extracts

Diabetes mellitus is a major public health disease, and it affects all segments of the population around the world. The progression of this disease is worrying, 460 million in 2019, the number of diabetics is estimated in 2045 at 700 million worldwide. The antioxidant and antidiabetic activities of the ethyl acetate (EA) and Butan-1-ol (But-ol) fractions of M hirtus and Saba senegalensis are studied in this work. The results revealed that the fractions possessed flavonoid, tannins, terpenes and sterols; and exhibit potent radical scavenging activity using DPPH as substrate. The butanolic fractions exhibited more significantly α-amylase inhibitory activities than the ethyl acetate fractions. The IC50 values of butanolic fractions are 0.099 and 0.41 mg/ml respectively for M hirtus and S Senegalensis versus 0.44 and 1.45mg/ml ethyl acetate fractions. The combined butanol fractions of the two plants do not lead to the expected synergetic activities. Thus, it could be concluded that due to the presence of antioxidant components in the plant, extracts have well prospective for the management of diabetes and the related condition of oxidative stress.

ADDITION TO THE FLORA OF MAHARASHTRA STATE, INDIA

Crotalaria goreensis Guill. & Perr., Mitracarpus hirtus (L.) DC., and Spermacoce remota Lam. Tabl., are three plant species reported for the first time in Palghar taluka, Palghar district, Maharashtra state, India and is a new addition to the flora of Maharashtra state.

Three New Distributional Records of Rubiaceae for Chhattisgarh

Mitracarpus hirtus (L.) DC., Spermacoce exilis (L.O.Williams) C.D.Adams ex W.C.Burger & C.M.Taylor and Spermacoce latifolia Aubl., are reported for the first time from Chhattisgarh. Taxonomic details, illustrations and photographs have been provided for all species.

Repellency potential of some botanicals against the maize weevil, Sitophilus zeamais (Motschulsky, 1855) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in stored sorghum

Repellency of Euphorbia balsamifera, Lawsonia inermis, Mitracarpus hirtus and Senna obtusifolia along with permethrin powder against Sitophilus zeamais was evaluated in the laboratory at 28-32°C and 60-75% RH. The botanicals were applied as powders, methanolic, ethanolic and aqueous extracts at the rate of 2.5, 5.0 and 10.0 x 104 ppm per 20 g of sorghum grains, while the permethrin powder was applied at 0.056 x 104 ppm. Percentage repellency was recorded at 1, 6, 12 and 24 hours after exposure (HAE). All the botanicals were found to have a repellent effect against Sitopholus zeamais at all three concentrations. The highest (82.22 ± 2.22%) repellency among the botanical powders was exhibited by 10.0 x 104 ppm of Euphorbia balsamifera within 24 HAE. Methanolic leaf extracts were found to be more effective than the other formulations, causing total repellency against the weevils at 10.0 x 104 ppm of all the botanicals, while the activities of the aqueous extracts were the least repellent (41.37 ± 7.39 to 60.14 ± 1.64%) after 24 hours of exposure. The repellent activities of the botanicals decreased with increasing exposure periods for powders and aqueous extracts, and increased with increasing duration for methanolic and ethanolic extracts. The results showed that the botanicals were good repellents against Sitopholus zeamais and could serve as stored sorghum protectants against maize weevil infestation. Grains protected with these botanicals could be used as seeds for planting. Meanwhile, studies on the toxicity of these botanicals against higher animals are recommended.

AVALIAÇÃO DA TRANSPOSIÇÃO DE SERAPILHEIRA E DO BANCO DE SEMENTES DO SOLO EM UMA ÁREA DEGRADADA NO PLANALTO CATARINENSE

Este trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar a composição florística da transposição de serapilheira e do banco de sementes do solo de um fragmento florestal no município de Otacílio Costa, SC, com a finalidade de avaliar a viabilidade desse material para estimular a restauração florestal em áreas degradadas. Foram alocadas 22 parcelas de 3 m x 3 m em um fragmento de Floresta Ombrófila Mista e coletadas amostras da serapilheira e banco de sementes do solo a 5 cm de profundidade. Cada amostra foi homogeneizada e disposta em 22 parcelas de 1 m x 1 m em uma área degradada. As plântulas que emergiram com altura acima de 10 cm foram identificadas, contadas e plaqueteadas no momento de cada avaliação. A estrutura horizontal da comunidade foi avaliada por meio da densidade e frequência e a diversidade foi avaliada pelo índice de Shannon-Wiener (H’) e equabilidade de Pielou (J). Foram identificadas 1527 plântulas, pertencentes a 59 espécies. As espécies que apresentaram maior densidade e frequência foram Mimosa scabrella e Mitracarpus hirtus. O índice de diversidade de Shannon-Wiener foi de 3,10 e o índice de equabilidade foi de 0,76. A transposição da serapilheira e do banco de sementes possibilitou a entrada de novas espécies na área, permitindo inferir que a metodologia adotada é promissora para estimular a restauração florestal em áreas degradadas.

Mitracarpus hirtus var. sessilis (Rubiaceae), an addition to the flora of Odisha state

Mitracarpus hirtus (L.) DC. var. sessilis Dhruvan, Pandur and Mohanan (Rubiaceae), hitherto known only from Kerala is reported here for the first time from Eastern Ghats, Odisha. Detailed description, photographs and relevant notes are provided for easy identification.