Antioxidant and anti-cholinesterase activity of Globularia meridionalis extracts and isolated constituents.

The antioxidant and anti-cholinesterase properties of Globularia meridionalis (Podp.) O. Schwarz (Globulariaceae) were investigated. G. meridionalis aerial parts and roots were extracted with methanol, and the total extract successively partitioned with n-hexane. The methanol fraction of the roots showed the highest antioxidant activity with IC50 values of 8.0 and 2.1 microg/mL in the DPPH and beta-carotene bleaching tests, respectively. From this fraction, three flavonoids, namely pectolinarigenin 7-O-beta-glucoside, apigenin 7-O-beta-glucoside and luteolin, and two phenylethanoids, namely acteoside and isoacteoside, were isolated. Potential anti-cholinesterase effects were assessed through the acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) enzymes inhibition assay. The n-hexane fraction of the roots exhibited the highest activity against both AChE and BChE with IC50 values of 65.5 and 70.4 microg/mL, respectively.