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Double-Staining Method to Detect Pectin in Plant-Fungus Interaction
Published on: February 4, 2022
Polygodial, the fungitoxic component from the Brazilian medicinal plant Polygonum punctatum
T M de Almeida Alves1, F L Ribeiro, H Kloos
1Laboratório de Química de Produtos Naturais, Centro de Pesquisas René Rachou-Fiocruz, 30190-002 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil.
Abstract:
Polygonum punctatum (Polygonaceae) is an herb known in some regions of Brazil as "erva-de-bicho" and is used to treat intestinal disorders. The dichloromethane extract of the aerial parts of this plant showed strong activity in a bioautographic assay with the fungus Cladosporium sphaerospermum. The bioassay-guided chemical fractionation of this extract afforded the sesquiterpene dialdehyde polygodial as the active constituent. The presence of this compound with antibiotic, anti-inflammatory and anti-hyperalgesic properties in "erva-de-bicho" may account for the effects attributed by folk medicine to this plant species.
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