Integrated in vitro and in silico characterization of Dittrichia viscosa methanolic extract: phytochemical profiling, antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anticancer activities.
Mezi I, Heni S, Meliani S, Becheker A, Boughrara B
Medicinal Plants
A sticky, yellow-flowered shrub colonizing roadsides around the Mediterranean turns out to pack compounds that outperform vitamin C as an antioxidant and can stop MRSA in its tracks — a reminder that plants dismissed as invasive weeds often carry serious biochemical muscle.
Scientists tested a liquid extract made from a common Mediterranean shrub called false yellowhead and found it does several impressive things at once: it neutralizes damaging free radicals better than vitamin C, fights inflammation, and kills multiple types of bacteria that are resistant to normal antibiotics. It also slowed the growth of breast cancer cells in a lab dish. Computer simulations showed that key plant compounds dock neatly onto proteins involved in cancer and infection, hinting the plant could be a starting point for new medicines.
Key Findings
The extract's antioxidant potency (DPPH IC₅₀ = 0.0153 mg/mL) surpassed ascorbic acid (vitamin C), with riboflavin and chlorogenic acid identified as primary constituents.
Selective antimicrobial activity was confirmed against MRSA, multidrug-resistant E. coli, Bacillus cereus, and Candida albicans — pathogens of major clinical concern.
Molecular docking and 300-nanosecond simulations showed stable binding of folic acid, kaempferol, and β-carotene to cancer- and infection-relevant targets (tubulin, COX-1, DNA gyrase B), with favorable predicted pharmacokinetics.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Researchers found that an extract from Dittrichia viscosa, a weedy Mediterranean shrub, shows strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity, kills drug-resistant bacteria and fungi, and has moderate activity against breast cancer cells — with riboflavin and chlorogenic acid as its main active compounds.
Abstract Preview
Dittrichia viscosa is a highly adaptable Mediterranean plant, recognized for its bioactive metabolites and potential applications in phytoremediation and phytotherapy. This study aimed to investiga...
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Dittrichia viscosa, also known as false yellowhead, woody fleabane, sticky fleabane and yellow fleabane, is a flowering plant in the daisy family.