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PHYTOCONSTITUENTS, PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES OF MARSILEA MINUTA L. (MARSILEACEAE) – AN OVERVIEW

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PHYTOCONSTITUENTS, PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES OF MARSILEA MINUTA L. (MARSILEACEAE) - AN OVERVIEW

R. Jasmin Sajini *, S. Prema and K. Chitra

Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (Deemed to be University), Porur, Chennai - 600116, Tamil Nadu, India.

ABSTRACT: Herbal drugs play an important role in the treatment of much illness. The plant has tremendous biological effects and applied in the different system of traditional medication for the treatment of various diseases. Marsilea minuta is one of the most popular foreground plants for aquariums that grows about two to three inches tall in shallow water and has attractive little markings on the tiny, variegated, green leaves. It is an aquatic or sub-aquatic fern used as a vegetable, has wide applications in traditional/folk medicine in India and Bangladesh. It is a member of the fern family. Synonyms of Marsilea minuta are Marsilea crenulata Desv, Marsilea diffusa A. Braun and Marsilea rotundata Wild. Marsilea minuta possesses many pharmacological activities such as antipyretic and analgesic, antidiabetic, antitussive, expectorant, antiamnesic, anti-aggressive, antimicrobial, hepatoprotective, antifertility, anti-tumor, antioxidant activity. This study was aimed to present an overview of traditional use, phytochemical and pharmacological investigations present in this plant.

Keywords:

Marsilea minuta, Pharmacological activity, Traditional use

INTRODUCTION: Marsilea minuta is a highly plastic and variable pteridophyte belongs to family Marsileaceae. Common names of this plant are water clover and four-leaf clover gelid water lawyer, small water clover, airy pepperwort, and pepperwort 1. Water clover is a small, creeping fern with erect 4-foliolate leaves. Water clover is an ornamental pot plant and is used pond decoration. The bright green leaves are tender and are eaten as a potherb. The extract of the whole plant is used as an aphrodisiac and for increased fertility 2. The plant is used as a sedative, and it has anticonvulsant activity 3.

The leaves are used in treatment for indigestion when it was cooked with rice and then eaten. The juice of leaf extract is used to stop nose bleeding. The leaves of Marsilea minuta and leaf of Shorea robusta is boiled and then applied to swollen gums to reduce the swelling. When it fed to gerbils, leaves extract reduced cholesterol and triglyceride levels in blood and liver substantially 4.

It also acts as astringent, coolant, digestive, diuretic, hypnotic, and expectorant Effects when it is taken as an entire plant. Many of its potent effects reported in Ayurvedic treatment for the diseases such as psychopathy, diarrhea, cough, bronchitis, skin diseases and fever.

Fresh plant decoction is taken twice a day for 10-12 days for spasmodic muscular contraction of the urethra and bladder. Root paste is applied for atopic dermatitis 5.

Taxonomy Classification: 6

FIG. 1: MARSILEA MINUTA

TABLE 1: TAXONOMY CLASSIFICATION

Kingdom Plantae
Subkingdom Tracheobionta
Division Pteridophyta
Class Polypodiopsida/Pteridopsida (disputed)
Order Hydropteridales
Family Marsileaceae
Genus Marsilea  L
Species M. minuta

Geographical Distribution: Marsilea minuta is generally prevalent in almost all the states of India particularly tropical Africa and Asia. Generally, it grows freshwater or in brackish water (Trinidad) on sandy or clay substrates. It is also found in a swamp 7.

Different Species of Marsileaminuta: 6, 8 Other species of Marsilea minuta are Marsilea aegyptica, M. ancyclopoda, M. apposita, M. burchellii, M. coromandelina, M. crenata, M. crotophora, M. deflexa,, M. distorta, M. drummondii, M. ephippiocarpa, M. farinosa, M. fenestrata, M. hirsuta, M. macrocarpa, M. macropoda, M. aminuta L., M. mollis, M. mutica, M. nubicam, M. oligospora, M. quadrifolia L., M. schelpeana, M. unicornis, M. vera, M. vestita M. villifolia, M. villosa.

Phyto-constituents: Marsilea minuta contains various constituents like phenol, flavonoids, saponins, quinones, tannins, terpenoids, coumarins, total sugar and anthroquinones 9. Also reported it contains Marsiline 3. Marsileagenin- A 10. Quercetin-3-O-glucoside, chalcone- O- glucoside kaempferol-3-O-glucoside, quercetin- 3- O-galactoside, like flavonoids were reported 11 naringenin-7-O-glucoside, quercetin-3-rutinoside (rutin) 12 also Presence of β-sitosterol and hentriacontane are reported. Around 36 phytocompounds including Phytol, n-Hexadecanoic acid, 9-Pentadecadien-1-ol, 2-Cyclohexane-1-one, 4-hydroxy-3, 5, 6-trimethyl- 4 (3-oxo-1-butenyl), 9, 12, 15-Octadecatrienoic acid, 3, 7, 11, 15-Tetramethyl-2-hexadecane-1-ol was reported in the methanolic extract of leaf of M. minuta. The methanolic extract of stem of M. minuta showed the presence of 27 bioactive compounds include, Glycerin, 1,19-Eicosadiene, n-Hexadecanoic acid, methyl ester, and 10-Octadecenoic acid methyl ester and Benzofuran, 2, 3-dihydro- 3, 7, 11, 15 – Tetramethyl-2 hexadecene-1-ol 13.

TABLE 2: ACTIVE CONSTITUENTS FROM PLANT MARSILEA MINUTA

 

Marsiline3

quercetin-3-O-galactoside 11

quercetin-3-O-glucoside 11

Naringenin-7-O-glucoside 12

kaempferol-3-O-glucoside 11

Chalcone-3-O-glucoside 11

 

Quercetin-3-rutinoside (rutin) 11
 

1,19-Eicosadiene 11

β-sitosterol 11

Hentriacontane 13
   
Hexadecanoic acid 13 Phytol 13

n-hexadecanoic acid methyl ester 13

Octadecanoic acid 13

10-Octadecanoic acid methyl ester 13

9-Pentadecadien-1-ol 13

2-Cyclohexane-1-one 13

Physico - Chemical Characters: Preliminary phytochemical studies, morphological characters, powder microscopy and quantitative microscopy and determination of physicochemical parameters of leaves of Marsilea minuta Linn. was carried out to identify the plant material and for the isolation of components 14.

Pharmacological Activity:

TABLE 3:  PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIVITY

Activity Parts used Extracts used Dose Method Result
Antipyretic and analgesic properties leaves Ethanolic extract 200 and 400 mg /kg Tail- immersion method Eddy’s hot plate method, Yeast induced pyrexia method Maximum  activity observed at 400 mg/ kg 15
Antidiabetic activity leaves Ethanolic extract 100, 250 and 500 mg/kg glucose tolerance test 500 mg/kg of ethanolic extract  showed a significant rise in  blood glucose level  compared to untreated diabetic rats 16
Anti-tussive, expectorant activity Whole plant Methanol, ethyl acetate, and petroleum ether Methanolic extract of MM (250 and 500 mg/kg), Ethanolic extract of MM (250 and 500 mg/kg), petroleum ether extract of  MM (250 and 500 mg/kg) Ammonium liquor induced cough, Sulfur dioxide (SO2) induced cough 500 mg/kg reduced the number of coughs. Methanol extract (500 mg/kg) exhibited good expectorant effect 17
Anti-amnesic activity Whole plant Ethanolic extract 200 and 400 mg/ kg Rat amnesic models, Assay of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in rat

brain, Radio ligand-receptor binding assay

 400 mg/kg showed better Anti-amnesic   activity 18
Anti-aggressive activity Whole plant - 100, 200, and 400 mg Footshock-induced aggression, Isolation-induced aggression, and resident-intruder aggression Marsilea minuta extract showed anti-aggressive activity  based on dose 19
Antimicrobial activity Whole plant Petroleum ether, chloroform-ethyl acetate, alcohol, and  water 100-500 mcg/ml Agar well diffusion method Significant activity was observed for ethyl acetate extract  against E. coli-, S. aeruginosa and alcoholic fractions  showed action against E. coli, P. aeruginosa for concentration 500 mcg/ml 20
Antimicrobial activity Rhizome Acetone, DMSO, ethanol, chloroform, and petroleum ether 100 microgram/ml Agar well diffusion method Maximum inhibition area reported in Ethanol  and DMSO  extract 21
The gold nanoparticle  of Marsilea minuta leaves Distilled water (50-400 µl) Agar well diffusion method GNP prepared from Marsilea minuta Linn showed better antibacterial effect against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus 22
Hepatoprotective Activity Whole plant Methanolic extract 100, 200, 400 mg/ kg Assessment of Hepatoprotective Activity, Determination of Serum Biochemical Parameters, Assessment of Anti-Hepatotoxic Activity MMME at dose 200 mg/ kg shows good hepatoprotective effect 23
Antifertility activity Whole plant Methanolic extract 250mg/kg - Antifertility action produced significantly due to inhibition of gonadal steriodo-genesis 24
Antitumor activity

 

 Whole plant

 

 

 Ethanolic extracts Plant extract used in a range of 10, 100 and 1000 ppm Antitumor potato disc bioassay 82.32% percentage of tumor inhibition was found in M. minuta when compared to S. ciliaris (80%) and T. prolifera (75.68%) 25
Antidepressant activity Ethanolic extract (400 mg/kg, p.o.) learned helplessness test, tail suspension test, forced swimming test Marsilea minuta (400 mg/kg, p.o.) shows antidepressant nature 26
antioxidant activity leaves Methanolic extract 25, 50, 100, 150,

200 μg/ml

 

 DPPH Radical Scavenging Method, Hydrogen Peroxide Scavenging Activity Highest free radical scavenging was at concentration 200 μg/ml. highest H2O2 scavenging concentration effect with was at 100 μg / ml 14

CONCLUSION: Marsilea minuta L. has numerous activities and treat much illness such as insomnia, mental disorders, kidney infection, Skin diseases, as diuretic, hepatitis, diarrhoea, bronchitis, diabetes, blood purifier and treatment of piles and it possesses many biological effects like anti- pyretic and analgesic, antidiabetic, antitussive, expectorant, antiamnesic, anti-aggressive, antimicrobial, hepatoprotective, antifertility, anti-tumor, antioxidant. The benefit of the vital nature of Marsilea minuta L. and its wide geographical distribution might offer an opportunity to develop many formulations by usage of this plant. Thus, this article offers an excellent accessible source for a study on active compounds for traditional medicine and allied applications for future researchers and make it useful for the society.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: The authors are grateful to the Management of Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research for their constant support and encouragement.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST: We declare that we have no conflict of interest.

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    How to cite this article:

    Sajini RJ, Prema S and Chitra K: Phytoconstituents, pharmacological activities of Marsilea minuta L. (Marsileaceae) - an overview. Int J Pharm Sci & Res 2019; 10(4): 1582-87. doi: 10.13040/IJPSR.0975-8232.10(4).1582-87.

    All © 2013 are reserved by International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research. This Journal licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

     

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IJPSR

R. J. Sajini *, S. Prema and K. Chitra

Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (Deemed to be University), Porur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.

karthikjasmin0214@gmail.com

26 July 2018

12 October 2018

16 October 2018

10.13040/IJPSR.0975-8232.10(4).1582-87

01 April 2019

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