The undeniable efficacy of medicinal plants and wide range of biological activities attributed to plant secondary metabolites are an indication that plants can serve as an excellent pool of bioactive compounds with useful therapeutic properties. The South African flora is recognised as one of the richest centres of plant diversity in the world. From this enormous biodiversity a large number of species has the potential to yield pharmacologically active compounds. C. album is an indigenous plant belonging to the Cape fynbos biome with potentially useful bioactivities. The aim of this study was to evaluate the bioactivity of C. album by screening plant extracts for antibacterial, anti-mycobacterial, antifungal, antioxidant and anti-HIV activity. For rapid and effective screening for the presence of bioactive compounds, a bioassay-guided fractionation methodology was followed. Extracts from plant material obtained from two different geographic regions, the Cape and Highveld, were prepared by liquid extraction in a ratio of 150g fresh plant material per litre solvent, either acetone or ethanol. Qualitative analysis of the crude extracts by TLC and RP-HPLC documented the multi-component plant constituents as a fingerprint, revealing a highly complex, but similar profile of extracted components in both plant groups. Preliminary identification and structural information of the bioactive components present in the active C. album extracts was obtained by a combination of preparative TLC and LC/MS. The development of resistance to all available classes of antibiotic agents, their decreased effectiveness and the re-emergence of previously uncommon infections has necessitated the search for antimicrobial substances with novel antimicrobial mechanisms. The antimicrobial activity, including the antibacterial (Gram-positive and Gram-negative), anti-mycobacterial and antifungal activity of the crude extracts were evaluated. The TLC-bioautographic method used to screen the plant extracts for antimicrobial activity, as well as the localisation of compounds with antibacterial and antifungal activity, indicated the presence of a number of inhibitory compounds with activity against all the microorganisms tested. Evaluation of the inhibitory strength of each extract by the serial microdilution assay indicated that the C. album extracts effectively inhibited all the microorganisms, with the minimum inhibitory concentrations in the low mg/ml range. The significant antimicrobial activity exhibited against all the microorganisms, especially against the Gram-negative bacteria, Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Candida albicans, could suggest the potential use of the extracts or their active constituents as therapeutic agents for the treatment of infectious diseases. The need for natural antioxidants in the health care sector and food industry, due to the role that free radicals play in the pathology of a variety of human diseases and radical-induced deterioration of food products, supported the evaluation of the free radical scavenging activity of C. album extracts against relevant free radical species. The antioxidant activity of the extracts measured using the TLC-DPPH method, revealed the presence of a number of compounds with antioxidant activity. Quantification of the radical scavenging activity by the DPPHspectrophotometric assay revealed that the acetone extracts had a higher radical scavenging activity compared to the ethanol extracts, a pattern that was also found with the fluorescencemicroplate based oxygen radical absorbance assay (ORAC), specific for peroxyl radicals. The observed antioxidant activity were correlated with the total polyphenol content of the crude extracts, determined by the Folin-Ciocalteau procedure, but not with the reducing capacity evaluated by a Fe3 + - Fe2 + reduction method. HIV/AIDS has gained significant interest due to the high mortality rate and the rapid spread of the disease. The appearance of HIV strains resistant to certain antiretroviral drugs, in addition to the high cost, severe metabolic side effects and therapeutic failure of currently available antiretroviral agents, served as motivation for evaluation of C. album for anti-HIV properties and to evaluate potential cytotoxicity of plant extracts in mammalian cell cultures. The effects of the crude extracts on the in vitro HIV-1 subtype C (the predominant HIV-1 form in South Africa) replication and cytopathic effect on CEMnkrCCR5 lymphoid cells were determined. Viability assays using tetrazolium salts and viability dyes allowed the assessment of the host cell responses in the cytotoxicity and anti-HIV screening. Assays were performed at the maximum non-toxic concentration of 50 μg/ml. Some of the plant extracts exhibited significant reduction of the virusinduced cytopathic effect and induced a significant increase in cellular viability. The effect of the extracts on HIV activity was also investigated by determining the viral p24 core protein level, an indication of the replication fitness of the virus; and a significant decrease in p24 antigen level, was found. An attempt to clarify the main active compounds and the structural elements conferring the bioactivity in the analysed systems, revealed the presence of phenolic compounds, primarily coumarins and flavonoids, which are thought to be responsible for the observed antibacterial and antioxidant activities. The results of this study indicate that C. album possess strong bioactivity that warrants further investigation. / Prof. I.A. Dubery Dr. D. Meyer

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is a human disease caused by the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and it is one of the biggest social, economic and health challenges in the world. The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that between 33.4 to 46.0 million people around the world were living with HIV/AIDS in December 2005 and the highest estimates are in the Sub-Saharan Africa (around 25 million). In more developed countries a combined antiretroviral therapy called highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is used, which results in reduced progression to AIDS in most patients. Despite the beneficial effects of HAART, significant side effects are experienced by treated patients. In addition, most infected people live in countries where the treatment is very expensive or, in many cases, not available at all. These people therefore rely on medicinal plants for health care. In this study, aqueous extracts from Sutherlandia frutescens and Lobostemon trigonus were screened for potential anti-HIV activities in a series of in vitro enzymatic assays, including reverse transcriptase, HIV-1 protease and glycohydrolases. Two extracts of Sutherlandia leaves (SFL-1 and SFL-2) were prepared that inhibited HIV reverse transcriptase and a Lobostemon leaf extract (LTL) was shown to also inhibit this enzyme. All extracts were assayed at 1.25mg/ml. Tannin content was determined for all active extracts using a tannic acid assay. SFL-1 and SFL-2 were found to contain about 6 percent and 7 percent tannins, respectively, and LTL contained 31% tannins by weight. Tannins were removed using polyamide columns and three fractions were collected for each. The extracts were also fractionated with Sephadex G-25, Amberlite IR 120 and Dowex 1-X8 as size exclusion, cation exchange and anion exchange, respectively. Extracts were also fractionated by preparative thin layer chromatography where two compounds were separated from S. frutescens extract with high activity against reverse transcriptase while showing insignificant inhibition towards other enzymes tested. SFL-BFW-10 and SFL-WEF-7 inhibited reverse transcriptase by almost 100 percent and the IC50 values calculated for these compounds were 0.34 and 0.23mg/ml, respectively. Cytotoxicity of these compounds was evaluated on Chang liver cells and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). None of these compounds showed any significant inhibition of cell proliferation. The purity of these compounds could not be confirmed because there was insufficient material to use in the techniques required to show purity and identification. Therefore, TLC was used to determine the nature of these compounds. SFL-BFW-10 was identified as an organic acid and SFL-WEF-7 was identified as flavonoid.

The rising costs of prescription drugs in the maintenance of personal health and wellbeing have increased the interest in medicinal plants. The World Health Organization estimates that 65 percent-80 percent of the world’s population use traditional medicine as their primary form of health care. In this project the focus has been on the use of Leonotis leonurus extracts as a traditional medicine. The major chemical constituent of this plant is marrubiin, which is a diterpenoid labdane lactone formed from a precursor called premarrubiin. Aqueous and acetone extract (AL and OL extract, respectively) of this plant has been found to have an antithrombotic effect, with IC50 values of 3mg/ml and 6mg/ml, respectively. The extracts also have an effect on fibrinolysis, where the lysis time was decreased by more than 50 percent by the organic extract and standard marrubiin. In whole blood ADP-induced platelet aggregation, the organic extract inhibited aggregation by 68 percent at a final concentration of 138μg/ml (equivalent to 7.2μg/ml marrubiin). Marrubiin has also been screened for antithrombotic/anticoagulant activity; no antithrombotic activity has been observed but it increased the rate of fibrinolysis, by decreasing lysis time by 64 percent and also decreasing fibrin formation. From these findings it can be concluded that marrubiin has a fibrinolytic effect and antiplatelet aggregation effect. In the diabetic studies, in hyperglycemic condition, the OL (10μg/ml) extract and standard marrubiin significantly increased insulin secretion by 200 percent (2-fold) and 400 percent (4-fold), respectively, with respect to the control. The OL extract and standard marrubiin stimulated the release of insulin, the stimulatory index was significantly increased by 450 percent (4.5-fold) and 500 percent (5-fold), respectively, with respect to the control. In the apoptotic studies, in the normoglycemic and hyperglycemic conditions, the OL extract decreased the occurrence of apoptosis, in a dose-dependent manner, with the lower concentrations inducing apoptosis significantly higher than the relevant controls. Standard marrubiin did not have an effect on apoptosis in hyperglycemic condition, but it decreased the occurrence of apoptosis by 200 percent (2-fold) under normoglycemic conditions. The OL extract increased proliferation by 148 percent (1.48- fold) and 155 percent (1.55-fold) in normoglycemic and hyperglycemic conditions, respectively. The same effect was observed for standard marrubiin, where, proliferation was increased by 180 percent (1.8-fold) and 200 percent (2.0-fold) in normoglycemic and hyperglycemic conditions, respectively. RT-PCR displayed that standard marrubiin inhibited the expression of insulin by 50 percent under normoglycemic conditions.

Thesis (M.Sc. (Microbiology)) -- University of Limpopo, 2015 / Antioxidants play an important role in living organisms to control level of free radicals and other reactive molecules in the body to reduce oxidative damage. Synthetic antioxidant compounds are used in food industries as food additives to boost our immune systems. These compounds are associated with a number of critical side effects including liver damage and carcinogenesis. Scientists are also concerned about microorganisms that have developed resistant genes against current antibiotics used in hospitals. The aim of the study was to isolate and characterize bioactive compounds from Ricinus communis leaves with activity against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 29213), Enterococcus faecalis (ATCC 29212), Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853). Consequently, medicinal plants are studied and considered for their efficacy and safety, because they possess bioactive compounds with various biological activities. Leaves of R. communis were collected at the University of Limpopo, Turfloop campus in Limpopo province, South Africa. The leaves were dried and milled to a fine powder. A number of trial extraction methods were employed using various solvents of different polarities on a fine powder leaves to identify the best extraction method. Plant extracts were analyzed by thin layer chromatography (TLC) developed in four mobile phases. To detect separated phytochemical compounds, TLC plates were sprayed with vanillin- sulphuric acid in methanol and heated at 110oC for optimal colour development. Qualitative antioxidant activity was determined by using 2, 2–diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay on TLC plates. Quantitative antioxidant activity was determined by measuring percentages scavenging activity of DPPH and 2, 2’-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid (ABTS) free radical molecules by plant extracts. Antibacterial activity of all extracts was quantified by a serial microbroth dilution method while bioautography was used in qualitative analysis of the active compounds. Cytotoxicity effect of R. communis extracts was evaluated using tetrazolium-based calorimetric assay on human Caucasian skin fibroblast (Bud-8) cell line. Anti-inflammatory activity was assessed using phagoburst kit on Raw 264.7 macrophages cell line. Pure compounds were subjected to nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy for 1H, 13C and DEPT experiments to elucidate structures of compounds. 2 During extraction process, methanol was the best extractant, extracting greater amount of extracts than any of the other solvents. Serial exhaustive extraction method was selected as the best extraction method for extracting compounds from ground plant materials. In quantitative antioxidant assays, chloroform and methanol extracts had highest percentage scavenging activity against DPPH free radicals compared to other extracts and vitamin C. Methanol extract had the highest percentage scavenging activity of ABTS free radicals and minimum percentage scavenging activity was in hexane extract. Acetone, ethyl acetate and ethanol extracts showed strong antioxidant activity against DPPH free radicals in qualitative antioxidant assay on TLC plates. In quantitative antibacterial assay, crude extracts showed lowest minimum inhibitory concentration value of 0.13 mg/ml against all tested organisms and the highest was 1.05 mg/ml. Hexane extracts revealed potent antibacterial activity against all tested microorganisms on bioautograms. Hexane and acetone extracts also revealed anti-inflammatory activity and have ability to reduce oxidative stress. In cytotoxicity effect of plant extracts, Methanol extracts had lethal concentration for 50% of the cells (Lc50) of 784 μg/ml on Human Caucasian skin fibroblast (Bud-8) cell line while hexane extracts had Lc50 of 629 μg/ml. Plant extracts with high Lc50 are low toxic to normal cell line and preferable to work with for drug development. Bioassay-guided fractionations results in successful isolation of three antioxidant and two antibacterial compounds from R. communis using column chromatography. Isolated compounds were tested for their biological activities using qualitative DPPH assay on TLC plates for antioxidant activity and bioautography for antibacterial activity. Antioxidant compounds showed strong antioxidant activity after spraying with DPPH in methanol and antibacterial compounds showed less activity compared to the crude extracts. The study suggests the use of crude extracts to fight against pathogenic microorganisms compared to pure compounds. Compound 4 was successful identified as the mixture of stigmasterol and β-sitosterol. The present study recommends the use of R. communis leaves as the potential source of antioxidant, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory compounds. The study serves as a scientific proof for use of this plant in traditional medicine for treatment of various ailments.

Production and consumption of edible berries are increasing rapidly in the United States, mostly due to their superior flavor profile, and popular diet-related value with their human health relevant bioactives and nutritional benefits. However, bioactive and nutritional qualities, especially human health protective phenolic antioxidants and associated non-communicable chronic disease (NCD) relevant health benefits of berries vary widely among accessions/cultivars and due to different production practices (organic vs conventional). Therefore, the aim of this thesis was to screen and select high phenolic and high antioxidant serviceberry and blackberry accessions/cultivars and to investigate the effect of different weed management and fertilization (organic vs. conventional) practices on phenolic bioactive linked antioxidant and anti-diabetic properties of blackberry using in vitro assay models. Overall, high phenolic-bioactive linked antioxidant and anti-hyperglycemic properties were observed in both serviceberry and blackberry accessions/cultivars and further for blackberry it was significantly higher under organic weed management and fertilization practices.

Orientador: Rogério Lopes Vieites / Banca: Giuseppina Pace Pereira Lima / Banca: Marta Helena Fillet Spoto / Banca: Eliane Maria Ravasi S. Simionato / Banca: André José de Campos / Resumo: O cultivo da amora-preta (Rubus sp) vem despertando interesse dos fruticultores paulistas nos últimos anos devido ao seu alto potencial produtivo, sendo uma alternativa viável como fonte de renda. Os frutos possuem características nutricionais muito apreciadas nos dias de hoje além de se mostrarem muito versáteis do ponto de vista tecnológico. O presente trabalho foi dividido em 3 partes para maior compreensão e aprofundamento dos aspectos avaliados e objetivou caracterizar bromatologicamente e quanto ao conteúdo mineral os frutos de amora-preta colhidos em 3 diferentes estádios de maturação, bem como seu produto processado, a geleia; caracterizar a qualidade pós-colheita dos frutos em diferentes tempos de armazenamento sob refrigeração e das geleias; determinar os compostos com potencial antioxidante e sua estabilidade durante a elaboração e armazenamento das geleias e frutos, respectivamente. As avaliações foram realizadas na ocasião da colheita para o experimento 1 e também aos dias 3, 6, 9, 12 e 15 após a colheita para os demais experimentos a fim de avaliar a possível degradação dos nutrientes a antioxidantes. Ao final dos experimentos pode-se verificar que a amora-preta apresenta alto potencial para industrialização já que para a maioria dos compostos biotivos avaliados não houveram grandes alterações decorrentes do processamento. Esta característica faz com que os frutos de amoreira preta sejam ótima alternativa para o processamento / Abstract: The cultivation of blackberry (Rubus sp) has attracted the interest of fruit growers in São Paulo in recent years due to its high yield potential as a viable alternative source of income. The fruit has nutritional characteristics greatly appreciated these days and presents great versatility from a technological point of view. This study was divided into 3 parts for greater understanding of the aspects evaluated and aimed to characterize the bromatological composition and mineral content of the fruits harvested at 3 different stages of maturation and its processed product, the jelly; it also aimed to characterize the quality of post-harvest fruit at different times of storage under refrigeration and the qualities of the jellies as well; and it also aimed to determine the potential antioxidant compounds stability during preparation and storage of jelly and fruit, respectively. Evaluations were performed at the time of harvest for Experiment 1 and also on days 3, 6, 9, 12 and 15 after harvest for the other experiments in order to evaluate the possible degradation of the antioxidant nutrients. At the end of the experiments it was possible to conclude that the fruit has a high potential for industrialization since for most bioactive compounds evaluated there were no major changes resulting from the processing. This feature places the black mulberry fruit as a great alternative for processing. / Doutor

Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) is a medicinal plant with potential applications in the natural health product industry. In a multi-environmental setting, 10 genotypes were tested across 14 growing environments (using a Randomized Complete Block Design), representing irrigated and rainfed growing conditions in southern Alberta, Canada over two cropping years (2006 and 2007). The objectives of this study were (1) to determine seed yield, plus content and productivity of selected bioactive compounds (galactomannan, diosgenin and 4-hydroxyisoleucine), (2) to assess the impact of growing environment on these variables and (3) to identify promising genotypes for breeding and industrial use. Using principal component and cluster analyses, the study provides insight on the relative influence of growing environments and genes on the biochemical and agronomical traits as well as identifies genotypes based on performance and stability. These are useful as parental materials in cultivar development for the Canadian natural health product industry. / xiii, 154 leaves : ill. (some col.) ; 29 cm

Submitted in complete fulfilment for the Degree of Doctorate of Technology (Biotechnology)--Durban University of Technology, 2013. / South Africa has the largest number of people infected with HIV/AIDS. It also has more than 30 000 species of plants and many of these have a long tradition of medicinal use. It is highly likely that the treatment for HIV will come from this traditional knowledge. The need for effective preventative and therapeutic agents for HIV remains an urgent global priority. The aim of this study was to screen selected South African medicinal plants for anti-HIV activity and to identify and characterise an active compound from a plant that can be used for HIV treatment. The aqueous and methanolic extracts of the roots, leaves, flowers and stems of thirty eight plant species (108 extracts) were screened for anti-HIV activity. The plants which had anti-HIV activity were further screened for anti-reverse transcriptase activity. Thirty-two extracts exhibited varying degrees of anti-HIV activity. Cleome monophylla, Dichrostachys cinerea and Leonotis leonurus aqueous leaf extracts had anti-HIV-1 reverse transcriptase activity. The aqueous extracts of D. cinerea showed the best anti-HIV activity with a Selectivity Index of 43.5 and significant anti-HIV-1 reverse transcriptase activity. Crude phytochemical screening of D. cinerea showed that it had tannins, saponins, flavonoids and alkaloids but did not contain any phlobatannins, terpenoids, steroids or phenols. D. cinerea displayed a high degree of free radical scavenging activity with an IC50 of 25 μg/ml, therefore the anti-HIV activity could be attributed to the flavonoids present in the plant. Bio-guided fractionation was used to isolate and purify the active compound from the D. cinerea extract. Compounds were isolated by thin layer chromatography and were tested for anti-HIV-1 and anti-reverse transcriptase activity. From these results the active compound was identified, and purified using preparative TLC. The active compound was characterised by High Performance Liquid Chromatography, Ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometry, and Ultra Performance liquid chromatography coupled to MS/MS. Structural elucidation was performed using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. From these results, it was deduced that the compound isolated from D. cinerea was a catechin. In this study we show that the catechins present in D. cinerea are responsible for the anti- HIV-I activity and inhibits the reverse transcriptase activity which is a key factor in the progression of HIV. Potentially, these results can be used to develop a new drug for the treatment of HIV or as a cost effective therapeutic agent in treating HIV-infected individuals with oxidative stress. / National Research Foundation

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:32:26Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2012-12-06Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:43:10Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 borges_ls_dr_botfca.pdf: 5924840 bytes, checksum: 6d98765d919334a14555de3b9568215e (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / O jambu (Spilanthes oleracea) é uma planta nativa do Brasil, com propriedades químicas importantes. No Estado de São Paulo, a produção de jambu está direcionada para extração do óleo essencial que está sendo fornecido direto para as indústrias de cosméticos, pela sua qualidade farmacológica. No entanto, pesquisas sobre as propriedades antioxidantes dos extratos aquosos e a ação antifúngica do seu óleo essencial são ainda incipientes. Assim, o objetivo geral do primeiro ao terceiro capitulo foram comparar cultivares de jambu produzidos de forma orgânica e convencional, quanto ao desenvolvimento fenológico das plantas (folha e inflorescência), através dos índices morfo-fisiológicos de crescimento, além das substâncias antioxidantes presentes nos extratos aquosos, teores e composição do óleo essencial, bem como sua ação antifúngica. Nos quarto e quinto capitulos, o objetivo foi o uso de radiação UV-C e aplicação de O2 ( 90-100 Kpa) como tratamento capaz de melhorar o potencial de conservação após o processamento mínimo. As características avaliadas no primeiro capitulo foram: Altura de planta, Área foliar, Massa de matéria fresca, Massa de matéria seca, Índice de área foliar (IAF), Razão de Área Foliar (RAF), Área Foliar Específica (AFE), Razão de Peso das Folhas (RPF), Quantidade de água na parte aérea (QAPA), Peso específico foliar (PEF) e Produtividade econômica. No segundo capitulo, avaliou-se: teor de compostos fenólicos, carotenóides, vitamina C e poliaminas, e a atividade da peroxidase, potencial antioxidante, nitrato e nitrogênio; enquanto que, no terceiro capitulo foi extraído e... / The jambu (Spilanthes oleracea) is a native plant of Brazil, with important chemical properties. In São Paulo, the production is directed jambu for extraction of essential oil being supplied direct to the cosmetic, pharmaceutical for its quality. However, research on its antioxidant properties of aqueous extracts and antifungal effect of the essential oil are still incipient. Thus, the overall goal of the first-third chapter were jambu compare cultivars produced under organic and conventional, as the phenological development of plants (leaf and inflorescence), through morphological and physiological indices of growth, in addition to the antioxidants present in extracts aqueous beyond the content and composition of essential oil as well as its antifungal action. In the fourth and fifth chapters, the goal was the use of UV-C radiation and application of O2 ( 90-100 kPa) as a treatment able to improve the conservation value after processing. The characteristics were evaluated in the first chapter: plant height, leaf area, the fresh mass, dry mass, leaf area index (LAI), Leaf Area Ratio (LAR), specific leaf area (SLA), Reason Weight of Leaves (RPF), Amount of water in the shoot (QAPA) , specific leaf weight (PEF) and economic productivity. In the second chapter, we evaluated: content of phenolic compounds, carotenoids, vitamin C and polyamines, and peroxidase activity, antioxidant potential, and nitrate nitrogen, whereas, in the third chapter was... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Orientador: Giuseppina Pace Pereira Lima / Coorientador: Rumy Goto / Banca: Francisco Artes Calero / Banca: Regildo Márcio Gonçalves da Silva / Banca: João Domingos Rodrigues / Banca: Armando Reis Tavares / Resumo: O jambu (Spilanthes oleracea) é uma planta nativa do Brasil, com propriedades químicas importantes. No Estado de São Paulo, a produção de jambu está direcionada para extração do óleo essencial que está sendo fornecido direto para as indústrias de cosméticos, pela sua qualidade farmacológica. No entanto, pesquisas sobre as propriedades antioxidantes dos extratos aquosos e a ação antifúngica do seu óleo essencial são ainda incipientes. Assim, o objetivo geral do primeiro ao terceiro capitulo foram comparar cultivares de jambu produzidos de forma orgânica e convencional, quanto ao desenvolvimento fenológico das plantas (folha e inflorescência), através dos índices morfo-fisiológicos de crescimento, além das substâncias antioxidantes presentes nos extratos aquosos, teores e composição do óleo essencial, bem como sua ação antifúngica. Nos quarto e quinto capitulos, o objetivo foi o uso de radiação UV-C e aplicação de O2 ( 90-100 Kpa) como tratamento capaz de melhorar o potencial de conservação após o processamento mínimo. As características avaliadas no primeiro capitulo foram: Altura de planta, Área foliar, Massa de matéria fresca, Massa de matéria seca, Índice de área foliar (IAF), Razão de Área Foliar (RAF), Área Foliar Específica (AFE), Razão de Peso das Folhas (RPF), Quantidade de água na parte aérea (QAPA), Peso específico foliar (PEF) e Produtividade econômica. No segundo capitulo, avaliou-se: teor de compostos fenólicos, carotenóides, vitamina C e poliaminas, e a atividade da peroxidase, potencial antioxidante, nitrato e nitrogênio; enquanto que, no terceiro capitulo foi extraído e... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The jambu (Spilanthes oleracea) is a native plant of Brazil, with important chemical properties. In São Paulo, the production is directed jambu for extraction of essential oil being supplied direct to the cosmetic, pharmaceutical for its quality. However, research on its antioxidant properties of aqueous extracts and antifungal effect of the essential oil are still incipient. Thus, the overall goal of the first-third chapter were jambu compare cultivars produced under organic and conventional, as the phenological development of plants (leaf and inflorescence), through morphological and physiological indices of growth, in addition to the antioxidants present in extracts aqueous beyond the content and composition of essential oil as well as its antifungal action. In the fourth and fifth chapters, the goal was the use of UV-C radiation and application of O2 ( 90-100 kPa) as a treatment able to improve the conservation value after processing. The characteristics were evaluated in the first chapter: plant height, leaf area, the fresh mass, dry mass, leaf area index (LAI), Leaf Area Ratio (LAR), specific leaf area (SLA), Reason Weight of Leaves (RPF), Amount of water in the shoot (QAPA) , specific leaf weight (PEF) and economic productivity. In the second chapter, we evaluated: content of phenolic compounds, carotenoids, vitamin C and polyamines, and peroxidase activity, antioxidant potential, and nitrate nitrogen, whereas, in the third chapter was... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor