Chemical Composition, Antioxidant and Enzyme Inhibitory Activities of <i>Onosma bourgaei</i> and <i>Onosma trachytricha</i> and in Silico Molecular Docking Analysis of Dominant Compounds

• Main Author: Erman Salih Istifli
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-05-01
• Series: Molecules
• Subjects: <i>Onosma bourgaei</i>; <i>Onosma trachytricha</i>; LC-MS/MS; antioxidant; enzyme inhibition; molecular docking
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/26/10/2981

The aim of this study was to investigate the chemical composition, antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory activities of methanol (MeOH) extracts from <i>Onosma bourgaei</i> (Boiss.) and <i>O. trachytricha</i> (Boiss.). In addition, the interactions between phytochemicals found in extracts in high amounts and the target enzymes in question were revealed at the molecular scale by performing in silico molecular docking simulations. While the total amount of flavonoid compounds was higher in <i>O. bourgaei</i>, <i>O. trachytricha</i> was richer in phenolics. Chromatographic analysis showed that the major compounds of the extracts were luteolin 7-glucoside, apigenin 7-glucoside and rosmarinic acid. With the exception of the ferrous ion chelating assay, <i>O. trachytricha</i> exhibited higher antioxidant activity than <i>O. bourgaei</i>. <i>O. bourgaei</i> exhibited also slightly higher activity on digestive enzymes. The inhibitory activities of the <i>Onosma</i> species on tyrosinase were almost equal. In addition, the inhibitory activities of the extracts on acetylcholinesterase (AChE) were stronger than the activity on butyrylcholinesterase (BChE). Molecular docking simulations revealed that luteolin 7-glucoside and apigenin 7-glucoside have particularly strong binding affinities against ChEs, tyrosinase, α-amylase and α-glucosidase when compared with co-crystallized inhibitors. Therefore, it was concluded that the compounds in question could act as effective inhibitors on cholinesterases, tyrosinase and digestive enzymes.