Publications by authors named "Luigi Menghini"

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are infections that involve the urethra, bladder, and, in much more severe cases, even kidneys. These infections represent one of the most common diseases worldwide. Various pathogens are responsible for this condition, the most common being ().

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Eremurus spectabilis is widespread and used primarily for medicinal and culinary purposes. This study aimed to evaluate the chemical composition, antiradical and antioxidant activities, enzyme inhibitory activities, and anti-inflammatory properties of various extracts from the aerial parts of E. spectabilis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Chronic inflammation is a recognized risk factor for various cancers, including prostate cancer (PCa). We aim to explore the potential protective effects of aged black garlic extract (ABGE) against inflammation-induced prostate damage and its impact on prostate cancer cell lines. We used an ex vivo model of inflammation induced by Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on C57BL/6 male mouse prostate specimens to investigate the anti-inflammatory properties of ABGE.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a morbid condition characterized by relapsing-remitting inflammation of the colon, accompanied by persistent gut dysmotility and abdominal pain. Different reports demonstrated biological activities of aged black garlic (ABG), including anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. We aimed to investigate beneficial effects exerted by ABGE on colon inflammation by using ex vivo and in vivo experimental models.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In the current investigation, a comprehensive analysis was carried out on essential oils (EOs) extracted from six aromatic plant species, namely Rosmarinus officinalis, Pelargonium graveolens, Thymus vulgaris, Origanum vulgare, Laurus nobilis, and Aloysia citrodora. An exploration was conducted into the chemical composition using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS), antioxidant properties assessed through DPPH, ABTS, CUPRAC, FRAP, MCA, and PBD assays, ecotoxicological impacts evaluated via allelopathy and the Daphnia magna heartbeat test, as well as bio-pharmacological effects including anticancer activity and gene expression analysis. Results revealed strong antioxidant activity in all essential oils, with T.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The present study investigated the role of a commercial formulation constituted by herbal extracts from Rhodiola rosea, Undaria pinnatifida, Tribulus terrestris, and Moringa oleifera. The formulation was analysed for determining the content in total phenols and flavonoids and scavenging/reducing properties. The formulation was also tested on isolated mouse hypothalamus in order to investigate effects on serotonin, dopamine, neuropeptide Y (NPY), and orexin A.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The present study was designed to determine the phenolic constituents, antioxidant, and enzyme inhibition activities of aerial parts and bulbs of (family Amaryllidaceae). Extracts were prepared by maceration and Soxhlet/infusion using hexane, methanol, and water as extraction solvents. Generally, extracts from the aerial parts showed higher total phenolic and individual components and antioxidant activity than their respective bulb extracts.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

"Sulmona Red Garlic" is a well-known Italian traditional product. Bulbs, used for culinary purposes, have been largely investigated for their medicinal properties whereas aerial bulbils are usually removed as waste material. Here, for the first time, chemical composition and biological properties of the hydroalcoholic extract from aerial bulbils were investigated.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In the present study, we performed comprehensive LC-MS chemical profiling and biological tests of leaves and stem bark extracts of different polarities. In total, 60 bioactive compounds were tentatively identified in all extracts. The 80% ethanolic stem bark extract exhibited the highest activity in the ABTS assay, equal to 551.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The beech mushroom () is a highly nutritious, edible medicinal mushroom native to East Asia. The present research investigated the impact of different substrates on the metabolite compositions of mycelia cultivated in vitro. The substrates tested included malt extract agar, malt extract agar enriched with barley malt, and malt extract agar enriched with grape pomace.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the pharmacological properties of a medicinal plant, particularly focusing on its analgesic effects and various extracts (hexane, DCM, EA, ethanol, ethanol-water, and water) from its aerial parts.
  • It finds that polar extracts are rich in phenolic compounds like rosmarinic acid, showcasing significant antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.
  • The results indicate that these extracts can inhibit inflammatory responses in mouse colon specimens, suggesting potential for further research into their protective effects against inflammatory bowel diseases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Pleurotus spp. have been gaining popularity as a source for the creation of functional foods, nutraceuticals and novel pharmaceuticals. Despite Pleurotus is a specious genus including 208 legitimate species, only a few of them such as P.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Artemisia annua L. (Asteraceae Family) is an important plant in Asia that has been used for treating different diseases, including fever due to malaria, wounds, tubercolisis, scabues, pain, convulsions, diabetes, and inflammation. In this study we aimed to evaluate the effects of different polarity extracts (hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, ethanol, ethanol/water (70 %) and water) from A.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study focuses on a medicinal mushroom that grows on old trees and analyzes its different parts—specifically the cap and the hymenium—for their metabolic properties.
  • Chromatographic analysis revealed that the mushroom extracts are rich in specialized phenolic compounds, particularly in the apical part, which also demonstrated strong antimicrobial and antiradical activities.
  • The promising results suggest that these mushroom extracts could be developed into food supplements with health benefits, including antioxidant and antimicrobial effects.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Multiple studies demonstrated biological activities of aged black garlic, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and cardioprotective effects. We aimed to investigate the protective effects of an aged black garlic water extract (ABGE) alone or in association with multivitamins consisting of combined Vitamins D, C, and B12, on mouse heart specimens exposed to E. coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

is a medicinal plant traditionally used for treating intestinal worms. In the present study, the chemical composition and bio-pharmacological properties of extracts were investigated. Enzyme inhibition and scavenging/reducing properties of water, methanol, and ethyl acetate extracts were assayed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Sour cherries fruits ( L., syn var. ) are locally known as "visciola di Sezze", due to the name of the city where they are traditionally cultivated in Lazio Region, Italy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

products have historically been used for healing purposes; now their biological properties are supported with scientific evidence, but modern research has not yet fully developed its therapeutic potential. This study focuses on the cultivar of called strawberry to understand the biological and medical potentials of hydroalcoholic extracts from two different parts of the plant: leaves and inflorescences. Two biological assets were investigated including antioxidant and antimicrobial potential.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In this study, the methanolic and infusion extracts of two species, and subsp. , were tested for their chemical composition and biological abilities (antioxidant, enzyme inhibitory and anti-inflammatory effects). The extracts yielded total phenolic and flavonoid contents in the range of 83.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are chronic and multifactorial inflammatory conditions of the colonic mucosa (ulcerative colitis), characterized by increased and unbalanced immune response to external stimuli. Garlic and its bioactive constituents were reported to exert various biological effects, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and immunomodulatory activities. We aimed to evaluate the protective effects of a hydroalcoholic (GHE) and a water (GWE) extract from a Sicilian variety of garlic, known as Nubia red garlic, on an ex vivo experimental model of ulcerative colitis, involving isolated LPS-treated mouse colon specimens.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

'Sulmona red garlic' is an Italian variety characterized by a red tunica surrounding a white bulb. Red tunicae and non-commercial small bulbs are food wastes that must be studied for their added value. Hydroalcoholic extracts, obtained by separated inner and outer tunicae and peeled bulbs of small commercial 'Sulmona red garlic' bulbs, harvested at two different years, were first characterized with respect to their color, polyphenolic content, and antiradical activity.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

species isolated in vitro were studied to determine the effect of different media on their production of secondary metabolites, antimicrobial, and antioxidant activity. The different metabolites among samples covered a total of 58 pathways. Comparisons were made between the metabolic profiles of spp.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Pollen extract represents an innovative approach for the management of the clinical symptoms related to prostatitis and pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). In this context, the aims of the present work were to analyze the phenolic composition of a hydroalcoholic extract of PollenAid Plus soft gel capsules, and to evaluate the extract's cytotoxic effects, in human prostate cancer PC3 cells and human ovary cancer OVCAR-3 cells. Additionally, protective effects were investigated in isolated prostate and ovary specimens exposed to lipopolysaccharide (LPS).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Cannabis sativa L. belongs to the Cannabaceae family and includes annual, robust, fast-growing and generally dioecious plants. Industrial hemp, and particularly the inflorescences, has been recently recognized as important source of bioactive extracts with antioxidant and antimicrobial effects.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF