pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Halophytic Grasses, a New Source of Nutraceuticals? A Review on Their Secondary Metabolites and Biological Activities - PubMed

️Tue Jan 01 2019

Review

Halophytic Grasses, a New Source of Nutraceuticals? A Review on Their Secondary Metabolites and Biological Activities

Maria V Faustino et al. Int J Mol Sci. 2019.

Abstract

The Poaceae family, known as grasses, is distributed worldwide and is considered the most important group of monocotyledonous crops. Salt stress is multifactorial, therefore to survive, halophytes evolved a variety of adaptations, which include the biosynthesis of different primary and secondary metabolites. This trait enhances the accumulation of important families of compounds crucial to the prevention of a variety of chronic diseases. Besides, if proven edible, these species could cope with the increased soil salinity responsible for the decline of arable land due to their high nutritional/nutraceutical value. Herein, the phytochemical investigations performed in halophytes from the Poaceae family as well as their biological properties were explored. Among the 65 genera and 148 species of known halophytic grasses, only 14% of the taxa were studied phytochemically and 10% were subjected to biological evaluation. Notably, in the studied species, a variety of compound families, as well as bioactivities, were demonstrated, highlighting the potential of halophytic grasses.

Keywords: Poaceae; bioactivity; halophytes; nutraceuticals; phytoconstituents.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

**Figure 1**
Total number of compounds reported in each species of halophytic grasses. Being, Ad: *Arundo donax; Bd*: *Buchloe dactyloides*; **Cc:** *Cenchrus ciliaris*; **Cg:** *Chloris gayana*; **Cd:** *Cynodon dactylon*; Db: Desmostachya bipinnata; Ds: *Distichlis spicata*; Ec: *Echinochloa crus-galli; Hm*: *Halopyrum mucronatum*; **Im:** *Imperata cylindrica*; Lm: *Lolium multiflorum*; Pv: *Panicum virgatum*; Pc: *Pennisetum clandestinum*; Pm: *Puccinellia maritima*; Ss: *Saccharum spontaneum*; Sv: *Setaria viridis*; Sa: *Spartina anglica*; Sp: *Spartina patens*; ***Spy***: *Sporobolus pyramidalis* and Za: *Zizania aquatica*.

**Figure 2**
Graphical presentation of the total number of compounds reported in each class of compounds for the halophytic grasses studied. Being, Ad: *Arundo donax; Bd*: *Buchloe dactyloides*; **Cc:** *Cenchrus ciliaris*; **Cg:** *Chloris gayana*; **Cd:** *Cynodon dactylon*; Db: Desmostachya bipinnata; Ds: *Distichlis spicata*; Ec: *Echinochloa crus-galli; Hm*: *Halopyrum mucronatum*; **Im:** *Imperata cylindrica*; Lm: *Lolium multiflorum*; Pv: *Panicum virgatum*; Pc: *Pennisetum clandestinum*; Pm: *Puccinellia maritima*; Ss: *Saccharum spontaneum*; Sv: *Setaria viridis*; Sa: *Spartina anglica*; Sp: *Spartina patens*; ***Spy***: *Sporobolus pyramidalis* and Za: *Zizania aquatica*.

**Figure 3**
Some cinnamic acids and derivatives identified in halophytic grasses (see Table S1).

**Figure 4**
Some benzoic acids and derivatives identified in halophytic grasses (see Table S1).

**Figure 5**
Some steroids and derivatives identified in halophytic grasses.

**Figure 6**
Some flavones identified in halophytic grasses (Glu = D-glucose) (see Table S1).

**Figure 7**
Some flavonols and derivatives reported in halophytic grasses (Glu = D-glucose; Rut = rutinose) (see Table S1).

**Figure 8**
Some polyphenols reported in halophytic grasses.

Cited by

Halophytes.tn: an innovative database for Tunisian halophyte plant identification, distribution and characterization.
Merchaoui H, Ksouri R, Abdelly C, Hanana M. Merchaoui H, et al. Database (Oxford). 2022 Mar 19;2022:baab082. doi: 10.1093/database/baab082. Database (Oxford). 2022. PMID: 35305011 Free PMC article.
Tecticornia sp. (Samphire)-A Promising Underutilized Australian Indigenous Edible Halophyte.
Srivarathan S, Phan ADT, Hong HT, Chua ET, Wright O, Sultanbawa Y, Netzel ME. Srivarathan S, et al. Front Nutr. 2021 Feb 5;8:607799. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2021.607799. eCollection 2021. Front Nutr. 2021. PMID: 33614696 Free PMC article.
Harnessing the Value of Tripolium pannonicum and Crithmum maritimum Halophyte Biomass through Integrated Green Biorefinery.
Hulkko LSS, Chaturvedi T, Custódio L, Thomsen MH. Hulkko LSS, et al. Mar Drugs. 2023 Jun 27;21(7):380. doi: 10.3390/md21070380. Mar Drugs. 2023. PMID: 37504911 Free PMC article.
Halophytes as new model plant species for salt tolerance strategies.
Mann A, Lata C, Kumar N, Kumar A, Kumar A, Sheoran P. Mann A, et al. Front Plant Sci. 2023 May 11;14:1137211. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1137211. eCollection 2023. Front Plant Sci. 2023. PMID: 37251767 Free PMC article. Review.

References

1. Kellogg E.A. In: The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants. Flowering Plants. Monocots. Poaceae. Kubitzki K., editor. Volume 13 Springer; Berlin, Germany: 2015.
1. Landi S., Hausman J.F., Guerriero G., Esposito S. Poaceae vs. abiotic stress: Focus on drought and salt stress, recent insights and perspectives. Front. Plant Sci. 2017;8:1214. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2017.01214. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Dashora K., Gosavi K.V.C. Grasses: An underestimated medicinal repository. J. Med. Plants Stud. 2013;1:151–157.
1. Bennett T.H., Flowers T.J., Bromham L. Repeated evolution of salt-tolerance in grasses. Biol. Lett. 2013;9:20130029. doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2013.0029. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Flowers T.J., Colmer T.D. Salinity tolerance in halophytes. New Phytol. 2008;179:945–963. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2008.02531.x. - DOI - PubMed

Halophytic Grasses, a New Source of Nutraceuticals? A Review on Their Secondary Metabolites and Biological Activities - PubMed