Atefeh Pirani | Ferdowsi University of Mashhad (original) (raw)

Papers by Atefeh Pirani

Plant Systematics and Evolution, Mar 20, 2023

Ethnobotany Research and Applications, 2011

ever, traditional knowledge regarding the use of J. excelsa by indigenous communities in the coun... more ever, traditional knowledge regarding the use of J. excelsa by indigenous communities in the country has not yet been fully documented. The present study aims to obtain a better understanding of the traditional knowledge of rural people of Iran about J. excelsa. Botanical Description Juniperus excelsa (syn. Juniperus polycarpos K. Koch & Juniperus macropoda Boiss. var. polycarpos) is an evergreen tree or occasionally a shrub, up to 20-25 m tall, with a pyramidal or broad crown. Juvenile leaves are ternate, acicular, while mature leaves are scale-like, ovaterhombic, light green or yellowish-green. Male strobili are solitary, terminally located on ultimate branchlets. Female cones are mostly solitary and axillary, sub-terminally located on ultimate branchlets, surrounded by green leaves or bracts, purplish-green to blue colored (Figure 2). Mature cones are globose, purplish-brown to blackish-purple.

Research Journal of Pharmacognosy, 2014

Factors such as oxidative stress and reduced acetylcholine level have been implicated in Alzheime... more Factors such as oxidative stress and reduced acetylcholine level have been implicated in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology and recently there has been a trend towards natural product research to find potential sources of antioxidants and acetylcholinesterase inhibitors in the plants kingdom. Centaurea is a genus with about 500 species world wild, many of them have shown to possess biologic activity; Centaurea albonites, C. aucheri and C. pseudoscabiosa are three species which little investigation has been carried out about their biological properties. In the present study, the antioxidant and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity of the above mentioned species have been evaluated. The ability of the total extract and methanol fraction of the plants to scavenge free radicals has been assessed through DPPH radical scavenging assay, and the acetylcholinesterase inhibitory property has been evaluated by Ellman method. The total extract of all species exhibited moderate antioxidant a...

Research Journal of Pharmacognosy, 2014

Background and objectives: There is a growing trend towards investigating natural products as sou... more Background and objectives: There is a growing trend towards investigating natural products as sources of compounds with biological effects and many researches have been carried out in order to find effective medications against many diseases. Cancer is no exception and studies focusing on evaluating the effects of different materials on DNA, give valuable information in cancer researches and carcinogenicity studies; thus the present study was focused on evaluating the impact of medicinal plants from Kohgiluyeh va Boyerahmad province, Iran on DNA. Methods: Thirty five plant species collected have been investigated for prophage induction ability in Escherichia coli K-12(λ) through inductest. Results:The assay demonstrated that 8 plants were able to affect DNA. Conclusion: The results confirm the role of natural resources for biologic effects and what’s more, potential drug candidates in new drug discovery.

Iranian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research : IJPR, 2014

Medicinal plants have been investigated for possible anti-cancer effects. The aim of the present ... more Medicinal plants have been investigated for possible anti-cancer effects. The aim of the present study was to examine the cytotoxic activity of several medicinal plants on different tumor cell lines. 11 selected plant species which have been used in folkloric prescriptions were collected from different sites of Hamedan district of Iran. The methanolic extracts of the plants were prepared and their cytotoxic effects on four human cancer cell lines (A549, human lung adenocarcinoma; MCF7, human breast adenocarcinoma; HepG2, hepatocellular carcinoma and HT-29, human colon carcinoma) and one normal cell line (MDBK, bovine kidney) were examined using the MTT assay. Three of these were exhibited antiproliferative activity against one or more of the cell lines. The extract from Primula auriculata demonstrated the highest cytotoxicity with IC50 of 25.79, 35.79 and 43.34 μg.mL−1 against MCF7, HepG2 and HT- 29 cells, respectively. For some of the plants, their traditional use was correlated wi...

Cancer is a major cause of death worldwide and causes serious problems in human life. It is devel... more Cancer is a major cause of death worldwide and causes serious problems in human life. It is developed by uncontrolled growth of a cell or a group of cells. There are many difficulties in treatment of cancer and many researchers are involved in investigating for effective drugs to treat the disease. Caryophyllaceae is a large family of about 86 genera and 2200 herbaceous or subshrub species. The family is known for its ornamental plants and saponin compounds. In the present study, the potential cytotoxic activity of 17 selected species from Caryophyllaceae has been investigated against MCF-7, HepG-2, A-549, HT-29 and MDBK cells using MTT assay. Five species exhibited cytotoxic effects with IC50 values < 100 μg/mL. Silene ampullata and Acanthophyllum bracteatum extracts were toxic only against MCF-7 cell line suggesting them as suitable candidates for more investigations of breast cancer studies.

Acanthophyllum laxiusculum is one of the most widely distributed species of the genus in Iran tha... more Acanthophyllum laxiusculum is one of the most widely distributed species of the genus in Iran that flourishes in steppe and mountainous regions of the country. In the present study, water-soluble content of A.laxiusculum roots was extracted by boiling water and further successively purified partially by a defined solvent system. Surface tension measurements revealed the ability of plant extract to decrease the surface tension of water from 72 to 38mN/m with a critical micelle concentration (CMC) of 87.3 mg/l. The partially purified natural extract (PPNE) exhibited 65% emulsification activity (E24) on kerosene. A combination of UV–VIS spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) demonstrated the presence of saponin compounds in PPNE. Moreover, thermostability of PPNE was evaluated by thermal gravimetric analysis (TG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). TG-DTG analysis showed a complex three-stage thermal degradation mechanism and this conclusion was also suppo...

Background: Sclerorhachis leptoclada Rech.f. is endemic to the South Khorassan province in east o... more Background: Sclerorhachis leptoclada Rech.f. is endemic to the South Khorassan province in east of Iran. Although S. leptoclada has been widely used as medicinal and edible plant by indigenous people, its ethnobotanical uses have not been well documented yet. This study presents the results of an ethnobotanical survey and reviews phytochemistry and biological activities of S. leptoclada. Methods: The ethnobotanical study was conducted in Birjand and adjacent areas between March 2018 and December 2019. During this survey, 58 local people were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire. The ethnobotanical data were analyzed by using indices Fidelity Level (FL) and Relative Frequency of Citation (RFC). In addition, the available scientific literatures were reviewed to avail the information on phytochemistry and biological activities of Sclerorhachis leptoclada. Results: The present study revealed the folklore uses of Sclerorhachis leptoclada for different purposes such as increa...

Iran has 1260 km of coastline that borders the Persian Gulf and the Oman Sea in the northwest Ind... more Iran has 1260 km of coastline that borders the Persian Gulf and the Oman Sea in the northwest Indian Ocean. Marine algae are one of the natural resources in the marine ecosystem which produce a wide range of new secondary metabolites with various biological activities that play an important role in the pharmaceutical care. In this study the cytotoxic activity of 28 marine algae of Chabahar coast was assessed against 5 cell lines including MCF-7, HepG-2, A-549, HT-29 and MDBK, through MTT assay. The methanol extract of the algae did not show cytotoxicity against any of the tested cell lines up to 100 μg/mL concentration, except for Jania adhaerens (IC50 85.03 µg/mL) against MCF-7 cells.

Ethnobotany Research and Applications

Background: Achillea eriophora DC. (Asteraceae) is a less-known medicinal plant endemic to South ... more Background: Achillea eriophora DC. (Asteraceae) is a less-known medicinal plant endemic to South and East Iran. It is traditionally used for treating a variety of health problems by local people. This review aims to provide up-to-date information on A. eriophora, including its traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacological properties, in exploring future therapeutic and scientific potentials. Methods: The information on ethnobotany, phytochemistry, and pharmacological aspects of A. eriophora was collected from the scientific literature databases, Iranian Pharmacopoeia, published books, Ph.D. and MS dissertations. Results: Achillea eriophora is traditionally considered to have antipyretic, diuretic, and carminative effects. It is also used to treat digestive problems, diarrhea, fever, diabetes, bone pain, wounds, and insect bite. It has considerable pharmacological properties, including antimicrobial, hypotensive, wound healing, and antioxidant. A total of 128 compounds such as terpenes, sesquiterpenes, alcohols, esters, and phenols have been isolated from this species. Its major chemical components are 1,8-cineole and camphor. Conclusions: The high number of isolated constituents signify considerable pharmacological properties of Achillea eriophora. The present pharmacological investigations of this plant are limited and often lack exact information on active compounds and their mechanisms of action. Most of the medicinal properties attributed to A. eriophora, such as healing digestive disorders, fever, and diabetes have not yet been investigated and proven under a scientific study. This highlights the importance of A. eriophora as a valuable candidate for future studies on medicinal plants. Due to its wide range of traditional uses, the whole plant parts of A.eriophora, including roots, are harvested by local communities. Therefore, a conservation planning for this threatened species is needed.

Journal of Systematics and Evolution

Phytotaxa

Stem anatomy of Bufonia and nine allied genera was studied in order to investigate the systematic... more Stem anatomy of Bufonia and nine allied genera was studied in order to investigate the systematic value of anatomical characters in generic delimitation. Cross-sections of stems of 31 accessions representing 14 species and 3 subspecies of Bufonia, and 17 additional species of the genera Arenaria, Cerastium, Eremogone, Minuartia, Minuartiella, Odontostemma, Sabulina, Sagina, and Shivparvatia were examined using light microscopy. The characteristic features of stem anatomy in Bufonia are: 1) presence of one to four layers of parenchyma in cortex, 2) calcium oxalate crystals mostly in the endodermis, 3) presence of inner and outer sclerenchymatous pericycle, and 4) a large central pith rupturing in a linear to boat-shape mode and forming a central continuous slit. Characters such as arrangement and continuity of xylem along with the number, and arrangement of different tissues (or layers) discriminate Bufonia from the other studied genera. Stem anatomy of Eremogone, Minuartia, and Bufo...

Phytotaxa

Acanthophyllum, with ca. 90 spiny cushion-forming species, is one of the largest genera of Caryop... more Acanthophyllum, with ca. 90 spiny cushion-forming species, is one of the largest genera of Caryophyllaceae. Although taxonomic utility of seed morphology has already been highlighted in different genera of Caryophyllaceae, the systematic value of seed characters in Acanthophyllum has not been adequately addressed. In order to evaluate the application of seed morphology in infrageneric classification of Acanthophyllum, we surveyed seed characters in the five Iranian sections of Acanthophyllum. Seed morphology of 32 accessions of Acanthophyllum representing 21 species and four sections were investigated using scanning electron microscopy. Seed morphological characters of two species from one additional section were included based on previous studies in the Caryophyllaceae. Seeds in the majority of examined species are oblong in outline. Five types of seed surface can be considered: reticulate, reticulate-papillate, colliculate, colliculate-papillate, and colliculate-columellate. Papil...

Phytotaxa, 2017

Acanthophyllum Meyer (1831: 210) in a broad sense comprises 80–90 perennial subshrubby species wh... more Acanthophyllum Meyer (1831: 210) in a broad sense comprises 80–90 perennial subshrubby species which are distributed mainly in the Irano-Turanian region (see e.g., Bittrich 1993, Ghaffari 2004, Pirani et al. 2014). According to the phylogenetic study by Pirani et al. (2014), Acanthophyllum s.lat. includes 11 sections. As part of our ongoing taxonomic investigations of Acanthophyllum, corrections to names of five Acanthophyllum sections are made here.

Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 2012

Flora - Morphology, Distribution, Functional Ecology of Plants, 2006

Plant Systematics and Evolution, Mar 20, 2023

Ethnobotany Research and Applications, 2011

ever, traditional knowledge regarding the use of J. excelsa by indigenous communities in the coun... more ever, traditional knowledge regarding the use of J. excelsa by indigenous communities in the country has not yet been fully documented. The present study aims to obtain a better understanding of the traditional knowledge of rural people of Iran about J. excelsa. Botanical Description Juniperus excelsa (syn. Juniperus polycarpos K. Koch & Juniperus macropoda Boiss. var. polycarpos) is an evergreen tree or occasionally a shrub, up to 20-25 m tall, with a pyramidal or broad crown. Juvenile leaves are ternate, acicular, while mature leaves are scale-like, ovaterhombic, light green or yellowish-green. Male strobili are solitary, terminally located on ultimate branchlets. Female cones are mostly solitary and axillary, sub-terminally located on ultimate branchlets, surrounded by green leaves or bracts, purplish-green to blue colored (Figure 2). Mature cones are globose, purplish-brown to blackish-purple.

Research Journal of Pharmacognosy, 2014

Factors such as oxidative stress and reduced acetylcholine level have been implicated in Alzheime... more Factors such as oxidative stress and reduced acetylcholine level have been implicated in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology and recently there has been a trend towards natural product research to find potential sources of antioxidants and acetylcholinesterase inhibitors in the plants kingdom. Centaurea is a genus with about 500 species world wild, many of them have shown to possess biologic activity; Centaurea albonites, C. aucheri and C. pseudoscabiosa are three species which little investigation has been carried out about their biological properties. In the present study, the antioxidant and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity of the above mentioned species have been evaluated. The ability of the total extract and methanol fraction of the plants to scavenge free radicals has been assessed through DPPH radical scavenging assay, and the acetylcholinesterase inhibitory property has been evaluated by Ellman method. The total extract of all species exhibited moderate antioxidant a...

Research Journal of Pharmacognosy, 2014

Background and objectives: There is a growing trend towards investigating natural products as sou... more Background and objectives: There is a growing trend towards investigating natural products as sources of compounds with biological effects and many researches have been carried out in order to find effective medications against many diseases. Cancer is no exception and studies focusing on evaluating the effects of different materials on DNA, give valuable information in cancer researches and carcinogenicity studies; thus the present study was focused on evaluating the impact of medicinal plants from Kohgiluyeh va Boyerahmad province, Iran on DNA. Methods: Thirty five plant species collected have been investigated for prophage induction ability in Escherichia coli K-12(λ) through inductest. Results:The assay demonstrated that 8 plants were able to affect DNA. Conclusion: The results confirm the role of natural resources for biologic effects and what’s more, potential drug candidates in new drug discovery.

Iranian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research : IJPR, 2014

Medicinal plants have been investigated for possible anti-cancer effects. The aim of the present ... more Medicinal plants have been investigated for possible anti-cancer effects. The aim of the present study was to examine the cytotoxic activity of several medicinal plants on different tumor cell lines. 11 selected plant species which have been used in folkloric prescriptions were collected from different sites of Hamedan district of Iran. The methanolic extracts of the plants were prepared and their cytotoxic effects on four human cancer cell lines (A549, human lung adenocarcinoma; MCF7, human breast adenocarcinoma; HepG2, hepatocellular carcinoma and HT-29, human colon carcinoma) and one normal cell line (MDBK, bovine kidney) were examined using the MTT assay. Three of these were exhibited antiproliferative activity against one or more of the cell lines. The extract from Primula auriculata demonstrated the highest cytotoxicity with IC50 of 25.79, 35.79 and 43.34 μg.mL−1 against MCF7, HepG2 and HT- 29 cells, respectively. For some of the plants, their traditional use was correlated wi...

Cancer is a major cause of death worldwide and causes serious problems in human life. It is devel... more Cancer is a major cause of death worldwide and causes serious problems in human life. It is developed by uncontrolled growth of a cell or a group of cells. There are many difficulties in treatment of cancer and many researchers are involved in investigating for effective drugs to treat the disease. Caryophyllaceae is a large family of about 86 genera and 2200 herbaceous or subshrub species. The family is known for its ornamental plants and saponin compounds. In the present study, the potential cytotoxic activity of 17 selected species from Caryophyllaceae has been investigated against MCF-7, HepG-2, A-549, HT-29 and MDBK cells using MTT assay. Five species exhibited cytotoxic effects with IC50 values < 100 μg/mL. Silene ampullata and Acanthophyllum bracteatum extracts were toxic only against MCF-7 cell line suggesting them as suitable candidates for more investigations of breast cancer studies.

Acanthophyllum laxiusculum is one of the most widely distributed species of the genus in Iran tha... more Acanthophyllum laxiusculum is one of the most widely distributed species of the genus in Iran that flourishes in steppe and mountainous regions of the country. In the present study, water-soluble content of A.laxiusculum roots was extracted by boiling water and further successively purified partially by a defined solvent system. Surface tension measurements revealed the ability of plant extract to decrease the surface tension of water from 72 to 38mN/m with a critical micelle concentration (CMC) of 87.3 mg/l. The partially purified natural extract (PPNE) exhibited 65% emulsification activity (E24) on kerosene. A combination of UV–VIS spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) demonstrated the presence of saponin compounds in PPNE. Moreover, thermostability of PPNE was evaluated by thermal gravimetric analysis (TG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). TG-DTG analysis showed a complex three-stage thermal degradation mechanism and this conclusion was also suppo...

Background: Sclerorhachis leptoclada Rech.f. is endemic to the South Khorassan province in east o... more Background: Sclerorhachis leptoclada Rech.f. is endemic to the South Khorassan province in east of Iran. Although S. leptoclada has been widely used as medicinal and edible plant by indigenous people, its ethnobotanical uses have not been well documented yet. This study presents the results of an ethnobotanical survey and reviews phytochemistry and biological activities of S. leptoclada. Methods: The ethnobotanical study was conducted in Birjand and adjacent areas between March 2018 and December 2019. During this survey, 58 local people were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire. The ethnobotanical data were analyzed by using indices Fidelity Level (FL) and Relative Frequency of Citation (RFC). In addition, the available scientific literatures were reviewed to avail the information on phytochemistry and biological activities of Sclerorhachis leptoclada. Results: The present study revealed the folklore uses of Sclerorhachis leptoclada for different purposes such as increa...

Iran has 1260 km of coastline that borders the Persian Gulf and the Oman Sea in the northwest Ind... more Iran has 1260 km of coastline that borders the Persian Gulf and the Oman Sea in the northwest Indian Ocean. Marine algae are one of the natural resources in the marine ecosystem which produce a wide range of new secondary metabolites with various biological activities that play an important role in the pharmaceutical care. In this study the cytotoxic activity of 28 marine algae of Chabahar coast was assessed against 5 cell lines including MCF-7, HepG-2, A-549, HT-29 and MDBK, through MTT assay. The methanol extract of the algae did not show cytotoxicity against any of the tested cell lines up to 100 μg/mL concentration, except for Jania adhaerens (IC50 85.03 µg/mL) against MCF-7 cells.

Ethnobotany Research and Applications

Background: Achillea eriophora DC. (Asteraceae) is a less-known medicinal plant endemic to South ... more Background: Achillea eriophora DC. (Asteraceae) is a less-known medicinal plant endemic to South and East Iran. It is traditionally used for treating a variety of health problems by local people. This review aims to provide up-to-date information on A. eriophora, including its traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacological properties, in exploring future therapeutic and scientific potentials. Methods: The information on ethnobotany, phytochemistry, and pharmacological aspects of A. eriophora was collected from the scientific literature databases, Iranian Pharmacopoeia, published books, Ph.D. and MS dissertations. Results: Achillea eriophora is traditionally considered to have antipyretic, diuretic, and carminative effects. It is also used to treat digestive problems, diarrhea, fever, diabetes, bone pain, wounds, and insect bite. It has considerable pharmacological properties, including antimicrobial, hypotensive, wound healing, and antioxidant. A total of 128 compounds such as terpenes, sesquiterpenes, alcohols, esters, and phenols have been isolated from this species. Its major chemical components are 1,8-cineole and camphor. Conclusions: The high number of isolated constituents signify considerable pharmacological properties of Achillea eriophora. The present pharmacological investigations of this plant are limited and often lack exact information on active compounds and their mechanisms of action. Most of the medicinal properties attributed to A. eriophora, such as healing digestive disorders, fever, and diabetes have not yet been investigated and proven under a scientific study. This highlights the importance of A. eriophora as a valuable candidate for future studies on medicinal plants. Due to its wide range of traditional uses, the whole plant parts of A.eriophora, including roots, are harvested by local communities. Therefore, a conservation planning for this threatened species is needed.

Journal of Systematics and Evolution

Phytotaxa

Stem anatomy of Bufonia and nine allied genera was studied in order to investigate the systematic... more Stem anatomy of Bufonia and nine allied genera was studied in order to investigate the systematic value of anatomical characters in generic delimitation. Cross-sections of stems of 31 accessions representing 14 species and 3 subspecies of Bufonia, and 17 additional species of the genera Arenaria, Cerastium, Eremogone, Minuartia, Minuartiella, Odontostemma, Sabulina, Sagina, and Shivparvatia were examined using light microscopy. The characteristic features of stem anatomy in Bufonia are: 1) presence of one to four layers of parenchyma in cortex, 2) calcium oxalate crystals mostly in the endodermis, 3) presence of inner and outer sclerenchymatous pericycle, and 4) a large central pith rupturing in a linear to boat-shape mode and forming a central continuous slit. Characters such as arrangement and continuity of xylem along with the number, and arrangement of different tissues (or layers) discriminate Bufonia from the other studied genera. Stem anatomy of Eremogone, Minuartia, and Bufo...

Phytotaxa

Acanthophyllum, with ca. 90 spiny cushion-forming species, is one of the largest genera of Caryop... more Acanthophyllum, with ca. 90 spiny cushion-forming species, is one of the largest genera of Caryophyllaceae. Although taxonomic utility of seed morphology has already been highlighted in different genera of Caryophyllaceae, the systematic value of seed characters in Acanthophyllum has not been adequately addressed. In order to evaluate the application of seed morphology in infrageneric classification of Acanthophyllum, we surveyed seed characters in the five Iranian sections of Acanthophyllum. Seed morphology of 32 accessions of Acanthophyllum representing 21 species and four sections were investigated using scanning electron microscopy. Seed morphological characters of two species from one additional section were included based on previous studies in the Caryophyllaceae. Seeds in the majority of examined species are oblong in outline. Five types of seed surface can be considered: reticulate, reticulate-papillate, colliculate, colliculate-papillate, and colliculate-columellate. Papil...

Phytotaxa, 2017

Acanthophyllum Meyer (1831: 210) in a broad sense comprises 80–90 perennial subshrubby species wh... more Acanthophyllum Meyer (1831: 210) in a broad sense comprises 80–90 perennial subshrubby species which are distributed mainly in the Irano-Turanian region (see e.g., Bittrich 1993, Ghaffari 2004, Pirani et al. 2014). According to the phylogenetic study by Pirani et al. (2014), Acanthophyllum s.lat. includes 11 sections. As part of our ongoing taxonomic investigations of Acanthophyllum, corrections to names of five Acanthophyllum sections are made here.

Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 2012

Flora - Morphology, Distribution, Functional Ecology of Plants, 2006