Phytochemical and biological activities of Silene viridiflora extractives. Development and validation of a HPTLC method for quantification of 20-hydroxyecdysone

Silene viridifiora (Caryophyllaceae) has adaptogen, tonic, actoprotector and immunomodulator properties that are mainly attributed to ecdysteroids. The aim of the present study is to investigate the chemical constituents of essential oil as well as the 20-hydroxyecdysone content in the methanol extract S. viridiflora and its related biological activity. GC-MS analysis showed the essential oil of S. viridifiora to have a complex composition, which was dominated by methyl palmitate (8.05%), 3-hexen-1-ol (7.54%), 3-hexenyl benzoate (3.86%), beta-myrcene (3.80%), 1,1-diethoxy-2-phenylethane (3.65%), hexahydrofarnesyl acetone (3.20%) and 4-terpineol (2.47%). A high performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC) method was developed to analyze the methanolic extracts of S. viridifiora and to quantify the main ecdysteroid, 20-hydroxyecdysone. Validation showed that the method was accurate over the entire calibration range and resulted in errors of less than 10% in the 100-815 mu g/ml concentration range. Antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory potentials of methanol extract and individual compounds of S. viridiflora were evaluated. The results could provide a starting point for designing novel phyto-pharmaceuticals.