The College of Pharmacy discussed a Master’s thesis entitled “Chemical Investigation of Active Constituents in Leonotis leonurus (Lamiaceae) Cultivated in Iraq” by the student Elaf Bassem Dawood, and the supervisor, Assistant Professor Doha Abdul Sahib Abdul Hussein Al-Shammaa, at the Pharmacognosy and Medicinal Plants Department.
The study aimed to identify the active constituents of Leonotis leonurus cultivated in Iraq, and to evaluate its potential as a natural source of bioactive compounds.
The study included sequential extraction of Leonotis leonurus using a Soxhlet apparatus and maceration, followed by identification of active compounds using various chromatographic techniques. Subsequently, structural elucidation was performed using infrared (FT-IR), ultraviolet (UV), and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H-NMR) spectroscopy techniques, in addition to derivatization methods.
The results showed that Leonotis leonurus is a promising and rich source of bioactive compounds, as chemical and spectroscopic analyses revealed a variety of active compounds with anticancer and anti-angiogenic properties. Furthermore, among the successfully isolated compounds were the coumarin scopoletin, the terpenoid lupeol, and the phytosterol β-sitosterol, all of which are known for their diverse therapeutic activities, including anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.
The study recommended that additional advanced pharmacological and pharmacodynamic studies on Leonotis leonurus should be conducted to further evaluate its therapeutic efficacy and explore its potential for future use in developing natural pharmaceutical preparations.
