Phenolic Profile, Antioxidant and Anti-Proliferative Activities of Methanolic Extracts from Asclepias linaria Cav. Leaves
Sánchez-Gutiérrez JA, Moreno-Lorenzana D, Álvarez-Bernal D and others. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland), December 2019.
Read the paper Free to read · doi:10.3390/molecules25010054
What this paper is about
Asclepias linaria is a shrubby Mexican milkweed used in traditional medicine, with little laboratory work behind it.
The authors measured the phenolic, flavonoid and tannin content of the leaves and tested methanol extracts for antioxidant activity and against cancer cell lines.
Summarised here from the abstract below. Not the authors’ words.
Abstract
Asclepias linaria Cav. (Apocynaceae) is a shrubby plant endemic of Mexico which has been used in traditional medicine. However, the bioactive potential of this plant remains unexplored. In this study, the phenolic composition, antioxidant, and cytotoxic activities of A. linaria leaves were determined. In order to estimate the phenolic composition of the leaves, the total phenolic, flavonoid, and condensed tannins contents were determined. Furthermore, the antioxidant activity was measured by the scavenging activity of the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•) and 2,2'-azino-bis[3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid] (ABTS•+) radicals and the total antioxidant capacity. The phenolic compounds identified in the A. linaria leaves by ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) include phenolic acids, such as p-coumaric and ferulic acid, as well as flavonoids, such as rutin and quercetin. The leaves' extracts of A. linaria showed a high scavenging activity of DPPH• and ABTS•+ radicals (IC50 0.12 ± 0.001 and 0.51 ± 0.003 µg/mL, respectively), high total antioxidant capacity values (99.77 ± 4.32 mg of ascorbic acid equivalents/g of dry tissue), and had a cytotoxic effect against K562 and HL60 hematologic neoplasia cells lines, but no toxicity towards the normal mononuclear cell line was observed. These results highlight the potential of A. linaria and could be considered as a possible alternative source of anticancer compounds.
Abstract reproduced from the published paper, which is licensed CC BY. Copyright remains with the authors.
Key terms
Milkweeds in this paper
- Pineneedle Milkweed Asclepias linaria
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Milkweed USA. (2026). Phenolic Profile, Antioxidant and Anti-Proliferative Activities of Methanolic Extracts from Asclepias linaria Cav. Leaves (listing). Retrieved DATE, from https://milkweedusa.com/research/phenolic-profile-antioxidant-and-anti-proliferative-activities-of-methanolic-2019/
"Phenolic Profile, Antioxidant and Anti-Proliferative Activities of Methanolic Extracts from Asclepias linaria Cav. Leaves (listing)." Milkweed USA, 2026, https://milkweedusa.com/research/phenolic-profile-antioxidant-and-anti-proliferative-activities-of-methanolic-2019/. Accessed DATE.
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title = {Phenolic Profile, Antioxidant and Anti-Proliferative Activities of Methanolic Extracts from Asclepias linaria Cav. Leaves (listing)},
author = {{Milkweed USA}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://milkweedusa.com/research/phenolic-profile-antioxidant-and-anti-proliferative-activities-of-methanolic-2019/},
note = {Accessed DATE}
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