Las plantas medicinales Mexicanas como fuente de compuestos antimicobacterianos

Ca. 75 species from Mexican medicinal flora have been tested in vitro against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv. Some of these were selected based on their medicinal uses. The most active species include Phoradendron robinsonii, Larrea divericata, Amphiteryngium adstringens, Buddleja cordata, Piper sanctum, Arracacia tolucensis, Carya illinoiensis, Diospyros anisandra, and Thymus vulgaris. A number of active compounds isolated from medicinal plants by bioguided fractionation are 2-oxo-14-(3′,4′-methylenedioxyphenyl) tetradecane, 2-oxo-16-(3′,4′-methylenedioxyphenyl)-hexadecane, 5,6-dehydro-7,8-dihydromethysticin, cepharanone B, piperolactam A, suberosin, escobarine A, oleanolic acid, ursolic acid, the mixture of these two latter compounds (ursolic/oleanolic acids), and E and Z-phytols with minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) < 25 μg/mL against M. tuberculosis H37Rv. Also some macrolactones glycolipids isolated from Ipomoea genus demonstrated important antimycobacterial activity against M. tuberculosis H37Rv (MIC < 32 μg/mL). Other secondary metabolites with antimycobacterial activity were six alkaloids, two flavonoids, two quinones and two triterpenes (MIC < 25 μg/mL).