Abstract
Vaccinium floribundum Kunth (QUPS Herbarium accession number 4803), commonly known as mortiño, is characterized by its high concentrations of bioactive compounds, particularly polyphenolic compounds, which play a significant role in its biological activity. Here, we aimed to investigate the role of anthocyanins after identifying and quantifying them using differential pH, thin-layer chromatography (TLC), and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) on a fluid extract. Its biological activity was evaluated with antioxidant assays (ABTS and DPPH), which yielded antioxidant activity values of 833.47 μg/mL (ABTS) and 1418.01 μg/mL (DPPH). The anti-inflammatory activity, evaluated using membrane stability (MS) assays under thermal stress, showed maximum inhibition percentages of 32.31% and 34.26% for the anthocyanidins (cyanidin and delphinidin) at 1 μg/mL, with 92.56% inhibition in a 1000 μg/mL extract. Similarly, an additive effect was observed from the anthocyanins and flavonoids in the extract. Furthermore, antimicrobial evaluations using antibiograms and microplate dilution methods against urinary tract infection (UTI) pathogens demonstrated significant inhibition of Staphylococcus saprophyticus (50% extract, MIC = 3125 μg/mL, 55.29% inhibition), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (50% extract, MIC = 12500 μg/mL, 71.45% inhibition), Escherichia coli (50% extract, MIC = 12500 μg/mL, 35.04% inhibition), and Candida tropicalis (100% extract, MIC = 6250 μg/mL, 12.88% inhibition). Our findings suggest that the mortiño extract contains substantial levels of anthocyanins, with cyanidin being the predominant anthocyanin. Both anthocyanins and anthocyanidins exhibited significant antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial activity, supporting the potential therapeutic value of mortiño in addressing oxidative stress, inflammation, and microbial infections.
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