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. 2014 Sep 12;19(9):14496-527.
doi: 10.3390/molecules190914496.

Antioxidant activity and mechanisms of action of natural compounds isolated from lichens: a systematic review

Pollyanna A S White  1 , Rita C M Oliveira  2 , Aldeidia P Oliveira  2 , Mairim R Serafini  3 , Adriano A S Araújo  4 , Daniel P Gelain  5 , Jose C F Moreira  6 , Jackson R G S Almeida  7 , Jullyana S S Quintans  8 , Lucindo J Quintans-Junior  9 , Marcio R V Santos  10
Affiliations

Antioxidant activity and mechanisms of action of natural compounds isolated from lichens: a systematic review

Pollyanna A S White et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases are characterized by an enhanced state of oxidative stress, which may result from the overproduction of reactive species and/or a decrease in antioxidant defenses. The search for new chemical entities with antioxidant profile is still thus an emerging field on ongoing interest. Due to the lack of reviews concerning the antioxidant activity of lichen-derived natural compounds, we performed a review of the antioxidant potential and mechanisms of action of natural compounds isolated from lichens. The search terms "lichens", "antioxidants" and "antioxidant response elements" were used to retrieve articles in LILACS, PubMed and Web of Science published until February 2014. From a total of 319 articles surveyed, 32 met the established inclusion and exclusion criteria. It was observed that the most common isolated compound studied was usnic acid, cited in 14 out of the 32 articles. The most often described antioxidant assays for the study of in vitro antioxidant activity were mainly DPPH, LPO and SOD. The most suggested mechanisms of action were scavenging of reactive species, enzymatic activation and inhibition of iNOS. Thus, compounds isolated from lichens are possible candidates for the management of oxidative stress, and may be useful in the treatment of chronic diseases.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flowchart of included studies. Studies were excluded according to the following exclusion criteria: studies in humans, studies of mixtures of substances or extracts from lichens, review articles, meta-analyses, abstracts, conference proceedings, editorials/letters, case reports.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Usnic acid structure and biological activities.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Atranorin structure and biological activities.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Lecanoric acid structure and biological activities.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Diffractaic acid structure and biological activities.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Lobaric acid structure and biological activities.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Stictic acid structure and biological activities.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Fumarprotocetraric acid structure and biological activities.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Salazinic acid structure and biological activities.
Figure 10
Figure 10
Physodic acid structure and biological activities.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Structures and biological activities of orsellinic acid, methyl orsellinate, orcinol and methyl-β-orcinolcarboxylate, respectively.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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