Nutraceutical Potential of Leaf Hydro-Ethanolic Extract of the Edible Halophyte Crithmum maritimum L

Aromatic halophytes represent an exceptional source of natural bioactive compounds for the food industry. L., also known as sea fennel, is a halophyte plant colonizing cliffs and coastal dunes along Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts. It is well known to produce essential oils and polyphenols endowed with antioxidant and biological effects. The present work reports the phytochemical profile, as well as antioxidant, antimicrobial and antimutagenic properties of leaf hydro-alcoholic extract. From LC-ESI-MS analysis, eighteen phenolic compounds were depicted in sea fennel extract and the amount of total phenolic content exceeds 3% DW. Accordingly, extract showed strong antioxidant activities, as evidenced by in vitro (DPPH, ORAC, FRAP) and ex vivo (CAA-RBC and hemolysis) assays. An important antimicrobial activity against pathogenic strains was found as well as a strong capacity to inhibit (ATCC 35556) biofilm formation. Sea fennel extracts showed a significant decrease of mutagenesis induced by hydrogen peroxide (H O ) and menadione (ME) in D7 strain. In conclusion, our results show that is an exceptional source of bioactive components and exert beneficial effects against oxidative or mutagenic mechanisms, and pathogenic bacteria, making it a potential functional food.