Metabolite Profiling, Antioxidant and Key Enzymes Linked to Hyperglycemia Inhibitory Activities of Satureja hispidula : An Underexplored Species from Algeria

In the present study, two extracts from the aerial parts of the endemic species were analyzed for the first time by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with a diode array detector and an electrospray mass spectrometer (UHPLC-DAD-ESI/MS) method in order to identify and quantify their phenolic compounds. These extracts' antioxidant, α-glucosidase and α-amylase inhibitory activities were also evaluated. UHPLC-DAD-ESI/MS allowed the identification of 28 and 20 compounds in the ethanolic and aqueous extracts, respectively; among them, 5- -caffeoylquinic acid was the most abundant in both extracts. The biological assay results indicate that the species , besides its high antioxidant power, is also potentially useful for inhibiting the α-glucosidase enzyme. In both antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibitory assays, the aqueous extract exhibited the most promising results, significantly better than the standards used as positive controls.