Phytotoxicity, toxicity on brine shrimp and insecticidal effect of Chrysophthalmum gueneri Aytac & Anderb. Growing in Turkey

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the probable toxicity on brine shrimp, phytotoxicity, and insecticidal activity of Chrysophthalmum gueneri Aytac & Anderb. Materials and Methods: The MeOH (80%) extract obtained from the whole plant of C. gueneri was fractionated through subsequent solvent extractions in increasing polarity with n-hexane, chloroform, and n-butanol. The MeOH (80%) extract and all fractions of C. gueneri were evaluated for their biologic activities using in vitro screening bioassays such as brine shrimp lethality test and phytotoxicity against Lemna minor, as well as insecticidal activity against Rhyzopertha dominica and Tribolium castaneum. Results: The findings showed that the n-hexane and chloroform fractions of the plant had significant phytotoxic activities with 100% growth inhibition (GI) at 1000 μg/mL against L. minor. Moreover, the MeOH (80%) extract (53% GI) and n-butanol fraction (46.6% GI) of the plant had moderate phytotoxic activities at 1000 μg/mL. Otherwise, no samples had toxicity on the brine shrimps. In addition, the remaining water fraction had low insecticidal activity with 20% mortality against T. castaneum. Conclusion: Our results show that the n-hexane and chloroform fractions of C. gueneri had potential phytotoxic effects.