Taxonomical, phytochemical and biological studies of Morus L. (Moraceae Link)

Abstract

Moraceae Link (the mulberry family) is one of the most important angiospermic plant families as it includes a lot of nutritive plant species, especially Morus genus due to its economical value in silkworm rearing for silk production around the world in addition to the medicinal and nutritional value as it contains many active compounds which are effective against many diseases and health problems. As a result of the recorded conflictions regarding the number of Morus species and the difficult identification, the current study was done on seven taxa of Morus which were collected from Egyptian botanical gardens (Mazhar Botanical Garden and Orman Botanical Garden, Giza) and identified by the aid of specific references in order to investigate the morphological and anatomical criteria by using LM and SEM for delimitation among the studied taxa. Phytochemical studies were performed to evaluate the chemical composition (phenols and flavonoids) quantitatively and qualitatively using UV spectrophotometer and HPLC analysis. Biological activities of M. alba were also studied to assess its effectiveness against inflammation, oxidation and cytotoxicity. Cumulative tables, colored plates and artificial keys were designed to illustrate the similarities and distinctions among