Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
MARSILEA QUADRIFOLIA
LINNAEUS
Phylum: Pteridophyta Class: Pteridopsida
Order: Salviniales Family: Marsileaceae
Common name: European water fern, four-leaf clover
Distribution: Europe, Siberia, Afghanistan, India, China, Japan, North America
Habitat: Shallow-water lakes, ponds, rivers, stream edges
Description: It is an aquatic fern with four-part leaves that are loating in deep-
water or erect in shallow water or on land.
Compounds and activities: The juice made from the leaves is diuretic and febri-
fuge. It is also used to treat snakebites and is applied to abscesses. The extracts
of chloroform and ethyl acetate of these plants showed antibacterial activity
against 5 Gram-positive and 11 Gram-negative human pathogenic bacterial
species, and the zone of inhibition in these extracts ranged from 9 to 20 mm.
These extracts also showed cytotoxicity, and the LC
50
values were 7.820 and
8.589 µg/ml, respectively. The ethyl acetate fraction of this plant also showed
potent antioxidant activity with a LC
50
value of 50.1053 µg/ml (Ripa et al., 2009).
TETRASPORA GELATINOSA
(VAUCHER) DESVAUX, 1818
