Ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole high-resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometry for metabolite profiling and biological activity of Stellaria pallida (Dumort) Piré

Medicinal plants have a wide variety of valuable biological activities. Stellaria pallida (Dumort) Piré is a well-known plant; however, this species’ phytochemical and biological activity assessment is rare. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole high-resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC/QTOF-MS) was used for the metabolic profiling of Stellaria pallida . The total phenol and flavonoid contents were colorimetrically evaluated using Folin–Ciocalteu and aluminum chloride reagents, respectively. The total antioxidant capacity was investigated, and free radical scavenging activities against DPPH, superoxide anion radical (O 2 − ), ABTS + , and Fe 2+ chelating capacity were determined. The cytotoxic effect was tested on the Hep-G2, HeLa, HCT116, and MCF-7 cell lines. Cytopathic effect inhibition assay was applied to determine the antiviral activity. Methanol extract contained 25.8 mg GAE/g dry weight and 29.5 mg QE/g dry weight of total phenol and flavonoid contents, respectively. Twenty-two metabolites were identified; three fundamental flavonoid aglycones (apigenin, quercetin, and kaempferol) with their O and/or C -glycosides. Methanol extract significantly scavenged DPPH, superoxide anion radical (O 2 − ), and ABTS + and showed significant Fe 2+ chelating capacity. It showed a significant selective cytotoxic effect, with IC 50 ranging from 3.55 µg/mL to 4.84 µg/mL against MCF-7 and Hep-G2, respectively. In addition, the methanol extract showed a wide range of antiviral activity. Stellaria pallida has promising therapeutic potential and could be considered a possible source of natural compounds with several activities.