Acourtia

 Asteraceae

©The World Botanical Associates Web Page
Prepared by Richard W. Spjut
Nov 2007

Acourtia (Perezia) nana
Growing under Mesquite
20 mi NW of Phoenix, AZ
Oct 2007

Acourtia wrightii
Mesquite-Acacia woodland
30 mi NW of Phoenix, AZ
Spjut 16138, Oct 2007

 

Carabez A. and F. Sandoval.  1988.  The action of the sesquiterpenic benzoquinone, perezone, on electron transport in biological membranes.  Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 1260(1): 293–300.  “Perezone (2-(1,5-dimethyl-4-hexenyl)-3-hydroxymethyl-p-benzoquinone) is a sesquiterpenic benzoquinone isolated from roots of plants of the genus Perezia. It exhibits oxido-reduction characteristics which suggest that the compound can be used for studies of the electron transfer chain of rat liver mitochondria. Perezone at 50 microM inhibits mitochondrial electron transport through a process which differs from that of rotenone, amytal, and Antimycin A. The inhibition is temperature dependent; at 35 degrees C it fails to inhibit valinomycin-induced mitochondrial respiration, but at 20 degrees C it inhibits respiration by 80-90%. Perezone is an electron-donor and electron-acceptor compound that behaves similarly to naphtoquinone. It mediates electron transport from a reaction center preparation isolated from Rhodopseudomonas sphaeroides and added cytochrome c. The low respiration of rat liver mitochondria depleted of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ) is increased by perezone. The electron transport activity of perezone was also demonstrated with CoQ-deficient yeast mutant E3-24.”

Enríquez R., J. Ortega and X. Lozoya.  1980.  Active components in Perezia roots.  J. Ethnopharmacol. 2(4): 389–393.  “The effects produced by perezone, which was isolated from Perezia cuernavacana Rob. et Greenm., and hydroxyperezone monoangelate, from Perezia hebeclada (D.C.) A.Gray, on intestinal motility in vivo and in vitro in animal experiments are reported. It is suggested that hydroxyperezone monoangelate is a laxative principle present in certain species of the Perezia genus, with use in Mexican folk medicine.”