Abstract
Psiadia arguta (Asteraceae) is endemic to the island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. The species is traditionally used to treat various ailments, such as its use as an expectorant or for the treatment of bronchitis and asthma. Preliminary biological screenings have displayed the antimalarial (Plasmodium falciparum) and anticancer (HeLa human cell line) potential of P. arguta leaves. The phytochemical investigation of this plant has led to the isolation and characterization of sixteen compounds including five antiplasmodial molecules. The accumulation of the antiplasmodial compounds during the growth of the plant was studied by a 1H NMR-based metabolomic approach. In order to identify factors influencing the production of bioactive compounds, young plants of P. arguta were multiplied using in vitro culture techniques, and micro-propagated plants at different stages of development were acclimatized and followed for the experiments. The multivariate data analysis showed an accumulation of four bioactive compounds in the leaves of P. arguta when these plants were challenged with a biotic stress: labdan-13(E)-en-8α-ol-15-yl acetate, labdan-8α-ol-15-yl acetate, labdan-13(E)-ene-8α-ol-15-diol, and (8R,13S)-labdan-8,15-diol.