Phenolic Acid Profile and In Vitro Antioxidant and Anticolinesterase Activities of Romanian Wild-Grown _Acer_ spp. (_Sapindaceae_)  
[PERSON]  
1 Department of Pharmaceutical Botany, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rares Street, 200349 Craiova, Romania; [EMAIL_ADDRESS] (C.B. );[EMAIL_ADDRESS] (A.R.) [PERSON]  
2 Institute for Advanced Environmental Research, West University of Timisoara (ICAM-WUT), 4 Othuz Street, 300086 Timisoara, Romania; [EMAIL_ADDRESS]  
[PERSON]  
3 Department of Pharmacogenomics & Phytotherapy, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rares Street, 200349 Craiova, Romania; [EMAIL_ADDRESS] (A.B. );gor  
arranged in infloreserences. The fruit is a double samara, with each of the two nutlets bearing a lateral, reticulately veined wing, which may be membranous or coriaceous [1; 2; 3; 4]. The _Acer_ genus comprises 129 species distributed across the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere (Europe, North Africa, Asia, and North America) [1; 2; 3; 4; 5; 6]. In Europe, fifteen species are found, and five are native to Romania (_A. campestre_ L., _A. nonspessulanum_ L., _A. platanoides_ L., _A. pseudoplatanus_ L., _A. tataricum_ L.) [1; 2; 3; 4]. Most _Acer_ spp. are found in China, where there are 99 species, of which 61 are endemic [5; 6]. The name of the _Acer_ genus originates from the Latin word meaning \"hard\", referring to the strength of the wood of these plants [1]. In Romania, _Acer_ spp. are commonly referred to as \"Artar\", \"Paltin\", or \"Jugastru\". The popular names for the five native species in Romania are as follows: _A. campestre_ L.--Field Maple (Jugastru); _A. nonspessulanum_ L.--Banat Field Maple (Jugastru de Banat); _A. platanoides_ L.--Norway Maple (Artar, Paltin de camp); _A. pseudoplatanus_ L.--Sycamore Maple (Paltin, Paltin de munte); _A. tataricum_ L.--Tatar Maple (Artar tatarasc, Gladis) [1; 2; 3; 4]. _Acer_ spp. are utilized in traditional medicine, in the food industry (notably for producing maple syrup as a sweetener), in constructions, and as ornamental plants (valued for their foliage shape and color) or for street planting [5; 6; 7; 8]. In traditional medicine across East Asia, Europe, and North America, 40 species and 11 subspecies of _Acer_ genus are used to treat hypertension and indigestion, as anti-inflammatory agents, for arthalgia, rheumat, sore throat, pneumonia, and liver and eye diseases, and as emetics [5; 6]. In traditional Chinese medicine, more than 20 _Acer_ spp. are employed for therapeutic purposes [5; 6]. In northeastern Asia, particularly Japan and Korea, several _Acer_ spp. have been used for years in traditional medicine, including _A. maximowiczianum_ [PERSON], _A. pictum_ [PERSON], _A. pycunanthum_ [PERSON]. [PERSON], and _A. tegmentosum_ [PERSON]. [5]. In Japan, _A. pycunanthum_ has been used for eye care, while in Korea, _A. tegmentosum_ was utilized to treat liver conditions such as hepatitis, cirrhosis, and even hepatic cancer, as well as traumatic hemorrhages [5; 8]. In China, _A. truncatum_ [PERSON] is recommended for angina pectoris and cerebrovascular diseases, whereas _A. gintala_ [PERSON] is used for acute diarrhea and tonsilopharyngeals [5; 8; 9; 10]. In Europe, _Acer_ spp. are less studied and known for their medicinal properties. Therapeutic formulations derived from _Acer_ spp. include extracts made from roots, bark, leaves, flowers, and fruits [5; 6; 7; 8; 9; 10]. The chemical composition of plants in the _Acer_ genus includes over 331 compounds identified in 34 species, encompassing flavonoids, tannins, diarylheptanoids, phenylpropanol derivatives, terpenoids, and phytosterols, as well as benzoic acid derivatives, alkaloids, carbohydrates, fatty acids, amino acids, vitamins, and minerals [5; 9; 10; 11]. Flavonoids, found in leaves and/or branches, are the primary components, with more than 62 compounds identified across 21 species. These include flavan-3-ols, flavanonols, anthocyanidins, flavones, flavanones, isoflav, and chalcones.