Phytochemicals are a wide variety of compounds produced by plants manipulated widely in the pharmacognostic drug development and treatment of the major ailments. The present study focuses on screening and comparative analysis of secondary metabolites, fluorescence and physiochemical analysis of two major medicinal plants; Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. Leaf samples from these medicinal plants were subjected to sequential cold percolation method using Hexane, Ethyl acetate, Chloroform and Methanol. Bioactive compounds like Cardioglycosides, Flavonoid, Quinones, Terpenoids, Alkaloids and Steroids are present in high concentration in Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. Extractive value was high in Methanol extract when compared to other solvent extracts.
Article Citation:
Florida M and Sekar T.
Phytochemical investigation of tropical medicinal plants - Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L.
Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 109-115.
Full Text:
http://plantsciences.co.in/documents/PS0033.pdf
Phytochemicals are a wide variety of compounds produced by plants manipulated widely in the pharmacognostic drug development and treatment of the major ailments. The present study focuses on screening and comparative analysis of secondary metabolites, fluorescence and physiochemical analysis of two major medicinal plants; Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. Leaf samples from these medicinal plants were subjected to sequential cold percolation method using Hexane, Ethyl acetate, Chloroform and Methanol. Bioactive compounds like Cardioglycosides, Flavonoid, Quinones, Terpenoids, Alkaloids and Steroids are present in high concentration in Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. Extractive value was high in Methanol extract when compared to other solvent extracts.
Article Citation:
Florida M and Sekar T.
Phytochemical investigation of tropical medicinal plants - Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L.
Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 109-115.
Full Text:
http://plantsciences.co.in/documents/PS0033.pdf
Phytochemicals are a wide variety of compounds produced by plants manipulated widely in the pharmacognostic drug development and treatment of the major ailments. The present study focuses on screening and comparative analysis of secondary metabolites, fluorescence and physiochemical analysis of two major medicinal plants; Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. Leaf samples from these medicinal plants were subjected to sequential cold percolation method using Hexane, Ethyl acetate, Chloroform and Methanol. Bioactive compounds like Cardioglycosides, Flavonoid, Quinones, Terpenoids, Alkaloids and Steroids are present in high concentration in Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. Extractive value was high in Methanol extract when compared to other solvent extracts.
Article Citation:
Florida M and Sekar T.
Phytochemical investigation of tropical medicinal plants - Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L.
Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 109-115.
Full Text:
http://plantsciences.co.in/documents/PS0033.pdf
Phytochemicals are a wide variety of compounds produced by plants manipulated widely in the pharmacognostic drug development and treatment of the major ailments. The present study focuses on screening and comparative analysis of secondary metabolites, fluorescence and physiochemical analysis of two major medicinal plants; Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. Leaf samples from these medicinal plants were subjected to sequential cold percolation method using Hexane, Ethyl acetate, Chloroform and Methanol. Bioactive compounds like Cardioglycosides, Flavonoid, Quinones, Terpenoids, Alkaloids and Steroids are present in high concentration in Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. Extractive value was high in Methanol extract when compared to other solvent extracts. 109-115 | JRPS | 2012 | Vol 1 | No 2 This article is governed by the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by/2.0), which gives permission for unrestricted use, non-commercial, distribution, and reproduction in all medium, provided the original work is properly cited. www.plantsciences.info Journal of Research in Plant Sciences An International Scientific Research Journal Authors: Florida M and Sekar T.
Institution: PG and Research Department of Botany, Pachaiyappas College, Chennai-600030.
Corresponding author: Florida M.
Email: florida1871@yahoo.com
Web Address: http://plantsciences.info/ documents/PS0033.pdf.
Dates: Received: 18 Jul 2012 Accepted: 25 Jul 2012 Published: 24 Aug 2012 Article Citation: Florida M and Sekar T. Phytochemical investigation of tropical medicinal plants - Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 109-115 Original Research Journal of Research in Plant Sciences J o u r n a l
o f
R e s e a r c h
i n
P l a n t
S c i e n c e s
An International Scientific Research Journal
INTRODUCTION Traditional medicines play an important role in health services around the globe. About three quarters of the Worlds population relies on plants and its extracts for health care (Premanathan et al., 2000; Gabhe et al., 2006). Throughout history plants have been used by human beings for medicinal purposes and even in modern times, they have formed the basis of many pharmaceuticals (Schmidt et al., 2008).The complex secondary metabolites produced by plants have found various therapeutic uses in medicine from time immemorial. The early history of modern medicine contains descriptions of plant-derived phytochemicals, many of which are still in use (Mohammed Rahmatullah et al., 2009). In the recent years, there has been a gradual revival of interest in the use of medicinal plants in developing countries because herbal medicines have been reported to be safe, without any side effects especially when compared to synthetic drugs. The medicinal values of these plants lie in the secondary metabolites that produce a definite physiological action on the human body. The use of plant materials to prevent and treat infectious diseases successfully over the years has attracted the attention of scientists worldwide (Falodun et al., 2006). The present investigation deals with the phytochemical constants and preliminary phytochemical screening of two potential medicinal plants; Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. Stereospermum colais L. is a large straight stemmed deciduous tree 18-30 m in height and 2.8 m in girth found throughout the moist regions of India up to an altitude of about 1200 m, chiefly in deciduous forests. It is known as Yellow snake tree in English, Padri in Hindi and Pathiri in Tamil (Parrota, 2001). The leaves are use-full in otalgia, odantalgia, rheumatalgia, malarial fever and wounds. The juice of the leaves mixed with lime juice is used in maniacal cases. Decoction of the leaves is used for treating chronic dyspepsia and also has anti-pyretic properties. Barringtonia acutangula L. locally known as Samuthirappalam in Tamil, is a small to mediumsized evergreen tree, which belongs to the family Lecythidaceae is native to coastal wetlands in Southern Asia and Northern Australia. In India, it is common in low lying areas and has been used by Indigenous groups for a wide range of medicinal purposes. Extract of the roots is hypoglycemic, aperient and expectorent, the leaf juice is useful in diarrhoea, seeds are carminative and antiemetic (Sahoo TA, 2008).
MATERIALS AND METHODS Plant collection and authentication The l eaf mat er i al of t he pl ant s Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. (Voucher number BRT-P/005/2011 and BRT- P/004/2011) was collected from Anna Hospital Campus, Arumbakkam, Chennai, Tamil Nadu and Kovilanchery, Chennai, Tamil Nadu India respectively in November 2011. The herbarium specimen was identified by Prof Narasimhan of Botany Department, Madras Christian College, Chennai. The leaves were separated from other parts, washed, cleaned and dried for further use. Preparation of Plant extract Th e pl ant ma t er i a l s ( l ea ves of Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L.) were air-dried at room temperature (26C) for two weeks, after which it was ground to a uniform powder. The extracts of the leaf samples were prepared in a sequential procedure by soaking 100 g of dried powder in 900 ml of different solvents (hexane, ethyl acetate, chloroform and methanol) for 48 h. At the end of each respective extraction, the extracts were filtered using Whatman filter paper. The filtrate was concentrated under reduced pressure in vacuum at 40C for 25 min using a rotary evaporator (Superfit-ROTAVAP, India). The percentage yield of extracts was calculated. Florida and Sekar, 2012 110 Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 109-115 Phytochemical screening Phytochemical screening for major constituents was undertaken using standard qualitative methods. Screening test were performed for Carbohydrates, Tannins, Saponins Flavonoids, Cardiac glycosides, Ter penoi ds, Tr i t er penoi ds, Phl obat anni ns, Anthraquinones, Alkaloids, Quinones, Phenols, Coumarins, Glycosides, Proteins, Steroids and phytosteroids (Sofowora A, 1993 and Harborne JB 1973). Fluorescence analysis of extracts The leaf extracts are examined in daylight, UV light of 365nm to detect the fluorescent compounds by the reported method (Kokashi et al., 1958). The observations are tabulated. Physiochemical analysis Tot al ash, aci d-insolubl e ash and water-soluble ash values of Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. leaf powder were done as per the reported standard methods (Anonymous, 1985). Extractive values were carried out according to the official methods presented in Indian Pharmacopoeia (4th edition, 1996).
RESULTS Plant materials were collected and processed for sequential extraction using Hexane, Ethyl acetate, chloroform and methanol. The extractive yields are tabulated (Table 1) for Stereospermum colais L. The Preliminary phytochemical results in table 2 reveals the presence of Flavonoids, Alkaloids, Quinones, Cardiac glycosides, Terpenoids and Triterpenoids in all the four solvent extracts of Stereospermum colais L. Carbohydrates are present in ethyl acetate and methanol extracts. Tannins were found to be absent in the Hexane fraction. Table 3 indicates the extractive yield for Barringtonia acutangula L. leaf powder. Table 4 indicates the phyt ochemical screening of Barringtonia acutangula L. leaf powder. Flavonoids, Alkaloids, Cardiac glycosides, Terpenoids and Triterpenoids are strongly present in all the four solvent extracts. Quinones, Phenols and coumarins are absent in hexane solvent, but are strongly present in ethyl acetate and methanol fraction. Steroids are present in ethyl acetate and methanol fraction. Saponins are found in Florida and Sekar, 2012 Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 109-115 111 Solvent Percentage W/W Hexane 0.906 Ethyl acetate 1.853 Chloroform 0.115 Methanol 6.68 Table 1: Extractive value of Stereospermum colais L. Leaf powder Test Hexane Ethylacetate Chloroform Methanol Carbohydrate + + Tannins + + + Saponin Flavonoid + + + + Alkaloid + + + + Quinones + + + + Glycosides Cardiac glycosides + + + + Terpenoids + + + + Triterpenoids + + + + Phenols Coumarins + + Steroids and Phytosteroids Steroids Steroids Steroids Steroids Phlobatannins Anthraquinones Table 2: Phytochemical screening - Leaf extracts of Stereospermum colais L.
traces in Ethyl acetate and methanol fraction. Presence of carbohydrates and tannins are revealed in Methanol fraction. Ash value of the drug reveals the idea of the early matter or the inorganic composition and other impurities present along with the drug. Total ash, acid- insoluble ash and water-soluble ash values of Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. leaf powder were tabulated in Table 5 and 6 respectively. Acid soluble ash in both the plants was comparatively higher than water soluble ash. Table 7 and 8 indicates the result of Fluorescence analysis of Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. leaf powder.
DISCUSSION Phytochemical test of crude extract of Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. revealed the presence of flavonoid, alkaloid, quinones, cardiac glycosides, terpenoids, tannins and triterpenoids. Glycosides, Phlobatannins and Anthraquinones were found to be absent. Alkaloids, tannins and flavonoids are some of the most important bioactive components from plants (Hill, 1952). Many tannin containing drugs are used in medicine as astringent. They are used in the treatment of burns as they precipitate the proteins of exposed tissues to form a protective covering (Handa, S.S. &Kapoor, V.K, 1992). They are also medically used as healing agents in inflammation, leucorrhoea, gonorrhoea, burns, piles and antidote (Ali, M, 1994). Presence of tannins in Stereospermum colais L. indicates potential effects against pathogenic microorganism (Enzo AP, 2007). Occurrence of flavonoids in Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L are suggested to be involved with antibacterial and anti- viral activity Padmavathi D et al., 2012) and (Vijaya Bharathi R et al., 2010). Steroids in modern clinical studies have supported their role as anti-inflammatory and analgesic agents (Singh AP 2006). This could explain the role of Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. in clinical studies. The presence of steroidal, saponins, cardiac glycosides appear to be confined to many families and these Florida and Sekar, 2012 112 Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 109-115 Solvent Percentage W/W Hexane 2.068 Ethyl acetate 1.875 Chloroform 3.803 Methanol 7.808 Table 3: Extractive value of Barringtonia acutangula L. Leaf powder Test Hexane Ethylacetate Chloroform Methanol Carbohydrate + Tannins + Saponin + + Flavonoid + + + + Alkaloid + + + + Quinones + + + Glycosides Cardiac glycosides + + + + Terpenoids + + + + Triterpenoids + + + Phenols + + + Coumarins + + + Steroids and Phytosteroids Phytosteroids Phytosteroids Steroids Steroids Phlobatannins Anthraquinones Table 4: Phytochemical screening - Leaf extracts of Barringtonia acutangula L. saponins have great pharmaceutical importance because of their relationship to compounds such as the sex hormones, cortisones, diuretic steroids, vitamin D (Okwu, D.E., 2001). Saponin compound in Stereospermum colais L. supports the usefulness of this plant in the managing inflammation. Physico-chemical constant is an important parameter in detecting adulteration on improper handling of drugs (Anonymous, 1985). The ash value and acid insoluble ash value determination is importance in the evaluation of crude drugs. The total ash is particularly important in the evaluation of purity of drugs, the presence or absence of foreign inorganic matter such as metallic salts or silica. Many phytochemicals fluoresce when suitably illuminated. The fluorescence colour is specific for each compound. A non-fluorescent compound may fluoresce if mixed with impurities that are fluorescent. The fluorescent method is adequately sensitive and enables the precise and accurate determination of analyze over a satisfactory concentration range without several time consuming dilution steps prior to the analysis of pharmaceutical samples (Pimenta, et al., 2006). Since the plants, Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. are useful in traditional medicine for the treatment of various ailments, it is important to standardize in the usage of drug. CONCLUSION The study concludes the presence of major secondary metabolites, physiochemical, fluorescent property and extractive yield using different solvents. Therefore, this study states the importance of small molecules from Stereospermum colais L. and Barringtonia acutangula L. for treating various ailments. Further, work can be extended in studying the separation of bioactive compound and evaluation of the isolated compound.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The authors are thankful to the Head, Department of Botany, Pachaiyappas College, Chennai for his constant support and encouragement.
REFERENCES Ali M. 1985. Text book of Pharmacognosy. CBS Publishers and Distributors, New Delhi, 1994. 405.
Anonymous. 1985. Indian Pharmacopoeia, 3(II), Government of India, Ministry of Health, Florida and Sekar, 2012 Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 109-115 113 Total Ash 5.9825 Water soluble Ash 21.35 Acid soluble Ash 56.33 Loss on drying 15.33 Table 5: Ash value of Stereospermum colais L. Leaf powder Total Ash 3.3727 Water soluble Ash 23.115 Acid soluble Ash 51.33 Loss on drying 2.089 Table 6: Ash value of Barringtonia acutangula L. Leaf powder Reaction Day light Uv light 365nm Powder + NaOH Black Brown Powder + Hcl Green Greenish yellow Powder + H 2 SO 4 Black Black Powder + HNO 3 Yellow Yellowish brown Powder Green Dark geeen Table 7: Fluorescence analysis of Stereospermum colais L. Leaf powder Reaction Day light Uv light 365nm Powder + NaOH Yellow Reddish Powder + Hcl Yellowinsh green Yellowish brown Powder + H 2 SO 4 Reddish Reddish brown Powder + HNO 3 Golden brown Brownish red Powder Brown Brown Table 8: Fluorescence analysis of Barringtonia acutangula L. Leaf powder
Controller of Publications, New Delhi, India.
Anonymous. 1985. Indian Pharmacopoeia, 3rd ed. Vol.2, Govt. of India, Ministry of Health, Controller of publications, New Delhi A74 -A75.
Enzo AP. 2007. Traditional plants and herbal remedies used in the treatment of diarrheal disease: Mode of action, quality, efficacy and safety considerations. In: Ahmad I, Aqil F, Owais M, editors. Modern Phytomedicine Turning Medicinal Plants in to Drugs. WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim, 248-260.
Falodun A, Okunrobo LO, Uzoamaka N. 2006. Phytochemical screening and anti-inflammatory evaluation of methanolic and aqueos extracts of Euphorbiaheterophylla L. (Euphorbiaceae). Afr. J. Biotechnol., 5(6):529-531.
Gabhe SY, Tatke PA and Khan TA. 2006. Evaluation of the Immunomodulatory Activity of the Methanol extract of Ficusbenghalensis roots in rats. Indian J. Pharmacol., 38(4):271-275.
Sofowora A. 1993. Medicinal Plants and Traditional Medicinal in Africa. 2nd Ed. Sunshine House, Ibadan, Nigeria: Spectrum Books Ltd; Screening Plants for Bioactive Agents;, 134-156.
Gokhale SG, Kokate CK and Purohit AP. 2003. A text Book of Pharmacognosy, NiraliPrakashan, Pune.
Handa SS and Kapoor VK. (Eds). 1992. Pharmacognosy, VallabahPrakashan Publications, New Delhi., 51.
Harborne JB. 1973. Phytochemical Methods: A guide to modern techniques of plant analysis. Chapman and Hall, New York, 279, 3 rd Edition.
Hill AF. 1952. Economic botany. A text book of usefulplants and plant products. 2nd edn. Mcgraw-Hill book company Inc, NY.
Indian Pharmacopoeia. 1996. 4th ed, vol 2. Government of India, Ministry ofHealthans Welfare. New Delhi: Controller of Publication: P. A53-4.
Kokashi CJ, Kokashi RJ and Sharma M. 1958. Fluorescence of powdered vegetable drugs in ultra-violet radiation. J. Am. Pharm. Assoc. 47:715-717
Mohammed Rahmatullah, IsratJahanMukti, FahmidulHaque AKM, Md. ArifulHaqueMollik, KantaParvin, RownakJahan, Majeedul H, Chowdhury and TaufiqRahman. 2009. An Ethnobotanical Survey and Pharmacological Evaluation of Medicinal Plants used by the Garo Tribal Community living in Netrakona district, Bangladesh. Advances in Natural and Applied Sciences, 3(3):402-418.
Okwu DE. 2001. Evaluation of the chemical composition of indigenous spices and flavoring agents. Global. J. pure and Applied Sciences, 7:455-459.
Padmavathi D, Sarala A and Tina Peter 2012. Antibacterial Activity of Barringtonia acutangula L. Gaertn, ISSN: 231 -2781.
Parrota JA. 2001. Healing plants of peninsular India. CABI publishing, UK 173-175.
Premanathan M, Rajendran S, Ramanathan T, Kathiresan K, Nakashima H, Yamamato N. 2000. A Survey of Some Indian Medicinal Plants for Anti- Human Immune deficiency Virus (HIV) Activity. Indian J Med Res.2000; 112:73-77.
Pimenta AM, Montenegro MC, Araujo AN and Martinez JC. 2006. Application of sequential injections analysis to pharmaceutical analysis. J. Pharm. Biomed. Anul. 40:16-34.
Sahoo TA. 2008. Antibacterial activity of Barringtonia acutangula L. against selected urinary tract Florida and Sekar, 2012 114 Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 109-115 pathogens, Ind J Pharm Sci 70(5):677680.
Schmidt B, Ribnicky DM, Poulev A, Logendra S, Cefalu WT and Raskin I. 2008. A natural history of botanical therapeutics. Metabolism, 57 (Suppl 1): S3-9.
Singh AP. 2006. Short Review: Distribution of Steroid l i k e C o m p o u n d s i n P l a n t Flora. Pharmacognosy Magazine, 2(6):87-89.
VijayaBharathi R, Jerad Suresh Aa, KumudhaVeni Ba, LataSriramb, Geetha Lakshmi Sb and Thirumal Ma. 2010. In vitro antibacterial and antifungal studies of stereospermum colais leaf extracts, ISSN: 0975-766X.
Florida and Sekar, 2012 Journal of Research in Plant Sciences (2012) 1(2): 109-115 115 Submit your articles online at www.plantsciences.info
Advantages Easy online submission Complete Peer review Affordable Charges Quick processing Extensive indexing You retain your copyright
Suresh, K., Deepa, P., Harisaranraj, R., Dan Vaira, A.V. 2008. Antimicrobial and Phytochemical Investigation of The Leaves of Carica Papaya L., Cynodon Dactylon (L.)