Antioxidant activity

Ficus racemosa L. popularly known as the cluster fig has been found effective for the treatment of various disorders like diabetes, diarrhoea, inflammatory conditions, piles, respiratory, urinary diseases, etc. The present study is therefore aimed to investigate the phytochemical constituents, GCMS analysis, antioxidant potential, total phenolic & flavonoid contents in the leaf extracts of F. racemosa. A qualitative screening of aqueous and methanolic extracts showed the presence of Alkaloids, Flavonoids, glycosides, tannins, saponin and phenolic compounds. In TLC, total 5 spots were present in the methanolic extract with different Rf values. The total flavonoid and phenolic contents are 160.4 ± 48.51 mg QE/g & 40.68 ± 9.17 mg GAE/g respectively. The dose dependent antioxidant activity was found. GS-MS analysis was done based on retention time, peak area and molecular weight. The presence of secondary metabolites depends on the solvents used and the methods applied. Many biologically active components were present as analysed by GCMS. The highest peak area of isoamyl nitrite (4.205%) was observed. The antioxidant activity could be attributed due to the presence of phenolic and flavonoids contents. Thus the present study suggests that F. racemosa leaves extract could be used as a possible therapeutic agent for a variety of diseases.

Aloe vera L. is well known succulent plant speciesfor its marvellous medicinal properties and more than 75 active medicinal components have been identified till date. It possesses synergistic action in alleviating many diseased conditions such as stomach ailments, gastrointestinal problems, skin diseases, diabetes and oxidative stress-related diseases. Therefore, the present research aimed to evaluate the phytochemical constituents, Thin-layer chromatography (TLC), total phenolic&flavonoid contents, and antioxidant activity of aqueous and methanolic extracts of A.vera. The powdered plant material was used for the aqueous and methanolic extraction. Boththe extracts were screened for the presence of various phytochemical compounds. Most of the phyto constituents were present in both the extracts. Five and four different bioactive components having different Rf values were observed in methanolic and aqueous extracts respectively. Flavonoid and phenolic content does not vary significantly in the methanolic and aqueous extracts. Further, comparable dose-dependent antioxidant activity was observed in both the extracts. So, the present investigation suggests that aqueous and methanolic extract has significant antioxidant activity and may be utilized as a potential source of the therapeutic agent against many diseases.