Antioxidant, Cytotoxicity Studies and Isolation of Trans-Anonene and Lupeol from leaves and stem bark extracts of Croton membranaceus
Keywords:
Antioxidant activity, Cytotoxicity, C. membranaceus, Trans-Anonene, LupeolAbstract
The antioxidant activity of the dichloromethane (CH2Cl2) and methanol (MeOH) extracts of the
leaves and stem bark of Croton membranaceus was carried out using a 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picryl
hydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) and metal
chelation assay along with cytotoxicity analysis using the Brine shrimp lethality assay (BSLA).
The silica gel-based chromatographic separation of the CH2Cl2 and MeOH extracts successfully
isolated trans-annonene and lupeol. The structures of the isolated compounds were subsequently
identified using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance
(NMR) based on 1D and 2D data compared with the literature. The CH2Cl2 and MeOH extracts
exhibited antioxidant activity in a concentration-dependent manner but were highly cytotoxic. In
conclusion, the study showed that the leaves and stem bark of C. membranaceous are potentially
viable sources of bioactive compounds with potential health and medicinal benefits.