Abstract:
Carbohydrates, glycosides, lactones, steroids, terpenoids, saponins, tannins, polyphenols, flavonoids and quinones were constituted in the bark, leaf and root of
Mallotus philippensis that naturally grown in Nepal. Anthraquinones and anthracenosides were also found to be deposited in the bark, and the root also constituted anthraquinones. The 90% methanolic extract of the bark, leaf and root of
M. philippensis exhibited cytotoxicity against brine-shrimp nauplii with LC
50 values of 201.37, 794.35 and 45.50 μg/ml respectively displaying potential anticarcinogenic efficiency. The bark extract (IC
50 = 33.54 μg/ml), leaf extract (IC
50 = 76.22 μg/ml) and root extract (IC
50 = 32.73 μg/ml) were found highly efficient in scavenging of 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical. Hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, n-butanolic and aqueous fractions (F1-10) obtained from the bark and leaf of
M. philippensis effectively inhibited the growth of seven human pathogens
viz. Escherichia coli,
Enterobacter cloacae,
Klebsiella pneumoniae,
Salmonella typhi,
Serratia marcescens,
Bacillus subtilis and
Micrococcus luteus.