Author(s):

Clement Osei Akoto, Akwasi Acheampong, Yaw Duah Boakye, Benjamin Kwadzo Kokloku and Gideon Kwarteng

Abstract: Sclerocarya birrea, has been used as a medicinal plant in folkloric medicine for managing inflammation, stomach disorders, infections and metabolic disorders in Africa. The present study aimed to investigate the in vitro anthelmintic, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities of ethanol and aqueous root extracts (ERE and ARE) of S. birrea. Phytochemical screening was performed using standard methods. In vitro anthelmintic activity of both extracts was investigated against Eudrilus eugeniae (Earthworms). In vitro anti-inflammatory activity of both extracts was evaluated using egg albumin denaturation method. The antioxidant activity was determined by employing H₂O₂ scavenging assay, DPPH radical scavenging assay and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) phosphomolybdenum assay method. FTIR analysis was conducted on both the crude and the purified ethanol extracts. Column Chromatographic separation was performed on the ethanol extract using three different solvent systems of increasing polarity (chloroform, methanol and water) and six fractions (A to F) were collected. The anthelmintic activity of ARE and ERE at test concentrations was observed to be significantly (P<0.001) higher compared to albendazole-treated helminthes. The IC₅₀ values of ERE and ARE were 24.66 ± 1.41 and 87.15 ± 2.23 µg/mL, respectively for DPPH radical scavenging assay. The IC₅₀ values of ERE and ARE were 142.50 ± 1.67 and 881.90 ± 2.07 µg/mL respectively for H₂O₂ scavenging assay. TAC was determined to be 15.35 ± 2.066 and 22.56 ± 2.240 gAAE/100g for ERE and ARE, respectively. The phytochemical screening revealed the presence of saponins and terpenoids in both extracts, but only steroids in ERE. FTIR analysis indicated the presence of various functional groups in the crude and purified fractions of ERE that confirms the presence of the phytochemicals identified in the screening test. The results suggest that both extracts could be exploited as potential therapeutic candidate for the treatment of helmintic infections, inflammatory diseases and diseases associated with oxidative-stress.

Pages: 1389-1401  |  1469 Views  436 Downloads

Download (1014KB)