Background Carissa bispinosa, Ficus sycomorus, and Grewia bicolar are edible fruit plants that grow in the wild. The plants produce yellow-, red-, and purple-colored fruits and thus can be good sources of flavonoids for fighting oxidative reactions in humans, food, and the pharmaceutical industry. The present study aimed at isolating flavonoids from C. bispinosa, F. sycomorus, and G. bicolar fruits and determining their antioxidant activity using the 2, 2-diphenyl-1- picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2, 2-azino-bis 3-ethylbenz-thiaz-oline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) model radical assays. Methods Analytical and preparative thin-layer chromatography was used to isolate flavonoids from the fruits using methanol/chloroform/hexane (7:2:1, v/v/v) as a mobile phase system. The ABTS and DPPH radical scavenging methods were used to test for the antioxidant activity of the samples, using quercetin and catechin as reference standards. Results Thin-layer chromatographic profiling revealed two different types of flavonoids from each plant. C. bispinosa yielded two flavonoid bands, Rf values 0.11 and 0.38; G. bicolar yielded two flavonoid bands, Rf values 0.63 and 0.81; and F. sycomorus also yielded two types of flavonoids, Rf values 0.094 and 0.81. All the extracted flavonoids exhibited significant antioxidant activity of over 80% at a concentration of 200 mg/L. The order of radical scavenging activity for the 200-mg/L samples is G. bicolar Rf (0.81) > C. bispinosa Rf (0.113) > F. sycomorus Rf (0.094) > F. sycomorus Rf (0.047) > C. bispinosa Rf (0.38) > G. bicolar Rf (0.63). G. bicolar (Rf = 0.81) exhibited antioxidant activity that was superior to that of catechin. Conclusion The present study results show that C. bispinosa, F. sycomorus, and G. bicolar contain different flavonoid types with significant antioxidant activity of over 80% at a concentration of 200 mg/L. Therefore, the fruits can be used as a source of natural antioxidants which can be used as nutraceuticals to promote health, as preservatives to delay peroxidation of foods, and as flavoring for packed foods.

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Phytosterols of manketti (Schinziophyton rautanenii) nut oil extracted by Soxhlet, mechanical shaking using hexane, screw press and supercritical carbon dioxide, were analyzed by gas chromatography with flame ionization detection and identified by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The presence of several phytosterols (campesterol, stigmasterol, β‐sitosterol, Δ5‐avenasterol, 22‐dihydrospinasterol and Δ7‐avenasterol) previously reported in manketti oil, was confirmed. In addition, another fourteen phytosterols (lanosterol, Δ5,23‐stigmastadienol, Δ7‐campesterol, clerosterol, obtusifoliol, Δ5,24(25)‐stigmastadienol, α‐amyrin, gramisterol, cycloeucalenol, cycloartenol, stigmasta‐8,24‐dienol‐3‐β‐ol, 28‐methylobtusifoliol, 24‐methylenecycloartenol and citrostadienol) were identified. The phytosterols, β‐sitosterol, Δ5‐avenasterol and campesterol, had the highest concentrations in oils extracted by all the methods, whereas stigmasterol and cycloartenol were abundant in oils extracted by mechanical shaking and supercritical carbon dioxide. Total phytosterols and the quantities of individual phytosterols differed significantly (p ≤ 0.05) in oils from the four extraction methods. Mechanical shaking extracted the highest levels of total sterols (22,100 mg/100 g oil), followed by supercritical fluid extraction (9,550 mg/100 g oil). Screw press and Soxhlet extracted oils contained the lowest levels of total sterols, 3,810 mg/100 g oil and 3,350 mg/100 g oil, respectively.

Phytochemicals from Dicerocaryum senecioides were studied for hair rejuvenation activity using BalB/c mice. Solvent extractions and thin layer chromatography (TLC) were used to extract and isolate the phytochemicals respectively. Phytochemicals were identi ed by spraying with target-speci c revealing reagents. In vivo hair growth stimulating activity for each extract was tested on denuded dorsal skin of 5-week old BalB/c mice against the controls and the standard drug minoxidil. e parameters used to evaluate hair growth were hair growth completion time, hair length, hair weight, hair follicle length, and relative hair follicle area. e identi ed phytochemicals from the active ethanol extract were steroidal glycosides, triterpenoid glycosides, and avonoid glycosides. Flavonoid glycosides treatment had the uppermost hair rejuvenation capacity as measured by the shortest hair growth completion time (19 days) versus control (29 days) and longest hair length (11.04 mm and 11.86 mm for male and female mice respectively while the control group had 5.15 mm for male mice and 5.33 mm for female mice). Hair growth stimulation by avonoid glycosides was also dependent on dose concentration. It can be concluded from this study that avonoid glycosides extracted from the leaves of Dicerocaryum senecioides have remarkable hair rejuvenation capacity in BalB/c mice. e present results provides insights on the use of Dicerocaryum senecioides for hair rejuvenation in traditional practices and on the potential of the plant as a source of novel compounds that can be used as hair growth promoters.

The influence of extraction method on yield, physicochemical characteristics and tocopherol content of manketti nut oil extracted by four different methods has been determined. Soxhlet (SE) and supercritical fluid (SFE) extractions yielded 45.3 and 44.8%, respectively, while screw press and mechanical shaking extractions had 39.7 and 27.3%, respectively. SPE and SE extractions gave oils that had lower values of unsaponifiable matter (0.70; 0.74%) indicating lower amounts of minor components such as tocopherols (233.13; 290.68 µg/g oil), a greater extent of lipid peroxidation parameters; peroxide values (6.25; 3.01 mequiv O2/kg), para‐anisidine values (10.22; 9.94), totox value (22.72; 15.96), flavour score (−0.25; 2.11), and high acid values (1.23; 1.03 mg KOH/g oil), respectively, compared to SFE and MSE oils. This was attributed to the high processing temperatures of SPE and SE extractions compared to SFE and MSE oils. Refractive indices (1.485–1.487), iodine values (127.97–129.07, Wijs) and density (0.908–0.914 g/cm3) were not affected by extraction method indicating that the oils generally had the same double bond content. Saponification values (182.98–192.95 mg KOH/g oil) and ester values (181.95–192.11), were not affected by extraction method except for SE oil which had lower values that were speculated to be due to co‐extraction with colour pigments.

Fatty acid profile of Manketti oil extracted by screw press (SPE), supercritical fluid, Soxhlet (SE) and mechanical shaking (MS) extractions determined by chromatography (GC). Eight fatty acids were identified using authentic standards; two were calculated by equivalent chain lengths (ECL) values; αeleostearic acid was identified by GC and spectroscopic techniques while three could not be identified. The results indicate that, extractions using hexane, SE and MS, had higher concentrations of total saturated fats of 15.71 and 16.27%, respectively, compared to SPE and SFE with 15.51 and 15.13%, respectively. On the other hand, SPE and SFE respectively had concentrations of unsaturated fats of 82.55 and 82.90%, compared to SE and MS, which had 82.08 and 81.86%, respectively. SPE and SFE had significantly higher (P < 0.05) concentrations of α-eleostearic acid of 27.01 and 26.86% compared to SE and MS with 26.28 and 26.11%. Hence, Manketti oil that is relatively rich in unsaturated fats can be obtained by SPE and SFE. Additionally, SPE and SFE oil is free of organic solvent residues, hence is suitable for edible purposes. The existence of α-eleostearic acid in this Manketti sample has been proven by GC, Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques. The results strongly agree with literature. The result is important since α-eleostearic acid is known to have the ability to lower antitumor and hepatic cholesterol; so Manketti oil could be used for neutraceutical purposes.

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