Phytochemical analysis and antioxidant evaluation of lemon grass (<i>Cymbopogon citratus</i> DC.) Stapf leaves

Abstract

Cymbopogon citratus commonly called lemon grass is claimed to possess diverse medicinal value among different cultures. The present study determined the phytochemicals and evaluated the antioxidant potential of Cymbopogon citratus leaves. The phytochemical and proximate analysis of the powdered leaves were carried out using standard methods. The antioxidant activity of the crude methanol extract and its fractions (n-hexane, ethyl acetate and chloroform) was evaluated using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents were assessed using the Folin-Ciocalteu and aluminium chloride colorimetric methods, respectively. The phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of carbohydrates, reducing sugars, saponins, tannins, flavonoids and other phenolics compounds. The moisture, ash, fat, crude fibre, crude protein, water soluble ash and acid insoluble ash contents were 13.00%, 7.63%, 2.44%, 29.40%, 4.45%, 6.13% and 4.00%, respectively. Among the extract and fractions tested, the ethyl acetate fraction exhibited the highest antioxidant activity. The ethyl acetate fraction also had the highest phenolic and flavonoid contents. There was a strong relationship between the polyphenolic content and antioxidant activity of the extract and fractions with a coefficient of determination (r²) of 0.889 and 0.920 for total phenols and total flavonoids, respectively. The present study showed that the leaves of Cymbopogon citratus especially the ethyl acetate fraction possess good antioxidant activity and could serve as potentially source of natural antioxidants.

Essential Oil of Cymbopogon Citratus Grown in Umuahia: A Viable Candidate for Anti-Inflammatory and Antioxidant Therapy

“…Also, concentration-dependent scavenging activity of EOCC against FRAP radicals was observed. In line with findings by Unuigbe et al (2019), our results suggest that EOCC is an excellent antioxidant agent and may guard against oxidative stress by sequestering Iron II ions.…”

“…Boukhatem et al, 2014;Garcia et al, 2015); the anti-nociceptive action (Quintans-Junior et al 2011) and in vitro immunomodulatory effects of citral one of its major constituent (Bachiega & Sforcin, 2011). These studies have shown that the leaves of C. citratus contain important phytotherapeutic compounds that confer the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, (Unuigbe et al, 2019), anxiolytic (Costa et al, 2011), anti-fungi, anti-bacteria, anti-mutagenicity, anti-obesity (Olorunnisola et al, 2014), anti-malaria (Chukwuocha et al, 2016) properties of the plant. Also, several reviews on C. citratus discuss its anti-algesic, anti-hermetic, antispasmodic, antidyspeptic, anti-fever effects, antiseptic, antipyretic, tranquillizing, and diuretic potentials (Ademuyiwa et al, 2015;Oladeji et al, 2020).…”

Secondary Metabolite Production and Terpenoid Biosynthesis in Endophytic Fungi Cladosporium cladosporioides Isolated from Wild Cymbopogon martinii (Roxb.) Wats

“…Phenols: About 2 mL of fungal extract was taken and mixed with aqueous 5% FeCl3 and observed for deep blue or black color formation [39].…”

Chemical Composition and Antibacterial Activity of Extracts of Cymbopogon Citratus (Lemon Grass) and Phyllantus Amarus (Stone Breaker) Leaves

“…Anthraquinone is beneficial in hampering the growth of cancer through certain activities such as inducing apoptosis and reliving bowl movements [32]. Antioxidant ability of plant phenolic compound has been attributed to the presence of hydroxyl substituents and their aromatic structure, which enables them to scavenge free radicals [33]. Flavonoid content ranged from (0.40mg/g-2.24mg/g)in dried lemon grass (DL), and raw P. amarus leaf.…”