Total phenolic, flavonoid contents, in-vitro antioxidant activities and hepatoprotective effect of aqueous leaf extract of Atalantia ceylanica

Abstract

BackgroundDecoction prepared from leaves of Atalantia ceylanica is used in traditional medicine in Sri Lanka for the treatment of various liver ailments since ancient times. Lyophilized powder of the water extract of A. ceylanica leaves was investigated for its phytochemical constituents, antioxidant and hepatoprotective activity in-vitro.MethodsThe total phenolic and flavonoid contents were determined using Folin Ciocalteu method and aluminium chloride colorimetric assay respectively. The antioxidant activities of the decoction were investigated using 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), hydroxyl radical, nitric oxide scavenging assays and ferric ion reducing power assay. Hepatotoxicity was induced on porcine liver slices with ethanol to study hepatoprotective activity. Porcine liver slices were incubated at 37°C with different concentrations of the water extract of A. ceylanica in the presence of ethanol for 2 hours. The hepatoprotective effects were quantified by the leakage of alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) to the medium. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) assay was performed to examine the anti-lipid peroxidation activity caused by the plant extract.ResultsThe mean ± SD (n =9) for the levels of total phenolics and flavonoids were 4.87 ± 0.89 w/w% of gallic acid equivalents and 16.48 ± 0.63 w/w% of (-)-Epigallocatechin gallate equivalents respectively. The decoction demonstrated high antioxidant activity. The mean ± SD values of EC50 were 131.2 ± 36.1, 48.4 ± 12.1, 263.5 ± 28.3 and 87.70 ± 6.06 μg/ml for DPPH, hydroxyl radical, nitric oxide scavenging assays and ferric ion reducing power assay respectively.A significant decrease (p <0.05) was observed in ALT, AST and LDH release from porcine liver slices treated with A. ceylanica extract at a concentration of 2 mg/ml in the presence of ethanol (5 M) compared to that of ethanol (5 M) treated slices. Furthermore, a reduction in lipid peroxidation was also observed in liver slices treated with the leaf extract of A. ceylanica (2 mg/ml) compared to that of ethanol induced liver toxicity (p <0.05).ConclusionsThe results suggest that aqueous extract of A. ceylanica exerts hepatoprotective activity against ethanol induced liver toxicity of porcine liver slices which can be attributed to the antioxidant properties possessed by the plant material.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1472-6882-14-395) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Determination of phytoconstituents of n-hexane extract of leaves of Morus nigra and evaluation of their effects on biochemical and histopathological parameters in paracetamol intoxicated mice liver

“…The hepatoprotective activity of Morus nigra could be attributed to the presence of chemical compounds that are biologically active. Phytochemical screening demonstrated that plant contains hepatoprotective phenols, flavonoids, alkaloids and terpenoids (Fernando, Soysa, 2014). Qualitative analysis by isocratic flow HPLC showed the presence of six phytoconstituents in n-hexane extract of leaves of Morus nigra and these findings are consistent with previous investigations (Wang, Wang, Chen, 2007).…”

Bioactive Variability and In Vitro and In Vivo Antioxidant Activity of Unprocessed and Processed Flour of Nine Cultivars of Australian lupin Species: A Comprehensive Substantiation

“…Total phenolic content Folin Ciocalteu method [15] Total flavonoid content Colorimetric assay based on intensity of colour change of the mixture [16,17] Measurement of inhibiting capacity of RBCs hemolysis by ROS inducing oxidative stress [24] In-vivo assay CAT activity assay Quantifying the activity of enzymes responsible for suppressing ROS generation such as-catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in animal model treated with sample [25,26] SOD activity assay…”

“…Then absorbance was measured by UV/visible spectrophotometer at 510 nm and the values were read from catechin standard curve (y = 0.0004x − 0.0058; R 2 = 0.998). Total flavonoid content was calculated as catechin equivalent (CE) (mg/g) [16].…”

Flavonoids and Pectins

“…After decades of endeavors, scientists have found that flavonoids possess a wide variety of biological and pharmacological properties, which leads to numerous studies on these secondary metabolites. These health-beneficial properties include antiangiogenic [22], antibacterial [23][24][25][26][27] [67], leishmanicidal [68], neuroprotective [69], photoprotective [43], and trypanocidal activities [68,70]. In addition, the flavonoids can inhibit eukaryotic protein synthesis [71] and a variety of important enzymes such as aggrecanase [72], aldose reductase [30,73], alpha-glucosidase [60], cholinesterase [26,74], protein tyrosine phosphatase and acetylcholinesterase [75], and tyrosinase [44,64].…”