Phytochemical Screening of Diospyros paniculata Bark and In Vitro Cytotoxic Study on Human Breast Cancer Cell Line

Abstract

Medicinal plants are the resource of traditional medicines and modern medicine is also developed indirectly from plants. In traditional medicinal practices such as Ayurveda and Unani, Diospyros paniculata has been recognised for its medicinal properties. Different parts of the plant, including the leaves, bark, fruits, and seeds, are utilised to prepare various herbal remedies and these species show a richness of triterpenoids, naphthoquinones and naphthaldehydes which majorly contribute to the anticancer activity. D. paniculata bark was extracted with methanol and fractionated by low-polar to high-polar solvents. In-vitro cytotoxic activity of each solvent fraction was studied on the MCF-7 (Human Adenocarcinoma) cell line by MTT assay. The ethyl acetate fraction shows a significant IC50 value of 23.47 µg/ml which might be due to the presence of principal compounds in the fraction. Methanol fraction showed a moderate IC50 value. To isolate chemicals, the chloroform fraction underwent column chromatography. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR),1H NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy), and13C NMR were used to characterise the isolated chemicals. Two compounds were isolated from chloroform fraction identified as Betulin and Lupeol.