Antioxidant activity of stem bark of Elephant Apple in different solvents

Abstract

Plants have been always played an important role in maintaining human health directly or indirectly. Dillenia indica Linn. is a plant known for its nutritive as well as medicinal properties. Bark of the plant has been blessed with various phytochemicals as alkaloids, tannins, phenols etc. which give the plant a defence mechanism to protect the plant. Presence of these phytochemicals proved that bark is also beneficial for human beings because of their therapeutic properties. In the present study the total phenolic content and antioxidant activities of the different extracts of bark of Dillenia indica Linn. have been examined and it is found that ascorbic acid as standard having the great antioxidant activity with lowest IC50. Fifty per cent methanolic extract showed higher amount of total phenolic content 47.6± 0.92 mg/gm and lowest IC50 value 13.43 ± 1.25µg/ml having highest antioxidant activity. In contrast with its aqueous extract having highest IC50 value 239.1 ± 2.15 µg/ml with lowest antioxidant activity. The antioxidant activity has proved to be great source in the prevention of many life threatening diseases. The antioxidant activity of Dillenia indica Linn. should be further explored commercially to take its health benefits for serving the human society.