Variations in phytoconstituents and antimicrobial activities in ecotypes of Oxalis corniculata L. and Oxalis debilis Kunth

Abstract

Objective: The present study aims at the comparative analysis of phytoconstituents and antimicrobial activities of four ecotypes of Odisha, India, each of Oxalis corniculata L. (OC-Eco-1, OC-Eco-2, OC-Eco-3, OC-Eco-4) and Oxalis debilis Kunth. (OD-Eco-1, OD-Eco-2, OD-Eco-3, OD-Eco-4) of the family Oxalidaceae. Methods: The ecotypes were collected from four districts (Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Khurda) of Odisha, India. The qualitative phytochemical screening was done to test glycosides, saponins, tannins and terpenoids. Further analysis of phytochemicals was also screened through TLC and HPTLC. Antimicrobial potentiality of leaf extract of various ecotypes was studied against Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Streptococcus epidermis by disc diffusion method. Results: Tannin and terpenoids estimation revealed that significantly high amount of phytoconstituents were present in OD-Eco-3 of O. debilis. The methanolic leaf extracts of each ecotype were screened for qualitative analysis of phytochemical through TLC and HPTLC that showed maximum 16 compounds in O. debilis (OD-Eco-3) a new report, as compared to O. corniculata. All the four ecotypes of O. debilis showed some new HPTLC bands (Rf 0.96, 0.90, 0.90, 0.81) as compared to O. corniculata that occupied 7.70%, 22.38%, 23.79% and 34.42% of peak area respectively. Cluster analysis on the basis of HPTLC banding pattern showed a close affinity among ecotypes of each species. Crude extracts showed antibacterial activity against B. subtilis, P. aeruginosa and S. epidermis. Leaf extracts of ecotypes of O. corniculata showed zones of inhibition and MIC better than that of O. debilis against S. epidermis. Conclusion: The findings significantly reported some new compounds for the first time in O. debilis. The study also indicated a promising potential of antimicrobial activity of O. debilis which was the first report.