Antioxidant profile and HPTLC-densitometric analysis of umbelliferone and psoralen in Aegle marmelos

Abstract

In the Indian systems of medicine, there are many highly valued medicinal plants. Aegle marmelos Correa (Rutaceae), commonly known as "bael", is one of them. Its fruit exhibited antidiabetic, antihyperlipidemic, and antioxidant properties. This study was designed to evaluate in vitro antioxidant activity of umbelliferone and psoralen in a methanol extract of A. marmelos fruit pulp. A simple high performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) method has been developed for the simultaneous quantification of umbelliferone and psoralen. The method was validated for precision, repeatability, and accuracy in accordance with International Conference on Harmonisation (ICH) guidelines. Inhibition of oxygen-derived free radicals (ODFR), viz., free radical scavenging, reducing power, superoxide anion scavenging assay, nitric oxide scavenging assay, and anti-lipid peroxidation, were carried out. All the antioxidant activities were compared with standard antioxidants such as BHA and α-tocopherol acetate. The extract was found to be a good scavenger of DPPH radical, nitric oxide, and superoxide anion with IC50 values of 1.015 ± 3.8, 1.381 ± 5, and 1.102 ± 4.1 mg/mL, respectively. The reducing power was calculated in terms of absorbance, which represented transfer of ferric ions to ferrous. Anti-lipid peroxidation was done with liver and brain homogenates, with IC50 values of 1.441 ± 5.2 and 1.628 ± 4.3 mg/mL, respectively. The results obtained from the current study suggest that A. marmelos fruit is a potential source of natural antioxidants. © 2008 Informa Healthcare USA, Inc.