Hussain F, Md Islam A, Hossain MS and Rahman SMA
Acacia nilotica, Ocimum sanctum, and Alpinia nigra are used traditionally in different ailments in rural settings of Bangladesh. These medicinal plants were studied for their total phenolic and total flavonoid contents as a partial approach to rationalizing the use of them. Antioxidant activity was also determined to measure ferric reducing power assay and 1,1 ’ -diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) scavenging activity. A. nilotica showed the highest total phenolic content while O. sanctum showed highest flavonoid contents among the studied three plants. Similarly, IC50 values of the extracts of A. nilotica, O. sanctum and A. nigra against DPPH were 39.62, 48.81, 70.85 μg/ml, respectively. The reducing power of the extract was found to beconcentration dependent and O. sanctum showed the highest reducing power followed by A. nilotica. The reducing power of these two plants was fairly close to the positive control of ascorbic acid. Further studies are suggested such as in-vivo testing and elucidation of the mechanism of action of inherited bioactive compounds to support its folkloric use in the treatment of diseases.
