Annual Research & Review in Biology

The present study was aimed at investigating the phytoconstituents in order to correlate the folkloric claims with the bioactive compounds present in Diospyros blancoi. Antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of Diospyros blancoi have also been evaluated. The crude methanolic extract of seeds (CMES) and peels (CMEP) and crude ethyl acetate extract of seeds (CEAES) and peels (CEAEP) of Diospyros blancoi were investigated for different phytochemical groups using specified methods. Antioxidant activity was evaluated by following total phenolic content test, total flavonoid content test, DPPH radical scavenging test, iron reducing ability test and total antioxidant activity determination test, and cytotoxic effect was evaluated by brine shrimp (Artemia salina) lethality bioassay procedures. The qualitative phytochemical screening revealed that the extract contains glycosides, tannins, alkaloids, triterpenes sterols, saponins, flavonoids, sugars etc. The extracts showed moderate antioxidant activity. Phytochemical screening showed total phenolic contents were 357.76, 214.88, 185.296 and 408.192 µg of GAE/gm and flavonoid contents were 39.248, 175.248, 51.1616 and 113.861 µg of catechin equivalent /gm of CMES, CEAES, CMEP and CEAEP, respectively. In DPPH free radical scavenging study, IC₅₀ values of CMES, CEAES, CMEP and CEAEP were 13, 37.5, 16.5 and 9.2 µg/mL, respectively, compared with the standard BHT with an IC₅₀ value of 5.8 µg/mL which demonstrated that they had moderate free radical scavenging activity. The Iron reducing ability and the total antioxidant ability of CMES, CEAES, CMEP, CEAEP were moderate and these showed moderate cytotoxic activity in Brine shrimp (Artemia salina) lethality bioassay study, the ED₅₀ values of the CMES, CEAES, CMEP, CEAEP were 40, 20, 20 and 10, respectively, compared with the standard vincristine sulphate with an ED₅₀ value of 1.04 mg/mL. It can be inferred that the antioxidant and cytotoxic activity of methanolic and ethyl acetate extracts of seeds and peels of Diospyros blancoi were moderate.