Phytochemical profile, antibacterial and antioxidant activities of root extracts of Gnidia glauca (Thymelaeaceae)

Back ground: Plants have been used for many generations for healing purposes, and screening of plant extracts have yielded positive results in the developments of clinically effective drugs.

Objective: The present study aims to phytochemically investigate and biologically evaluate the antimicrobial potential of Gnidia glauca gilg root used to manage microbial infections in parts of Ethiopia.

Martials and Methods: Root of Gnidia glauca gilg was collected from wollega University garden, Ethiopia. The collected plant material was cleaned to remove the dust particulate and the bark was carefully removed from the root wood. The root back was cut into small pieces and shade dried at room temperature. The dried sample was grounded using electrical miller and sequentially extracted with n-hexane and mixture of CHCl3-MeOH (1:1) ratio. Antibacterial activity of the extracts was investigated against Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Shigella dysenteriae, Escherichia coli and Salmonella Typhimurium pathogens. Antioxidant activity of the CHCl3-MeOH (1:1) soluble fraction was evaluated using in vitro DPPH assay. structural characterizations of the purified compounds were done using chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques.

Results: The phytochemical constituent identified were flavonoids, alkaloids, tannins, terpenoids, steroids, phenol, saponins and glycosides. Chromatographic separation of CHCl3-MeOH (1:1) soluble fraction afforded, Tinosporasteryl palmitate (1) and β-amyrin (2). The CHCl3-MeOH (1:1) root extract exhibited promising activities against DPPH, S. dysenteriae and P. aeruginosa.

Conclusion: These pieces of work suggest that the root of Gnidia glauca gilg has biologically active secondary metabolites that can be used to treat bacterial infections.