Phytochemical screening, antioxidant and cytotoxic activity of fruit extracts of Calamus tenuis Roxb

Objective:To investigate the antioxidant and cytotoxic activity of the fruits of Calamus tenuis Roxb.Methods:The preliminary phytochemical group tests were done,which revealed the presence of alkaloid,tannin,flavonoid and steroid.The dried fruit was extracted in soxhlet apparatus using petroleum ether,ethyl acetate and methanol.Antioxidant potential of each extract was evaluated using total phenol content,total flavonoid content,cupric reducing antioxidant capacity,1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity,and total antioxidant capacity determinations.Results:The extracts were found to possess moderate to high amounts of phenolic and flavonoid contents.In cupric reducing antioxidant capacity assay the extracts showed moderate reducing power which increases with concentration.Scavenging of 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical was found to rise with concentration with lowest IC_(50)value for methanol extract,which was confirmed by total antioxidant activity test that shows highest(95 mg/g of extract)in ascorbic acid equivalent for methanol extract.In Brine shrimp lethality bioassay the methanol and petroleum ether extracts were found to be toxic to Brine shrimp nauplii,with LC_(50)of 25.53μg/mL and 28.07μg/mL respectively while the LC_(50)of the reference vincristine sulphate was 1.32μg/mL.Ethyl acetate extract was found to be moderately cytotoxic showing LC_(50)of 47.79μg/mL.Conclusions:The results of the present study suggest that the fruits of Calamus tenuis Roxb possess antioxidant and cytotoxic potential.Moreover,phytochemical screening reveals the presence of alkaloid,tannin,flavonoid and steroid,which may be responsible for the observed bioactivities.