Abstract
Background: Despite the significant progress made in microbiology and the control of microorganisms, sporadic incidents of epidemics due to drug resistant microorganisms pose an enormous threat to public health. Hence, search for new antimicrobial is very important to overcome microbial resistance and emerging pathogenic bacteria and fungi. In this study, we designed to describe the isolation, structure elucidation, antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of components from the root bark of Croton pseudopulchellus
Methods: Chromatography techniques were used for isolation and purification of compounds. Their structures were determined by means of spectroscopic and spectrometric data, as well as by comparison with literature data. The broth and agar dilution methods were used for antibacterial and antifungal assays. Antioxidant properties were evaluated using ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assays.
Results: Phytochemical investigation of the root bark extract led to the isolation of five secondary metabolites namely 18-methoxycarbonyl-15,16-epoxy-ent-cleroda-3,13(16),14-triene-,20,19-olide (megalocarpoidolide B) (1),7,8-dehydrocrotocorylifuran (2),vitexin (3), lupeol (4) and acetyl aleuritolic acid (5). Vitexin (3) showed promising antimicrobial activities with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum microbicidal concentration (MMC) values ranged between 16 and 32 µg/mL and interesting antioxidant properties very close to those of vitamin C and butyl hydroxyl toluene (BHT) used as reference antioxidant drugs. Compounds 1, 2, 3 and 4 were isolated from this plant for the first time.
Conclusion: These findings indicate that C. pseudopulchellus contains vitexin which has interesting antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, therefore confirming some of its uses in traditional medicine.
Keywords: Croton pseudopulchellus; Euphorbiaceae; vitexin; antibacterial; antifungal; antioxidant.
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