Antioxidant Activities of the Leaf Extract and Fractions of <i>Cola lepidota</i> K. Schum (sterculiaceae)

Abstract

Cola lepidota (CL) K. Schum (sterculiaceae) used in Nigeria folk medicine as febrifuges, pulmonary problems and cancer related ailments. This study evaluated scientifically the in vitro antioxidant activity of extract and fractions with a view to validate its folkloric usage. In vitro antioxidant properties of extract and fractions were evaluated using the free radical scavenging activities by 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) with ascorbic acid as control. The total antioxidant activity results indicated that, the inhibition percent of chloroformic extract was significantly higher than the inhibition percent of methanol in the DPPH methods. A higher IC50 (50 ìg/ml compared to 190 ìg/ml methanol extract) value for free radical scavenging was found for chloroformic fraction when compared with the methanolic extract. These findings present the extract with significant antioxidant properties which may account in part for its anti -cancer activities.

Keywords: Cola lepidota, antioxidant activity, leaf extract, phytochemicals

Nig J. Biotech. Vol. 25 (2013) 31-36