Antimicrobial and antioxidant efficacy of various solvent extracts of seed and fruit rind of Caesalpinia pulcherrima Swartz

Abstract

Ethnopharmacological relevance: Caesalpinia pulcherrima Swartz. is an ornamental plant like a shrub or small tree. In traditional Indian medicine C. pulcherrima is used in the treatment of tridosha, fever, ulcer, abortifacient, emmenagogue, asthma, tumors, vata and skin diseases.Aim of the study: In the present study, antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of seeds and fruit rind of Caesalpinia pulcherrima Swartz were investigated.Material and methods: Hexane, chloroform, acetone, methanol and water extracts of C. pulcherrima were evaluated for their antimicrobial activity by agar well diffusion method. DPPH free radical scavenging activity, total phenol, flavonoid and qualitative phytochemical analysis were also done. Results: Amongst the solvents, methanol extract showed best antibacterial and antioxidant activities. The MIC of methanol extract of fruit rind showed narrow MIC range (1,250 - 78 μg/ml) against all the microorganisms investigated. The methanol extract of fruit rind showed good antioxidant activity (IC50 value 14 μg/ml) which is very near to the standard (ascorbic acid IC50 value 11.4 μg/ml). Conclusion: The results obtained suggest that methanol extract of seeds and fruit rind of C. pulcherrima possess antimicrobial and antioxidant properties which can be used to discover bioactive natural products that may serve as leads in the development of new pharmaceuticals that address unmet therapeutic needs.