Phytochemical Profiling and Bioactive Potential of Lagochilus seravschanicus: Antioxidant, Anti-Diabetic, Anti-Hemolytic, Cytotoxicity, Phytotoxicity and Antimicrobial Activities

Abstract

Scientists are researching the therapeutic potential of herbal plants, which frequently leads to the identification of novel plants and bioactive chemicals that can be used in the development of new drugs. Natural phytochemicals are non-toxic, and their medicinal properties keep them in demand as alternative treatments for a variety of ailments. This motivated many researchers to explore plants in order to find bioactive compounds with significant pharmacological activities. Therefore, this research was performed to compare phytochemical profiling and biological activity of chloroform and methanolic extracts of roots, leaves, and flowers of the Lagochilus seravschanicus plant growing in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. Phytochemical screening showed the existence of 21 secondary metabolites and over fourteen functional groups of the FT-IR spectroscopy in all extracts of the plant. The quantitative analysis exhibited the maximum phenolic (76.24 ± 0.01 GAE mg/g) and flavonoid (74.53 ± 0.01 GAE mg/g) content in methanolic leaf extracts. Methanolic flower extract (LSFM) displayed the antioxidant capacity of (83.32 ± 0.50 mg AAE/g), followed by leaf methanolic extract (LSLM) that displayed moderate cytotoxicity against HeLa cells with an IC₅₀ value of 278 µg/mL. The leaf methanolic extract (LSLM) also exhibited significant anti-diabetic capacity (51.94%) by α-amylase inhibition and the high anti-hemolytic capacity of (90.24 ± 0.58%) on the human red blood cells. Moderate phytotoxicity was observed in leaf extracts (15%), lowering the germination of radish seeds. The findings showed that L. seravschanicus extracts displayed resistance against every bacterial and fungal strain. The maximum inhibitory zone was displayed by LSLM (18 ± 0.5 mm) against E. faecalis, B. subtilis, B. atrophaeus, and S. aureus. For antifungal activity, the highest ZOI exhibited by chloroform leaf extract (LSLC) against A. fumigatus and A. niger (17 ± 0.5 mm ZOI). These results suggest that L. seravschanicus has bioactive compounds possessing antioxidant, anticancer, antimicrobial, and enzyme-inhibitory potential and can serve as a source of pharmacological agents in the future.