In Vitro Free Radical Scavenging Potential of Tabebuia pallida Leaf Extracts

Abstract

Plants are the reservoir of various phytochemicals that gives more health benefits to the human body. They are widely used by our ancestors in traditional folk medicine. The major advantage of these phytochemicals is that they can be used to cure various diseases with little or no side effects. Free radicals play a major role in various disease conditions by causing damage to the cells. Antioxidants contribute an extensive part in defending the cells against damage and reduce the deleterious consequence of the free radicals mediated increased oxidant production. Plants contain a number of enzymic and non-enzymic antioxidants which render a better effect against these ailments. The main objective of the present study is to nalyse the antioxidant potential of various solvent extracts of Tabebuia pallida leaf. Free radical scavenging assays like, “DPPH, ABTS, hydroxyl radical, reducing power and nitric oxide assays’’, for the various solvents ``methanol, ethyl acetate, benzene, ethanol, chloroform, petroleum ether, acetone and water” of the leaf extracts of Tabebuia pallida were performed. All the extracts tested exhibit a remarkable radical scavenging effect as the concentration increases. So these antioxidant compounds from plant origin can be used as an alternative for the synthetic antioxidants that are available in the market.