Antioxidant activity, cytotoxic, phenolic content and phytochemical composition of Pithecellobium diversifolium Benth

Species of Pithecellobium (Fabaceae) are used in traditional medicine to treat diabetes, cough, bronchitis and inflammation. The present study aimed to evaluate the content and to determine the antioxidant activity, phenolic compounds content and cytotoxicity of the extract and of the fractions of Pithecellobium diversifolium, an unprecedented study with an exotic species from the Caatinga, northeastern Brazil, using HPLC-ESI instrumentation, The MeOH fractions of leaves and stem barks showed a high content of flavonoids (198.1 ± 106.50 and 542.7 ± 2.52 mg EqQ /g). The CH2Cl2 fraction of peels had a high content of total phenolic compounds (516 .7 ± 3.00 mg EqAG /g). The DPPH test showed that the CH2Cl2 fraction (leaves) had an EC50 of 0.08 ± 0.02, a value higher than that observed for the standards used in the test - Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and ascorbic acid. The AcOEt and MeOH fractions of peels had moderate cytotoxicity with values below 500 μ g/ mL. The MeOH fraction of leaves showed 7 major compounds: myricetin, quercetin, quercetin-arabinofuranoside, apigenin-triglycosides and apigenin-diglucoside, being the last three unpublished in studies involving the genus. The tests carried out show the potential of P. diversifolium, a promising source of biomolecules with therapeutic applicability.