PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING, ANTIBACTERIAL, ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTIINFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY OF ACMELLA OLERACEA FLOWERS

Acmella oleracea flowers are traditionally used to treat mouth ulcers in the rural areas of Nashik, Maharashtra, India. This research project is an effort to understand the scientific basis for the utility of A. oleracea flowers and validate it for potential antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity, some of the main causes of mouth ulcers. The aim of this project was to study the phytochemistry of the ethanol extract of A. oleracea flowers and evaluate antibacterial anti-inflammatory and antioxidant potential. The phytochemical screening ethanol extract indicates the presence of phenolics, flavonoids, glycosides, alkaloids and carbohydrates. The total phenolic and flavonoid content in the ethanol extract determined by Folin-Ciocalteu reagent and aluminum chloride method were found to be 29.992 mg GAE g-1 and 93.2 mg QE g-1, respectively. The antibacterial activity of the ethanol extract was evaluated against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus, using streptomycin as the reference standard. The best activity was observed against P. aeruginosa. The antioxidant activity of the was determined by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl, hydrogen peroxide, nitric oxide scavenging and ferric reducing antioxidant power assays. The IC50 in the DPPH, hydrogen peroxide and nitric oxide scavenging assays were found to be 89.589 µg mL-1, 89.178 µg mL-1 and 50.86 µg mL-1 respectively. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by in vitro albumin denaturation assay using naproxen as the reference standard. The ethanol extract demonstrated significant antibacterial, antiinflammatory and antioxidant activity, these combined effects could be responsible for its effectiveness in mouth ulcers and potentially justify the traditional use of A. oleracea flowers in mouth ulcers.