Evaluation of the antioxidant activity of total aqueous extract of Bridelia ferruginea benth. (Euphorbiaceae)

Abstract

Bridelia ferruginea benth. (Euphorbiaceae) is a medicinal plant used in African traditional medicine to cure fevers. Its extract used in this study was powdered form obtained from the maceration of the dried plant bark in water, followed by evaporation to dryness. In this study, the antioxidative and radical scavenging activities of the total aqueous extract were studied throughout six standard biological tests: DPPH reduction, ferric thiocyanate (FTC) lipidic peroxidation inhibition and thiobarbituric acid reacting substances (TBARS), reducing power, Chelating power and the FRAP method. Vitamin C was used as a reference. Our results showed that B. ferruginea has a very high content of phenolic compounds (169.00 ± 0.00 mg GAE / g of extract, 11.72 ± 1.54 mg QE / g of extract and 78.33 ± 11.45 mg QE / g of extract phenols, flavonoids and total flavonols respectively) and a high antioxidant activity. Indeed concentrations inducing 50% reduction of DPPH and chelation of Fe II (IC₅₀) were 6.38 ± 0.02 µg / mL and 13.20 ± 0.53 µg / mL respectively with almost 72 % inhibition of lipid peroxidation. This activity is substantially similar to that of the reference molecule, Vitamin C (1.95 ± 0.63 µg / mL, 05.38 ± 0.08 µg / mL and more than 75% inhibition of lipid peroxidation). The result shown by the total aqueous extract of this medicinal plant therefore gives us hope in the search for new and efficient antioxidants molecules.