Abstract
Tradescantia spathacea Sw. (T. spathacea) is known for its antioxidant properties as it was used as a traditional medicine from the 16th to 19th century, and little research has been done on its phytochemical analysis on the roots. In this study, hexane and ethyl acetate root extracts of T. spathacea were analyzed for phytochemical, antioxidant and antibacterial properties, such as total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), free radical scavenging (DPPH), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), disc diffusion (DF) and broth microdilution (MD) assay. The highest concentration of TPC and TFC calculated from the ethyl acetate extract was 243 ± 11 mg GAE/g DW and 101 ± 4 mg CE/g DW, respectively. The ethyl acetate extract screened for the DPPH assay showed the highest EC50 of 88 ± 16 µg/mL. Similarly, a FRAP assay was conducted giving the highest value of 6.13 ± 0.87 mmol Fe2+/g DW from the ethyl acetate extract of T. spathacea roots. Both extracts were screened for antibacterial activity against four species of bacterium. The root extracts of T. spathacea contain a sizeable amount of antioxidant properties, proposing a potential use of this plant as a source of natural antioxidants.
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This study was supported by Tunku Abdul Rahman University College Publication Incentive (Votehead No. 86000-4923).
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Lim, B.C.W., Keng, XY., Loh, KE. et al. Determination of antioxidant and antibacterial properties of Tradescantia spathacea root extracts. Vegetos 36, 1475–1482 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42535-022-00558-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42535-022-00558-1