"Phytochemical screening and ""in-vitro"" anti-oxidant activity of methanolic root extract of Erythrina indica"

Objective: Erythrina indica belongs to the family Leguminoseae and it is a medium-sized, spiny, deciduous tree normally growing up to 6-9 m tall. It is also known as “Indian coral tree” or “Tiger’s clow” or “variegated coral tree” or “Kalyana murungai” or “ Mulmurukku” (in Tamil). It is a native of costal forest communities from East Africa, through southeast to Australia. In India, it is distributed in coast forests from Bombay to Malabar . The objective of this study is to explore the phytochemistry and the antioxidant potential of methanolic root extract of Erythrina indica which is considered traditionally as an important medicinal plant. Methods: The preliminary phytochemical analysis was done to find out the presence of various bioactive compounds. In vitro antioxidant analysis of methanolic root extract was performed by 1,1diphenyl, 2 picryl hydrazyl assay, nitric oxide assay, superoxide dismutase assay, ferric reducing antioxidant power assay. Results: The methanolic root extract showed the presence of various phytoconstituents such as flavonoids, tannins, terpenoids, saponins, coumarins and carbohydrates. Besides it also possess strong antioxidant activity. Conclusions: It was concluded that Erythrina indica root possessed a wide range of pharmacologically important phytoconstituents which exhibited strong antioxidant activity.

In vitro xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity of methanol extracts of Erythrina indica Lam. leaves and stem bark

Objective: To determine the total phenolic content and in vitro xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity of methanol extracts of leaves and stem bark of Erythrina indica. Methods: Folin-ciocalteu method was used to determine the total phenolic content. Xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity was assayed spectrophotometrically and the degree of enzyme inhibition was determined by measuring the increase in absorbance at 295nm associated with uric acid formation. Results:The methanol extract of stem bark of E. indica contains higher level of total phenolic content (412.8 mg GAE/g extract) and also exhibited higher xanthine oxidase inhibition activity (IC50 52.75μg/mL) than the leaves. Conclusions: It could be concluded that the stem bark of E. indica was highly effective in xanthine oxidase inhibition and might be used for the gout related disorders.

Cultivation, phytochemistry, pharmacological actions and therapeutic applications of erythrina indica. Lam.

Medicinal plants are the nature’s gift to human being to make disease free healthy life. It plays a vital role to preserve our health. In our country more than 2000 medicinal plants are recognized. Erythrina indica (Fabaceae) is one of the important medicinal plants of coasts of India and Malaysia. Some of its medicinal usage has been mentioned in traditional system of medicine such as ayurveda, siddha and unani. This review attempts to encompass the available literature of Erythrina indica with respect to traditional uses, phytochemistry and summary of its pharmacological activities and clinical effects. Other aspects such as toxicity are mentioned.

Effects of Indian coral tree, Erythrina indica lectin on eggs and larval development of melon fruit fly, Bactrocera cucurbitae.

Present study was undertaken to investigate the influence of D-galactose binding lectin from Erythrina indica Lam. on the eggs and second instar larvae (64-72 hr) of melon fruit fly, Bactrocera cucurbitae (Coquillett). The lectin from E. indica seeds was extracted and purified by affinity chromatography using asilofetuin linked porous amino activated silica beads. The effects of various concentrations (0, 125, 250, 500 and 1000 .g ml-1) of lectin were studied on freshly laid eggs (0-8 hr) of B. cucurbitae which showed non-significant reduction in percent hatching of eggs. However, the treatment of second instar larvae (64-72 hr) with various test concentrations (0, 25, 50, 100 and 200 .g ml-1) of lectin significantly reduced the percent pupation and percent emergence of B. cucurbitae depicting a negative correlation with the lectin concentration. The LC50 (81.g ml-1) treatment significantly decreased the pupal weight. Moreover, the treatment of larvae had also induced a significant increase in the remaining development duration. The activity of three hydrolase enzymes (esterases, acid and alkaline phosphatases), one oxidoreductase (catalase) and one group transfer enzyme (glutathione S-transferases) was assayed in second instar larvae under the influence of LC50 concentration of lectin for three exposure intervals (24, 48 and 72 hr). It significantly suppressed the activity of all the enzymes after all the three exposure intervals except for esterases which increased significantly.