RESUMO
AIM OF THE STUDY: Melicope lunu-ankenda (Gaertn.) T.G. Hartley is used in Indian traditional medicine for fever, improving complexion and as a tonic. Previous studies have isolated fungicidal, antifeedant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory compounds from Melicope lunu-ankenda. This study is aimed at the isolation and biological activity screening of potential molecules from the volatile oils and extracts of Melicope lunu-ankenda in the light of traditional applications. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Volatile oil of Melicope lunu-ankenda leaves was isolated by hydrodistillation, characterized by GC-FID, GC-MS, LRI determination, Co-GC and database searches. Major chromene-type compounds in Melicope lunu-ankenda leaf oil, evodione and leptonol, were isolated by preparative TLC and characterized by UV-Vis, IR, 1H-, 13C-, 13C-DEPT NMR and EIMS. They were also isolated from the petroleum ether and acetone extracts of the leaves of Melicope lunu-ankenda by column chromatography in petroleum ether-ethyl acetate. Their contents in leaf oil, leaf and inflorescence extracts were estimated by HPTLC. Antipyretic (Baker's yeast-induced fever test), analgesic (acetic acid-induced writhing, tail immersion assays), anti-inflammatory (carrageenan-induced paw edema) and in vitro antioxidant (DPPH radical, superoxide radical scavenging) activities of evodione and leptonol were tested. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Gas chromatographic analyses found 50.7% monoterpene hydrocarbons, 0.4% oxygenated monoterpenes, 3.2% sesquiterpene hydrocarbons, 0.7% oxygenated sesquiterpenes and 43.7% chromene-type compounds in Melicope lunu-ankenda leaf oil, with evodione (20.2%) and leptonol (22.5%) as its two major constituents. HPTLC estimations in the petroleum ether, acetone extracts (leaf, inflorescence) and leaf oil found evodione 1.0% (dr. wt., leaf), 1.1% (inflorescence), 0.04% (fr. wt. leaves, leaf oil), and leptonol 0.3% (leaf), 0.3% (inflorescence) and 0.04% (leaf oil). Leptonol (200 mg/kg) showed good antipyretic activity. DPPH radical scavenging assay found moderate activity for leptonol (68.7%, 500 microM), whereas evodione showed near-zero activity. A very similar trend was found in superoxide radical scavenging activity of leptonol (64.5%) and evodione (10.3%), both at 100 microg/ml. Evodione and leptonol showed moderate analgesic activities in acetic acid-induced writhing and tail immersion assays. Moderate anti-inflammatory activity was found for both evodione (59.4%) and leptonol (49.0%) at 100 mg/kg. ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Biological activities of evodione and leptonol isolated from Melicope lunu-ankenda justify its traditional uses as a remedy for fever, inflammation and as a tonic.
