<i>Isatis glauca</i> Aucher Ex Boiss. Subsp. <i>Glauca</i> (Indigo) Extracts as Enzyme Inhibitors: A Biochemical Study

Abstract Isatis glauca Aucher ex Boiss. subsp. glauca is a species of indigo that grows naturally in Türkiye. In this study, the in vitro biological activities of I. glauca were evaluated for the first time. The inhibitory effects of I. glauca ’s methanol, ethanol, dichloromethane/methanol (50:50), acetone, ethyl acetate, dichloromethane, and n ‐hexane extracts were investigated on the enzymes human carbonic anhydrase I (hCAI), human carbonic anhydrase II (hCAII), acetylcholinesterase (AChE), butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), and α‐glycosidase. IC 50 values were calculated to determine the inhibitory effect of the extracts. Among the extracts, the ones with the strongest inhibitory activity against hCAI, hCAII, AChE, BChE, and α‐glucosidase were found to be ethyl acetate extract (IC 50 : 75.77 mg/mL), methanol extract (IC 50 : 102.89 mg/mL), n ‐hexane extract (IC 50 : 61.11 mg/mL), ethyl acetate extract (IC 50 : 22.79 mg/mL), and ethyl acetate extract (IC 50 : 77.12 mg/mL), respectively. The study findings suggest that all extracts of I. glauca may have promising therapeutic properties. In particular, it can be suggested that these extracts have the potential to be used in the treatment of diseases or the alleviation of symptoms. However, additional research and clinical trials are required to determine its efficacy. The isolation of I. glauca phytochemicals should be addressed in future studies.