PHYTOCHEMICAL PROFILING AND COMPARATIVE ANTIOXIDANT POTENTIAL OF ENICOSTEMMA LITTORALE LEAF EXTRACTS USING IN VITRO ASSAYS

The present study was carried out to evaluate the in vitro antioxidant activity of methanolic and aqueous leaf extracts of Enicostemma littorale. Antioxidant potential was assessed using DPPH radical scavenging assay, reducing power assay, and total phenolic content (TPC) estimation. Preliminary phytochemical screening confirmed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, phenolics, and tannins in both extracts.The DPPH assay showed a concentration-dependent increase in radical scavenging activity. The methanolic extract exhibited 30.2% inhibition at 100 µg/mL and 74.2% at 800 µg/mL, while the aqueous extract showed 22.4% and 62.5%, respectively. The IC₅₀ values were calculated using linear interpolation as approximately 280 µg/mL for the methanolic extract and 500 µg/mL for the aqueous extract, indicating higher antioxidant potency of the methanolic extract. The total phenolic content was calculated using the calibration equation , yielding values of 88 mg GAE/g extract for the methanolic extract and 64 mg GAE/g extract for the aqueous extract. The reducing power assay also demonstrated increased absorbance with concentration, confirming strong electron-donating ability.