PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS, ANTIOXIDANT & ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITYOF AQUEOUS EXTRACT OF BENINCASA HISPIDA FRUIT

The present study was carried out to evaluate the phytochemical constituents, antioxidant activity and antimicrobial activity of the fruit extract of Benincasa hispida. The fresh fruits were collected from a local vegetable market and authenticated in the Department of Pharmacognosy. The fruits were cleaned, dried and powdered for further extraction. The powdered material was subjected to successive solvent extraction using petroleum ether, methanol, ethyl acetate and distilled water to obtain different extracts. The obtained extracts were stored under refrigerated conditions for further analysis. Preliminary phytochemical screening was performed to identify the presence of various bioactive constituents such as alkaloids, flavonoids, phenols, proteins, steroids and quinines using standard qualitative tests. The antioxidant activity of the extract was evaluated using different in-vitromethods such as. Total antioxidant capacity by phosphomolybdate method Superoxide radical scavenging activity (SOD method) DPPH radical scavenging assay. These methods were used to determine the free radical scavenging potential of the plant extract. The antimicrobial activity of the extract was assessed using the cup plate (agar diffusion) method against selected microorganisms to determine the zone of inhibition and antimicrobial potential. Thus, the study involved extraction, phytochemical screening, antioxidant assays and antimicrobial evaluation to determine the therapeutic potential of Benincasa hispida fruit extract.