PHYTOCHEMICAL PROFILING AND BIOLOGICAL EVALUATION OF METHANOLIC AND N-HEXANE EXTRACTS OF COTONEASTER MICROPHYLLUS WALL. EX LINDL.

Cotoneaster microphyllus Wall. ex-Lindl. is a medicinal plant with limited knowledge available on its phytochemical profile and biological activities. Presnt study, methanolic and n-hexane extracts of C. microphyllus, from its leaves, shoots, and roots were analyzed for their total phenolic and flavonoid contents and evaluated for antioxidant and other biological activities. Overall, the methanolic extracts showed higher levels of phytochemicals and stronger in vitro antioxidant activity than the n-hexane extracts. The methanolic extract of the roots exhibited the highest TPC (28.5 ± 1.7 µg GAE/mg), whereas the leaves methanolic extract gave the highest TFC (16.4 ± 1.47 µg QE/mg) and showed the strongest DPPH scavenging activity (89.6 ± 5.3%). The n-hexane extracts showed greater α-amylase inhibition, with the leaves extract producing the highest inhibition (52.5 ± 2.1%). Antibacterial activity was most pronounced against Bacillus subtilis, whereas antifungal activity was mainly observed against Aspergillus fumigatus. No significant protein kinase inhibition was detected. In the brine shrimp assay, the shoots n-hexane extract showed the lowest LC₅₀ among the plant extracts (36.7 ± 0.9 µg/mL), indicating the greatest lethality. Overall, the results demonstrate distinct biological profiles among extracts according to solvent and plant part and support further chemical characterization and biological evaluation of the most active fractions.