ELLAGIC ACID DERIVATIVE AND OTHER COMPOUNDS FROM ALCHORNEA CORDIFOLIA ROOT BARK EXHIBITED STRONG ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITIES

Abstract

Chemical investigation of the ethyl acetate fraction of the methanol root bark extract of Alchornea cordifolia led to the isolation of an ellagic acid derivative, 3, 3 -di-O-methylellagic acid, and the detection of other phenolic compounds. The ethyl acetate sub-fractions were screened for their ability to scavenge 2,2-diphenyl-1- picrylhydrazyl radical, while the isolated compound was screened for its inhibitory effect against bacteria and fungi isolates. The chemical structure of the isolated compound was confirmed by 1D and 2D NMR, while those of the detected compounds were deduced from HPLC-DAD analysis. The fractions exhibited dose dependent antioxidant activity with IC50 values in the range of 82.8 to 80.0 μg/ml. The compound also exhibited good antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureu, Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli with MIC values in the range of 1.5 -0.375 mg/ml. It can be concluded that the root bark extract of A. cordifolia and its phenolic compound exhibited strong antioxidant as well as antimicrobial activities. These findings further support the ethnomedicinal use of the root back extracts of this plant material in the management of bacterial infections and offer great prospects for the isolated compound as lead candidate in drug discovery.