Aconitum heterophylum from Kashmir: Evaluation of fatty acid profile, antibacterial, antioxidant activities and functional group analysis

• Main Authors: Zubair Rehman Nengroo, Adil Shafi Ganie, Mohammad Azeem
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2021-12-01
• Series: Carbohydrate Polymer Technologies and Applications
• Subjects: Aconitum heterophylum; Soxhlet extraction; Fatty acid composition; Linoleic acid; Antibacterial activity and antioxidant activity
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666893921000736

Aconitum heterophylum Wall. ex. Royal has been known to possess analgesic, antipyretic, diuretic, carminative and other therapeutic properties. In the present study, the seed and root extracts of A. heterophylum have been assessed for their fatty acid composition, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. The petroleum ether extracts of seed (PPS) and root (PPR) in the form of FAMEs were analyzed by gas chromatography mass spectroscopy for fatty acid composition. Five fatty acids were identified in each PPS and PPR. Linoleic acid was found in abundance with 74.28% in PPS and 33.60% in PPR. The antioxidant activities of the extracts were checked with 2,2-di-phenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), and 2,2ˈ-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavengers. The radical scavenging experiment depicted excellent antioxidant properties of all the extracts with methanol seed PMS and root PMR extracts having the highest activity at 200 µg/mL concentration. Moreover, the extracts were screened for antimicrobial activities against Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus and it was observed that all extracts exhibited excellent antibacterial activity. From the results, it can be advocated that this plant could be used in food, pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries upon further modification. Anyhow, present work adds more knowledge to existing literature of this plant.