FLAVONOIDS OF BOERHAVIA DIFFUSA – GC-MS ANALYSIS AND INHIBITORY ACTIVITY AGAINST PATHOGENIC MICROBES

Boerhavia diffusa is a species of flowering plant in the four o’clock family, Boerhavia belongs to family Nyctaginaceae the plant holds the tremendous potential of medicinal value and has been traditionally used in various ailments like syphilis, leukoderma, blood disorders to name a few. The present study focuses on the GC-MS analysis of extracts of all the plant parts of B. diffusa which revealed the presence of certain bioactive compounds like kaempferol, luteolin, quercetin and so forth. A total of about 20 bioactive compounds were identified. In Boerhavia diffusa in all plant parts roots, stems and leaves kaempferol is observed maximum. Total amount of flavonoids was maximum in leaves and minimum in stem. Antimicrobial activity of the extracts was assayed against pathogenic bacteria and fungi. In B. diffusa, flavonoids extracted from leaf were highly active against F. oxysporium, against bacterial strains flavonoids from leaves were highly active and showed maximum activity against E. coli. The study thus infers that the presence of bioactive components may be the principle behind the antimicrobial property of different plant parts and therefore Boerhavia diffusa forms a potential plant for herbal drug formulation.