PHYTOCHEMICAL AND IN-VITRO ANTIDIABETIC SCREENING OF SPERMADICYTON SUAVEOLENS

The discovery of alternative medications in diabetes management is of huge importance to achieve better safety and efficacy. The natural antioxidant and carbohydrate hydrolyzing enzyme inhibitors are gaining too much importance in the management of diabetes. Lack of scientific data is available on antioxidant and antidiabetic activities on root extract of Spermadicyton suaveolens. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the in-vitro antioxidant and α- amylase potential of Spermadicyton suaveolens. The roots were extracted by the successive Soxhlet extraction process. The extracts were evaluated for the presence of chemical constituents. Besides, the extracts were assessed for their antioxidant potential using a DPPH assay and α- amylase assay by the DNSA method. Phytochemical analysis acknowledged the presence of secondary metabolites alkaloid, phenol, saponins, steroids respectively. All the extracts showed moderate to high antioxidant and enzyme inhibition potential. Amongst all extracts, ethanolic extract showed the highest free radical scavenging potential (IC₅₀= 324 mg/mL).  Moreover, the ethanolic extract also showed better α- amylase enzyme inhibition action (IC₅₀= 602 mg/mL). The finding from the study confirmed the traditional application of spermadicyton suaveolens as an antidiabetic agent, which is obvious through inhibition of enzyme action involved in carbohydrate metabolism and triggering antioxidant mechanism.