Antioxidant activities of medang lendir (Litsea glutinosa) stem bark

Abstract

Background: Medang lendir (Litsea glutinosa), a member of the Lauraceae family, is typically found in the Kampar Regency area of Riau Province, Indonesia. This plant is frequently used in traditional medicine to treat rheumatism, diarrhea, and dysentery. Objective: To evaluate the antioxidant activities of L. glutinosa stem bark extracts. Method: L. glutinosa stem bark was macerated in methanol to obtain methanol extract, followed by partitioning with ethyl acetate to obtain ethyl acetate extract. The antioxidant activities of these extracts were determined using the NO radical scavenging and the DPPH radical scavenging methods. The Folin-Ciocalteu method was also used in this study to determine total phenolic content (TPC). Result: The antioxidant activities of ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of L. glutinosa stem bark against NO radicals resulted in a small percentage of inhibition (%I < 0). Meanwhile, for DPPH radical scavenging, the antioxidant activity of the ethyl acetate extract (IC50 = 222.03 ug/mL) was greater than the methanol extract (IC50 = 232.81 ug/mL), and the TPC value of the ethyl acetate extract (23.88 mgGAE/g) was greater than the methanol extract (23.16 mgGAE/g). Conclusion: These results show that the antioxidant activity based on scavenging DPPH radicals for both extracts was active; however, it was inactive on NO radicals. The ethyl acetate extract possessed a higher TPC value compared to the methanol extract.