Assessment of the Pharmacological Properties and Phytochemical Profile of Bruguiera gymnorhiza (L.) Lam Using in Vitro Studies, in Silico Docking, and Multivariate Analysis.

Nabeelah Bibi Sadeer,Rajesh Jeewon,Hassan H. Abdallah,Kannan R. R. Rengasamy,József Jekő,Zoltán Cziáky,Gokhan Zengin,Mohamad Fawzi Mahomoodally,Kouadio Ibrahime Sinan

doi:10.3390/biom10050731

Abstract

Bruguiera gymnorhiza (L.) Lam. is claimed to effectively manage a number of ailments including diabetes and associated complications. Nonetheless, no attempt has been made to delineate its pharmacological propensities and phytochemical profile. This study was designed to appraise the antioxidant and enzymatic inhibitory properties relevant to the management of diabetes mellitus, obesity, and neurodegenerative and skin disorders. A combination of colorimetric assays and ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS) were applied for the phytochemical screening of leaf, root, twig, and fruit extracts (methanol and ethyl acetate). In vitro antioxidant evaluations were via radical scavenging abilities (DPPH, ABTS), reducing potential (FRAP, CUPRAC), chelating power, and total antioxidant capacity (phosphomolybdenum). Seven key metabolic enzymes (α-amylase, α-glucosidase, tyrosinase, elastase, lipase, AChE, and BChE) were targeted to determine the inhibitory effects. Multivariate and in silico docking analysis were performed on collected data. Methanolic fruit extract yielded the highest total phenolic, tannin, and triterpenoid contents (174.18 ± 4.27 mg GAE/g, 176.24 ± 3.10 mg CE/g, 63.11 ± 3.27 mg OAE/g, respectively); significantly depressed tyrosinase, elastase, and α-amylase activities (155.35 ± 0.29 mg KAE/g, 4.56 ± 0.10 mg CAE/g, 1.00 ± 0.05 mmol ACAE/g, accordingly); and harboured the most potent antioxidant capacities with DPPH, CUPRAC, FRAP (492.62 ± 5.31, 961.46 ± 11.18, 552.49 ± 8.71 mg TE/g, respectively), and phosphomolybdenum (4.17 ± 0.31 mmol TE/g) assays. Multivariate analysis suggested that the type of solvents used influenced the biological activities more compared to plant parts. Docking analysis showed that azelaic acid binds with tyrosinase by Van der Waals and conventional hydrogen bonds. We anticipate that the present study may establish baseline data on this halophyte that could open new avenues for the development of biomedicine.

Highlights

There are up to 8.7 million species from both plant and animal kingdoms
The present paper aims at scrutinizing a poorly explored mangrove plant—Bruguiera gymnorhiza (L.) Lam. (B. gymnorhiza)—usually found along the coastlines of Mauritius
Our present research aims at quantifying the antioxidant capacity of the methanolic and ethyl acetate extracts of various parts of B. gymnorhiza using six assays

Summary

Introduction

There are up to 8.7 million species from both plant and animal kingdoms. The kingdom Plantae itself englobes an estimated number of 391,000 vascular plant species, and Allkin Bob from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, located in London, United Kingdom, has made a global classification recording 28,187 plants as medicinally important [1,2,3]. Frances Hamilton Arnold, a Nobel prize winner in chemistry in the year 2018, stated “Nature is the best chemist of all time” [4]. This array of plant species from nature has always proved their worth in the medical lore since the dawn of human civilization. Cupressus sempervirens L. is the oldest medicinal plant, known since 2600 BC, and is still being used against colds and inflammation [5]. It is worth mentioning that around 11% of the 252 drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) originate from flowering plants [6], which undoubtedly makes nature the best chemist of all time

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