Abstract
Medicinal plants and its products remain the best therapeutic agents for the management of diseases and infections that affect the health of man. Owing to the recorded ethnomedicinal potentials of Tithonia diversifolia (Hemsl.) A. Gray, this study was aimed at investigating the gas chromatography combined with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectral analyses of methanolic extract of leaves of T. diversifolia (Hemsl.) A. Gray using standard analytical methods. Results of the GC-MS spectral analysis of methanolic leaf extract of T. diversifolia (Hemsl.) A. Gray showed the existence of the following twenty nine (29) bioactive compounds: Ethylene oxide (2.04%), 1-Butanamine, 3-methyl- (0.71%), N-(3-Methylbutyl) acetamide (3.11%), Cyclopentane, 2-n-octyl- (3.33%), Cyclobutanol (0.73%), dl-Phenylephrine (1.53%), Phenylephrine (1.69%), Hexadecanoic acid, methyl ester (2.31%), 1,3-Cyclohexanediol (2.08%), Amphetamine (1.69%), n-Hexadecanoic acid (17.53%), 8-[N-Aziridylethylamino]-2,6-dimethyloctene-2 (0.85%), Benzenemethanol, .alpha.-[(methylamino)methyl]- (0.58%), folic acid (1.32%), acetic acid, hydroxy[(1-oxo-2-propenyl)amino]- (1.11%), cis-Vaccenic acid (19.20%), Octadecanoic acid (7.67%), acetic acid, [(aminocarbonyl)amino]oxo- (0.85%), cis-11-Eicosenoic acid (4.50%), 4-Fluorohistamine (2.20%), 2,3-Dimethoxyamphetamine (0.74%), Benzeneethanamine, 2-fluoro-.beta. ,5-dihydroxy-N-methyl- (2.62%), 2-Propenamide, N-(1-cyclohexylethyl)- (1.73%), Erucic acid (5.82%), Acetamide, 2,2,2-trichloro- (0.85%), 2-Methoxy-N-methylethylamine (2.45%), acetic acid, chloro-, pentyl ester (4.97%), p-Hydroxynorephedrine (1.61%) and Metaraminol (1.28%); with Cis-vaccenic acid, n-Hexadecanoic acid and Octadecanoic acid as the most predominant bioactive compounds residents in the plant whereas that of Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) showed the existence of alcohols, phenols, aldehydes, ketones, alkanes and primary amines. Based on these findings, it is opined that the methanolic extract of leaves of T. diversifolia (Hemsl.) A. Gray could be relied upon in traditional medicine for the management of certain infections and diseases that plague man especially those that dwell in rural areas. Key words: Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS), bioactive compounds, methanol extract, functional group, Tithonia diversifolia (Hemsl.) A. Gray.
Highlights
Medicinal plants and its products have been known over the years as effective ingredients for the management of diseases
The leaves of the plant were taken to the Department of Plant Science and Biotechnology (PSB) of the University for proper identification by an experienced botanist
A total of twenty nine (29) compounds were identified from the methanolic leaf extract of T. diversifolia (Hemsl.)
Summary
Medicinal plants and its products have been known over the years as effective ingredients for the management of diseases. Other advantages of herbal products over synthetic drugs include affordability, bioaccumulation, higher safety margin, efficacy and quality (Ezekwesili et al, 2014). The concentrations of these phytochemicals in medicinal plants are affected by certain climatic factors and the time of harvest (Cetin et al, 2010). According to the report of the World Health Organization in 2008, about 80% of the world’s population relies solely on herbal preparations for their primary health care (Derwich et al, 2009) These and others reasons suggested over the years have made herbal products better therapeutic agents over synthetic drugs in the treatment and management of diseases
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