Abstract
Coconut oil (CO) has gained interest in western medicine due to its promising therapeutic approach in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease as well as combating oxidative stress-induced neurodegeneration. Using a wet extraction process, CO was extracted from fresh coconut milk. Flies were raised on CO-supplemented diet for 5 days, and the locomotor performance and survival rate were examined afterwards. The antioxidant activity of CO extract was investigated in vitro; in vivo using Drosophila melanogaster and the CO fatty acid (FA) composition quantified using gas-chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The survival rate and locomotor performance of the D. melanogaster reduced significantly at higher concentration of CO (1%)-supplemented diet. CO exhibits significant antioxidant ability by scavenging DPPH and ABTS radicals in a dose-dependent manner. Malondialdehyde (MDA) content was also significantly reduced in vitro in a dose-dependent manner. Likewise, groups II and III fed with supplemented 0.1% and 1% CO reduce MDA level significantly (p < 0.05) in AlCl3-induced flies. GC-MS quantification revealed eight FAs with myristoleic acid (C14:0) as the most abundant, followed by stearic acid (C18:0). The major fatty acids established in this study are not retained as fat in the body but used to generate energy. These observed results prove the antioxidant ability of phytochemicals in CO. In conclusion, coconut oil is a good source of phenolic compounds and healthy FA that confers its therapeutic use.
Published Version
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