Loeselia mexicana: Antioxidant and antimicrobial properties by Soxhlet differential extraction

Abstract

Loeselia mexicana or “Espinosilla” commonly known in Mexico is a plant with a great diversity of traditional medicinal uses, especially as an aid in the treatment of superficial wounds, however, said use lacks a scientific basis beyond ethnobotany, so studies of differential extraction that allowed to separate the secondary metabolites according to their polarity to carry out antioxidant tests, associated with the healing process and antimicrobial, associated with avoiding wound infection. The antioxidant potential is divided into two polarities with better results for those extracted by Ethanol (59.38% DPPH and 456.7 mg/kg Folin) and ethyl acetate (63.83% DPPH and 340.1 mg/kg Folin), indicating that both oily and alcoholic has metabolites that prevent skin oxidation; coinciding with the best inhibition halos in Gram negative bacteria. The use of medicinal plants in a traditional way cannot be stopped without affecting the traditions of the Mexican peoples and the world, however, with studies of differential extraction and evaluation of biological activity, it allows to establish scientific bases for its use and to continue to standardize it.