Multielement/proximate composition, chemical and cytotoxic profile to assess the Crinum americanum L. as an unconventional raw material of nutritional, chemical, and pharmaceutical potential

Abstract

This work aimed to characterize the nutritional and multielement profile of leaves, bulbs and roots of C. americanum L., as well as to optimize a mixture of solvents (ethanol, water and ethyl acetate) to extract the highest content of bioactive compounds and evaluate its ex vivo cytotoxicity against human peripheral blood mononuclear (MN) cells. With the nutritional and multielement analysis, it was possible to determine a safe dosage for direct consumption of this plant. The optimized solvent system resulted in high antioxidant capacity (DPPH and FRAP), total phenolic compounds (TPC) and total alkaloids (TAC). These results may be associated with the number of bioactive compounds identified by Mass Spectrometry with Electrospray Ionization and Fourier Transform (ESI-FT-MS). In total, 89 compounds were identified, including alkaloids, phenolic compounds, fatty acids and others never before identified for this plant. Furthermore, the optimized extracts did not show ex vivo cytotoxicity against MN cells at the tested concentrations. To the best of our knowledge, there is no data in the literature concerning the C. americanum L. composition in its totality. Thus, the following data are unprecedented and corroborate to establish the C. americanum L. as an unconventional plant nutritionally viable alternative for human consumption.