Nutrient Evaluation and Phytochemical Analysis of Fresh and Dry Leaves of Carica papaya

Abstract

Background: The relative abundance and all year availability of Carica papaya necessitated this study and the availability of these leaves in almost all regions of the world. Methods: Air-dried and fresh Carica papaya leaves were collected for comparative analysis to investigate the proximate constituent, minerals, vitamins and presence of phytochemicals. The analyses were investigated in accordance with standard procedures. Result: The results of proximate showed that the fresh leaves contained higher level of crude fat, ash, crude fiber and crude protein when compared with the dry leaves. However, the dry leaves have higher percentages of calcium, sodium and phosphorus when compared with the fresh leaves. The fresh leaves shows higher levels of vitamins, (mg/100 g) ascorbic acid (C) 26.9, thiamine (B1) 0.62, riboflavin (B2) 0.69, however, the tocopherol (E) 48.195 content of the dry leaves was comparably higher. Phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of numerous bioactive compounds: saponin, phenol, terpene, oxalate, tannin, steroid, phytate and alkaloids. Thus, fresh pawpaw leaf gave a source of essential nutrients while dry pawpaw leaf was a source of calcium, sodium and phosphorus. Therefore, pawpaw leaves can be manipulated in the herbal treatment of various diseases and a potential source of useful elements for drugs formulation.