Survey of Medicinal and Invasive Weeds in Paddy Field – Phytochemical and GC-MS Profiling of Cyanotis axillaris R. & S.

Abstract

This study aims to determine the dominant weed species associated with rice crop fields in the Eppodhumvendran region of Thoothukudi district, Tamil Nadu and to analyze the phytochemicals, identify the bioactive compounds in ethanol extract using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and find their bioactivity using prediction of activity spectra for substances (PASS) prediction in Cyanotis axillaris. The documentation of medicinal weeds was carried out with the help of traditional local healers in Eppodhumvendran region. Phytochemical screening and GC-MS analysis of C. axillaris were performed to evaluate the chemical profiling of the extract. A total of 25 plant species regarded as invasive species/weeds were identified with the help of traditional local healers. The most commonly mentioned plant family was the Poaceae with a total of five species followed by the Euphorbiaceae, Asteraceae and Commelinaceae. Among these, C. axillaris is being studied for its potentiality due to its strong therapeutic value. The aerial plant part contains phytoconstituents such as alkaloids, glycosides, quinones, phenolics, steroids and terpenoids. The GC-MS results revealed 30 bioactive compounds, which were predicted using the PASS prediction method. The study highlights the importance of weeds in the paddy field ecosystem. The results reveal that C. axillaris contains various phytocomponents and that more research into their phytopharmaceutical relevance is required in the future.