THE RECONSTRUCTION OF SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE ABOUT BAJAKAH KALALAWIT (UNCARIA GAMBIR ROXB) BIOACTIVITY AS ETHNOMEDICINE

Abstract

Indonesia has more than 25.000-30.000 plant species. The Indonesia tropical forest is a huge source for secondary metabolite compounds that are beneficial for health and life. One of the treasures is Bajakah (Uncaria gambir roxb), a plant endemic to Borneo that has been hereditarily believed to cure tumors and cancers. This research belongs to an educational study that reconstructed scientific knowledge about secondary metabolite compounds' bioactivities of Bajakah as ethnomedicine and aimed at reestablishing scientific research on bioactivities of Bajakah for cancer and tumor medication. The wood and root of Bajakah Kalalawit of the National Conservation Forest, Samarinda, Indonesia, were taken as the sample. The root and wood powder was isolated and extracted for their secondary metabolite compounds using water, ethanol + water, and ethanol + hexane as the solvents. The resulted isolates were tested for the phytochemical, structure, and bioactivity towards Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli (E.Colli). The results were supported by structure tests with FTIR spectroscopy, which showed the appearance of uptake of functional groups for hydroxyl, carbonyl, and aromatics that corresponded to secondary metabolite molecules. The analysis of the obtained data concluded that the Bajakah root and the wood extract contain the inhibitory activity of cancer cells and tumors because they contain compounds of secondary metabolites, including terpenes, phenols, alkaloids, and flavonoids. The secondary metabolite compounds from the Bajakah isolates were able to inhibit the activity of Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli (E.Colli).