Screening of Bioactive compounds and antimicrobial properties from plant extracts of Biscofia javanica

Abstract

Phytochemicals are primary or secondary products of a plant's metabolism. They have many biological activities in the plant, including roles in plant growth and defense against competitors, pathogens, or predators. These bioactive compounds of plants are the core of traditional ethnic medicine practices among many tribes. Biscofia javanica, commonly known as Uriam, is a tree found in tropical areas of the world. The leaves of Uriam have been used by the Tai-Phake community of Assam against various stomach ailments. Leaves have been traditionally used for their daily meals and are perceived to have therapeutic value among this community. The current investigation evaluated the bioactive compounds present in the leaves of Biscofia javanica. The leaves were collected from Nam-Phake village in Assam and air-dried at 25ᵒ-30ᵒC for 2 weeks before being ground into powder. The smooth leaf powder was used to prepare extracts using water, ethanol, and a combination of both solvents. The presence of phytochemicals was tested using biochemical tests, and saponin, steroids, glycosides, terpenoids, phenols, tannins, flavonoids, proteins, and carbohydrates were found to be present. Antimicrobial activities of different solvent extracts of Biscofia javanica were tested using the agar well diffusion method, and the highest zone of inhibition was measured against the test organism. Our study was a small attempt to validate their knowledge with a scientific approach. Further studies will be able to reveal the mechanism of its therapeutic activity and its broad-range antimicrobial properties against other human pathogens.