Phytochemical Study And Antioxidant Activities On Extracts Of The Leaves And Roots Of Costus Afer Ker Gawl. (Zingiberaceae)

The extracts of leaves and roots of Costus afer plant have been fully investigated in an attempt to determine their phytochemical constituents and antioxidant activities. Phytochemical screening carried out using thin layer chromatography (TLC) revealed the presence of several secondary metabolites in all the selected extracts of the plant. In addition, our results showed that the leaves of C. afer are the richest in polyphenols with an average value of 3416.25 mu g EAG/g MS. The total flavonoid assay revealed a highest content in the leaves (8.02 %). Furthermore, studies of the antioxidant activities using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH.) method showed a significant effect compared to the reference vitamin C. Ethyl acetate extract of the leaves show a higher percentage of inhibition (83 %), followed the roots (69 %).