Effect of Solvents on Phytochemical Composition and Antioxidant Activity of Cardiospermum halicacabum (L.) Extracts

Background: Cardiospermum halicacabum (C. halicacabum) is a common medicinal herb found in India and other Asian countries. It has various medicinal properties such as antimicrobial, pain relief, antibiotics, anti-inflammatory, antioxidants, anticancer etc. It is commonly used for treating diabetes, arthritis, limbs stiffness, rheumatism, lumbago, earache, fever. Type of solvent and polarity intensively affects the antioxidant activity of the extracts due to the solubility of the phytocompounds such as polyphenols and flavonoids in various solvents. Materials and Methods: In this study, different solvents like, ethanol, methanol, chloroform and petroleum ether were used for the extraction of C. halicacabum. Cold maceration method was followed for extraction. The crude extracts were screened preliminary and then confirmed using Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy analysis. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was used to determine the chemical composition of each extract. The DPPH (2,2-diphenyl- 1-picrylhydrazyl) method was used for the evaluation of the antioxidant activity of different crude extracts of C. halicacabum. Results: The results showed that there is significant influence of solvent type in preserving various phytocompounds of the C. halicacabum leaves extract. The evaluation of the antioxidant capacity of different crude extracts was in the order of ethanol > methanol > petroleum ether > chloroform extract.