Chemical Composition, Antioxidant, and Antimicrobial Activity of Parinari excelsa Seed

Medicinal plants contain rich phytochemicals, and antioxidant compounds that affect physiological functions, fighting diseases related to inflammation and pains. They also have influence against bacteria, fungi, and parasites that cause several ailments. Parinari excelsa is a medicinal plant which belongs to the family of Chrysobalanaceae. In this study, Parinari excelsa seed was extracted with n-haxane through Soxhlet extraction method, concentrated with rotary evaporator to obtain the extract. The chemical components was evaluated by phytochemical, and Gas-Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) methods, after which the antioxidant activity was carried out using 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Antimicrobial study was carried out by agar well diffusion method against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus,Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis, Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, and Penicillium chrysogenum, at 25, 50, 75, and 100 mg/mL, From the results, many constiuents of health importance were found in the extract, including a diverse range of phytoconstituents, both saturated and unsaturated, with notable quantities of omega-3 fatty acids (eicosapentadecanoic methyl ester), 1,15-Pentadecanediol, fatty acids amide (palmitic acid amide and Z-9-Octadeceamide), and lauric acid derivative. The plant's seed extract demonstrated a very high antioxidant activity across the various assays, with ABTS showing greater scavenging activity (13.697 µg/mL), followed by H2O2 (14.999 µg/mL), and DPPH (17.967 µg/mL) being the least; thus, indicating their complementary antioxidant properties. The plant also demonstrated greater effectiveness against the bacteria than the fungi investigated, especially with B. subtilis and E. coli. The minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum bactericidal concentration of the sample resonate at 75-100 mg/mL, and at 50-75 mg/mL, respectively. This study justifies the traditional uses of the plant and proposes the use of its seeds to fight infections.