A study on the total phenolics and antioxidant properties of different solvent extracts of dried leaves of Cassia alata (L.) Roxb.

The study was aimed at investigating the influence of solvent polarities on the total phenolic content and antioxidant properties of dried leaves of Cassia alata (L.) Roxb. The sample was extracted separately with methanol, ethyl acetate, acetone, and water for the determinations of phenolic contents, reducing power and radical scavenging properties. The results revealed that reducing power (RP) and radical scavenging capacity (RSC) in methanolic extract were significantly (P<0.05) higher than that of other extracts (acetone, ethylacetate, and water) indicating the effectiveness of antioxidant extraction by methanol and consistently the total phenolics (mg/100g DW) was high in this extract. Moreover, the phenolic contents of the extracts positively correlated with the reducing power and anti-radical potential of the extracts. The findings suggest that methanol could be a perfect solvent for the extraction of antioxidant compounds from the leaves of C. alata (L.) Roxb.