Steroid Compounds Isolation from Carthamus tinctorius Linn as Antimalarial

Carthamus tinctorius Linn, also known as safflower, is a plant with the potential of being used in the production of antimalarial drugs. The purpose of this study was to isolate and identify the steroid compounds in the safflower and determine its antimalarial activity in vitro. The isolation process was conducted through extraction and chromatography methods. Then, the characterization of the isolated compounds was conducted through spectroscopic techniques which include Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), NMR 1-D (1H and 13C-NMR), and NMR 2-D (HMQC, HMBC, and H-H COZY) as well as comparing data with the existing literatures. In addition, the tests conducted were with variations of isolate concentrations (10, 1, 0.1, 0.01, and 0.001 μg/mL) against 3D7 strain of Plasmodium falciparum. Based on the FT-IR spectroscopic data, the steroid compounds isolated from safflowers might be stigmasterols. In addition, the isolates had -OH functional group in the region of 3431 cm-1, C-O in the region of 1053 cm-1, and Csp3-H in regions of 2960, 2934, and 2865 cm-1. The NMR 1-D data showed presence of 29 carbon atoms, while the protons were 48 in number. Furthermore, the IC50 value of the compound was 34.03 μg/mL with a percentage inhibition of 43.92% against the growth of P. falciparum. Therefore, it was classified as inactive agent in inhibiting the growth of malaria parasites, however, it could be used as a marker compound in C. tinctorius Linn extract.