Phytochemical characterisation, antioxidant and antidiabetic activity of extracts of Neptunia prostrata Linn.

The herb Neptunia prostrata Linn. Is belonging to the family Mimosaceae have been used in folkloric medicine in the North-eastern states of Indiaof Assam and Tripura by indigenous herbal healers since time immemorial but there is a scarcity of any background study documenting its use as an antimicrobial herb. For the same, plants were collected and authenticated. Following identification of these herbs methanolic, ethanolic, pet ether and chloroform extracts were prepared using soxhletion. Acute toxicity study as per OECD guidelines 420 was assessed in wistar albino rats and in swiss albino mice (n=5) of both sexes at doses of 2000mg/kg body weight and did not reveal any morbidity or mortality in the animals within the stipulated period.Phytochemical screening was performed on all four extracts of Neptunia prostrata. Phytochemical constituents depicted presence of glycoside, flavonoids in only ethanolic, methanolic and chloroform extracts. Alkaloids were present in the chloroform extract. The antimicrobial activity was performed by disc agar diffusion method with respect to amoxicillin at standard doses against ATCC strains of Gram positive Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis and Gram negative Salmonella typhi. The herbs showed antioxidant activity comparable to standard antioxidants in-vitro such as Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) with comparable IC₅₀ values. Results of the antibacterial assay on the basis of zone of inhibition (mm) and MIC values of extracts of the extract (NPHE) under study to suggest these two indigenous herb have conspicuous and potent putative role in the therapeutics of a vast plethora bacterial infections that need to be corroborated for the expansion of future prospective in-vivo studies with larger sample size.