Phytochemical and biological investigation of persicaria glabra

Abstract

Present study was performed to establish the scientific basis of the use of Persicaria glabra as one of the curing and therapeutic agents of traditional practices in Bangladesh. The methanolic extract of the leaves was subjected to in vitro biological investigation for antioxidant test (Total phenolic content and DPPH assay), antimicrobial test (Disc diffusion method) and cytotoxicity test (Brine shrimp lethality bioassay). The plant extract showed potent cytotoxic activity nearly equivalent to standard vincristine sulfate compound. The study also confirmed presence of good amount of total phenolic content and free radical scavenging activity by DPPH method. Antimicrobial screening also done by the extract but it showed low antimicrobial activity compared to standard antimicrobial agent (kanamycin). However, more investigation is needed to identify in vitro anticancer activity on human cell line for the justification of its traditional use for squamous cell carcinoma and high cytotoxic activity of the leaf extract.