Phytochemical screening and total phenolic content in the extract of bryophyte Plagiochasma appendiculatum and Dicranum scoparium

Abstract

Since ancient times, people explored the nature, chiefly plants in search of new drugs. This has resulted in the use of great number of medicinal plants with curative properties to treat a variety of diseases and hold medicinal significant bioactive compounds. Along with higher plants lower plants also posses this quality and bryophytes are just one of them as they are relatively free from microbial attacks which point toward their antimicrobial ability. Unfortunately, very little is known about the chemistry of bryophytes and information concerning research results is very scattered. Hence, preliminary phytochemical screening of different extracts (petroleum ether, acetone, methanol, chloroform, ethanol) of Plagiochasma appendiculatum and Dicranum scoparium was carried out along with total phenolic (GAE/ gm) and total flavonoid (mg QE/ gm) content of different extract of two tropical bryophytes, i.e. P. appendiculatum and D. scoparium using standard procedures, to identify the phytochemical constituents. The extracts were screened for the presence and quantities of total flavonoids and total phenols with a view to assess their therapeutic values in ethnomedicine. The results of the phytochemical screening revealed the presence of total flavonoids and total phenols in varying quantities in the two bryophytes. These results suggest that the undertaken bryophytes can be veritable and potential source of useful drugs in treatment of ailments.

Keywords

• Bryophytes
• flavanoid
• endomedicine
• phenolics
• phytochemicals