Extraction of kaempferol derivatives from Zygophyllum paulayanum and its diverse biological activities

Abstract

Zygophyllum paulayanum (Zygophyllaceae), is a plant commonly found in the desert region, well-known for its antioxidant, anticancer, wound healing, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial, properties. In this present work, we have studied the extraction of kaempferol derivatives from Z. paulayanum which showed excellent biological activities. The whole plant (root, leaves and stem) was extracted using ethanol, hydrolysed with HCl, and studied for the identification of active molecules. Different techniques like TLC, HPLC, and LCMS have been used to identify and confirm the kaempferol aglycone flavonoid. A mass spectrometric method based on electrospray ionisation has confirmed the presence of kaempferol flavonoid. Apart from the hydrolysed extract, the unhydrolyzed extract was also tested for LCMS which confirms the presence of glycosides such as kaempferol 3-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-7-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranoside, kaempferol 3-O-β –rutinoside and kaempferol-3-o-rhamnoside. Both extracts of Z. paulayanum exhibited superior antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, phytoestrogenic and cytotoxic properties which might be due to the presence of kaempferol derivatives.

Graphical Abstract

Keywords:

• Zygophyllum paulayanum
• kaempferol
• antioxidant
• anti-inflammation
• antimicrobial
• phytoestrogen
• cytotoxicity

Acknowledgements

ML thanks OmniActives Health Technologies (R&D), Pune (Maharashtra) for the support during this study. Authors thank Dr. Anup Deshpande for helping with the identification of plant material.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.