Abstract
The study characterises the phenolic compounds in ethanol, butanol, and ethyl acetate extracts from the fruit peels and cladodes of Opuntia stricta (syn. Opuntia dillenii (Ker-Gawl) Haw), from Morocco using UHPLC/DAD/ESI-MS. Additionally, the study evaluates the antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of these extracts. Thirteen phenolic compounds were found in Opuntia stricta extracts, such as flavonoids (kaempferol 3-O-arabinoside, isorhamnetin rhamnosyl-rutinoside, quercetin 3-O-rutinoside, isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside, and isorhamnetin) and phenolic acid. The fruit peels were found to contain the highest phenolic content, protein, and total sugars. The antibacterial effect was investigated in vivo. The most active extract was the ethyl acetate extract of fruit peels and cladodes against Staphylococcus aureus and P. aeruginosa, with inhibition zone diameters of 16.2 and 15 mm, respectively, followed by dichloromethane extract, with zone diameters of 13.8 and 14 mm, respectively. Our results revealed higher antioxidant activity for the ethyl acetate and butanol extracts from fruit peels than cladodes.
Acknowledgements
The authors thank the Analysis and Characterization Center (CAC) of Cadi Ayyad University (Marrakech-Morocco) for their support.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).