Vegetos
(An International Journal of Plant Research & Biotechnology)
Bioactivity profiling of Schefflera venulosa (Wight & Arn.) Harms leaf extracts: insights into antibacterial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory potentials
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Research Articles | Published: 24 August, 2025
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Keywords: Phytochemicals, Secondary metabolites, ESKAPE, Antimicrobial, Anti-inflammatory
Abstract
Schefflera venulosa, an evergreen shrub used in traditional medicine of Northeast India for treating wounds and inflammation, was investigated for its phytochemical composition and bioactivities. Leaves were extracted successively with hexane, ethyl acetate, hydroalcohol (ethanol–water), and aqueous solvents. Phytochemical analysis has revealed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, glycosides, saponins, steroids, and terpenoids in the extracts. The ethyl acetate extract (EAE) showed the highest yield and contained the highest total phenolic (224.57 ± 0.5 mg GAE/g) and flavonoid content (143.46 ± 0.7 mg QE/g). EAE also exhibited the strongest antioxidant activity in free-radical scavenging assays, comparable to standard antioxidants. In antibacterial assays against three ESKAPE pathogens (Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Klebsiella pneumoniae), only EAE demonstrated pronounced activity with inhibition zones up to ~ 31 mm at 50 µg/mL, comparable to the standard antibiotic ciprofloxacin. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of EAE were 50 µg/mL against P. aeruginosa, and 100 µg/mL against K. pneumoniae and S. aureus. Furthermore, EAE exhibited significant in vitro anti-inflammatory effects in a human red blood cell membrane stabilization assay, indicating protection against heat- and hypotonicity-induced hemolysis (comparable to diclofenac at 200 µg/mL, p < 0.05). These findings provide the first scientific report on the phytochemical profile and bioactivities of S. venulosa from Northeast India and strongly suggest its potential as a source of new antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory agents to combat infections and inflammation.
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Author Information
Centre for Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Dibrugarh University, Dibrugarh, India