Characterization of the Major Flavonoid From Acacia nilotica Roots and Constituents of Cassia fistula and Eucalyptus camaldulensis Oils and Their Biological Activity

Abstract

The roots of Acacia nilotica subspecies tomentoza were screened for major secondary metabolites. Phytochemical screening revealed the presence of flavonoids , tannins, steroids and alkaloids. From the roots a flavonoid-compound I- was isolated by TLC in a chromatographically pure form. The structure of this flavonoid was elucidated by a combination of spectral tools (UV, 1HNMR and MS).It was assigned the following tentative structure:

I Furthemore, the total extract, chloroform ethyl acetate and n-butanol fractions of roots were evaluated for their antimicrobial activity and excellent results were obtained for some fractions. The oils from two key species in Sudanese ethnomedicine-Cassia fistula and Eucalyptus camaldulensis were analyzed by GC-MS. The analysis showed 29 components for Eucalyptus camaldulensis and 25 components for Cassia fistula. The oils were assessed for antimicrobial activity and promising results were obtained.