EVALUATION OF MEDICINAL PROPERTIES OF MIXED EXTRACTS OF

SOME EDIBLE ROOTS

BY

NWOYE CYNTHIA C.
2018030186869

DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL CHEMISTRY,

FACULTY OF APPLIED NATURAL SCIENCES, ENUGU STATE
UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY.

SUPERVISOR
DR. EMMANUEL C. EZEH

DECEMBER, 2022
EVALUATION OF MEDICINAL PROPERTIES OF MIXED EXTRACTS OF
SOME EDIBLE ROOTS

BY

NWOYE CYNTHIA C.
2018030186869

A RESEARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF

INDUSTRIAL CHEMISTRY, FACULTY OF APPLIED NATURAL
SCIENCES, ENUGU STATE UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY. IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS
FOR THE AWARD OF BACHELOR OF SCIENCE DEGREE (B.Sc HONS) IN
INDUSTRIAL CHEMISTRY.

DECEMBER, 2022

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 DECLARATION

I declare that this project contains the report of my research work and has not

been presented in any previous application for similar purpose. All information from

other sources have been duly acknowledged by means of reference.

____________________ _____________________
Nwoye Cynthia C. Date

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 APPROVAL PAGE

This research work has been read and approved by the supervisor as having

met part of the requirements for the award of Bachelor of Science (B.Sc) Degree in

Industrial Chemistry by the Department of Industrial Chemistry, Faculty of Applied

Natural Sciences, Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Enugu.

____________________________ _______________________
Dr. Emmanuel C. Ezeh Date
Project Supervisor

_____________________________ _______________________
Dr. (Mrs.) I.P. Udeozo Date
H.O.D Industrial Chemistry

_____________________________ _______________________
External Supervisor Date

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 DEDICATION

This project work is dedicated to my beloved parents Mr. Nwoye Richard and

Mrs. Beatrice Nwoye who have been there, supporting and encouraging me.

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I owe God an irredeemable debt of gratitude and appreciation for the gift of

life and his underserved kindness which has seen me through this far.

My special thanks goes to my lecturer and supervisor Dr. Emmanuel C. Ezeh

who painstakingly went through this work and offered helpful criticisms to ensure the

realization of this refined piece of work. Words are not enough to describe your

immense contribution to this work, Sir, I am grateful for your encouragement, patient,

sacrifice love and kindness you extended to me before, and especially during the

period of research for this work. It is evident that your wealth of knowledge and

experience has been a motivation to me.

Also my gratitude goes to my Head of Department Dr. (Mrs.) I.P. Udeozo for

her contributions and also I wish to acknowledge other lecturers of the department of

industrial Chemistry; who have taught me at one point or the other. May God

continue to bless, protect and guide you all.

I am sincerely indebted to my parents Mr. Nwoye Richard and Mrs. Beatrice

Nwoye also my Siblings for being there for me, supporting and encouraging me at

times when I felt totally overwhelmed by the volume of work yet to be done they

came through for me in all.

Finally, my warmest thanks goes to my fellow students, God bless you all.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Cover Page

Title Page ii

Declaration iii

Certification iv

Dedication v

Acknowledgements vi

Table of Contents vii

List of Tables x

List of Figures xi

Abstracts xii

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study 1

1.2 Statement of the Problem 2

1.3 Aim and Objectives 3

1.3.1 Aim 3

1.3.2 Objectives 3

1.4 Significance of the Study 3

1.5 Scope and Delimitation of the Study 3

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Medicinal Plants Root 5

2.2 Selected Root Plants 6

2.2.1 Scent Leaf (Ocimum gratissimum) 6

2.2.2 Bitter Leaf (Vernonia amygdalina) 8

2.2.3 Drumstick Tree Root (Moringa Oleifera) 10

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2.3 Phytochemicals 13

2.4 Antioxidant Activity 13

2.5 Primary Metabolites 15

2.5.1 Carbohydrate 15

2.5.2 Protein 16

2.5.3 Lipids 16

2.6 Minerals 18

2.6.1 Calcium 18

2.6.2 Sodium 18

2.6.3 Potassium 19

2.6.4 Phosphorus 19

2.6.5 Magnesium 19

2.7 Secondary Metabolites 20

2.7.1 Alkaloid 20

2.7.2 Saponin 20

2.7.3 Steroids 21

2.7.4 Cardiac glycoside 22

2.7.5 Anthraquinone

22

2.7.6 Flavonoid 23

CHAPTER THREE: MATERIALS AND METHOD

3.1 Materials 24

3.2 Apparatus 25

3.3 Method 25

3.3.1 Collection of Root Samples 25

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3.3.2 Preparation and Treatment of Samples 26

3.3.3 Quantitative Phytochemical Screening 26

3.3.4 Quantitative Method of Phytochemicals 30

CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

4.1 Results 33

4.2 Discussion 36

CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION

5.1 Conclusion 41

References 42

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 LIST OF TABLES

Table 4.1: Quantitative Analysis 33

Table 4.2: Qualitative Phytochemical Analysis 34

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 LIST OF FIGURES

Fig. 1: Root of Scent Leaf (Ocimum gratissimum) 8

Fig. 2: Root of Bitter Leaf (Vernonia amygdalina) 10

Fig. 3: Drumstick tree root (Moringa Oleifera) 13

Fig. 4: Nicotine structure 20

Fig. 5: Tetracyclic triterpenoid 21

Fig. 6: Steroid general structure 21

Fig. 7: Testosterone 21

Fig. 8: Glycoside structure 22

Fig. 9: Alizarine structure 22

Fig. 10: Flavonoid structural skeleton 23

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 Abstracts

Plants in their natural habitats have been of tremendous nutritional value containing
innumerable phytocompounds with immense chemical compositions. However, plant
roots derived compounds that possess antibacterial potential are currently being
investigated for treatment of wound infections in patients as they are inexpensive and
non-toxic. Hence, this research is designed to evaluate medicinal properties of mixed
extracts of three edible plant roots (Moringa Oleifera, Ocimum gratissimum and
Vernonia amygdalina) traditionally used in the treatment of various diseases such as
diabetes, etc. The phytochemical analyses were assessed using standard published
methods. Identification of bioactive components in essential oils of each plants root
were assessed. The aqueous and ethanol extracts of these plants root were also
evaluated to identify bioactive components. The results of the phytochemical analysis
revealed the presence of phenols, tannins, flavanoids, flavanols, proanthocyanidins,
saponins and alkaloids in the plants root. The plants root indicated strong antioxidant
activities which might be due to the presence of bioactive compounds. The aqueous
and ethanol root extracts of root plants demonstrated appreciable broad spectrum
activities against these wound pathogens and the analysis carried out on aqueous and
ethanol root extracts of the samples showed that they are rich in alkaloids, terpenes,
terpenoids, monoterpernoids, and flavanoids. Conclusively, this study has partially
justified the ethnomedicinal use of Moringa Oleifera, Ocimum gratissimum and
Vernonia amygdalina roots for the treatment of various diseases, including diabetes
and wound infections. These may be attributed to the presence of antioxidant
compound such as phenols, flavanoids, saponins, tannins, alkaloids and other
phytochemical compounds.

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