Abstract

Background: Plants are believed to regulate different diseases through their antioxidant property. The primary aim of this investigation was to reveal the unknown antioxidant property of the leaf extract of Saraca asoca (SA). Method: Two different experiments were performed to evaluate the lipid peroxidation (LPO) inhibitory activity of SA leaf extract. The first experiment was conducted on carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄)-induced hepatic LPO. Second experiment was conducted to examine the DPPH free radical scavenging activity of the test plant. Results: A dose-specific effect was observed with 0.1gm and 0.05gm/ml of the extract appearing more effective than the remaining doses showing its ability to inhibit the tissue LPO. Finding of DPPH assay indicated that 0.008 gm/ml of the extract showed the highest antioxidant property, followed by 0.016gm and 0.032 gm/ml, both being more or less equally effective, further supporting the antioxidative property of Saraca asoca leaves. Conclusion: The total phenolic and flavonoid contents were found to be high. It appears that the observed antioxidant property of the SA extract might be associated with the high phenolic and flavonoid contents in the plant leaf extract. It is suggested that the antioxidant potential of the SA leaf extract may help in preventing or curing some LPO –induced diseases.