Antioxidant Activity and Phenolic Content of Okoubaka aubrevillei (Anunuebe) Fruit Pychnobotrya nitida (Osu) Leaf Extracts

The antioxidant activity and the total phenolic content of Okoubaka aubrevillei (Anunuebe) and Pychnobotrya nitida (Osu) plant extracts were investigated in this study to justify their ethno medicinal importance. The antioxidant activity of crude extracts of both plants was investigated using the scavenging effect on DPPH (2, 2-Diphenyl-1-Picrylhydrazyl Radical) assay, while the total phenolic content was determined by the Folin-Ciocalteu reagent method. When compared to standard drug vitamin C at various concentrations, both extracts exhibited potent antioxidant activity that increased with increasing concentration of extracts. The high positive linear correlation between the antioxidant capacity and the total phenolic content suggests that the antioxidant capacity of both plants can be largely attributed to their phenolic compounds. Based on these findings, O. aubrevillei fruit and P. nitida leaf could be potential natural antioxidant sources for preventing free radical-induced diseases.