Abstract
Momordica species are vegetable crops widely distributed in warmer regions of the world. In this work, we describe the antioxidant, enzyme inhibitory and anti-inflammatory effects of the leaves from three different species of Momordica. The present investigation was initially carried out to explore the possible link between antioxidant, enzyme inhibitory property of Momordica leaf extract and their total phenolic and flavonoid contents. The anti-inflammatory activity was tested by using carrageenan-induced paw edema. Our results illustrated an enhanced antioxidant power of wild species comparable with a commercial variety. In addition, the leaf extract of M. dioica (200 mg/kg) presented a significant anti-inflammatory activity toward carrageenan-induced paw edema in Wistar rats in comparison to indomethacin (10 mg/kg). The contents of flavonoids and total phenolic compounds could be correlated with the antioxidant and enzymes inhibition activities. The major bioactive compounds of phenolic acids and flavonoids such as gallic acid, chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, ferulic acid, ellagic acid, catechin, rutin, and quercetin were identified. Our findings suggest that wild Momordica species contains higher potential antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities than a commercial variety does, which could be tested as drug candidates against oxidative and inflammation-related pathological processes.
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