Phytochemical and biological investigation of 5 bioactive fractions of Caralluma acutangula, a medicinal plant used in traditional medicine in northern of Burkina Faso

Caralluma acutangula is a medicinal plant used in traditional medicine in Africa against various pathologies. The objective of this study is to contribute to a better understanding of the biological activity of 5 fractions from Caralluma acutangula which can be used against the harmful effects of oxidative stress. Oxidative stress is most often associated with various diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, etc. So the 5 fractions, namely the Hexanic, Dichloromethane (DCM), ethyl acetate (AE), butanolic and aqueous fraction have been used for the determination of their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potential through different method. Their phytochemical content was also determined. Flavonoids, alkaloids, tannins and coumarins have been detected in the different fractions. The ethyl acetate fraction of C. acutangula gives the best total polyphenol and flavonoid content respectively of 337.67 ± 7.26 mg EAG/g of extract and 21.65 ± 1.16 mg EQ/g of extract. For the inhibition of hydrogen peroxide, the fractions AE and DCM showed the best activity with 29.84 ± 1.59 and 28.53 ± 2.81% greater inhibition than that of the gallic acid (14.19 ± 0.70) used as a reference. For the effect of the fractions on the lipoxygenase at the concentration of 1 mg/ml, we have the hexanic fraction which exhibited the best activity with an inhibition of the enzyme at 67.21 ± 4.13%. The ethyl acetate fraction in general has shown good potential against oxidative stress. This fraction could therefore be used in the formulation of a phytomedicine against oxidative stress and its associated diseases.