A green nutraceutical study of antioxidants extraction in cleome brachycarpa - An ethnomedicinal plant

A desert plant used in traditional medicine just revealed its hidden antioxidant power—and the green extraction method beats the old-school way by double.

For the first time, scientists put Cleome brachycarpa—an indigenous medicinal plant—under the extraction spotlight. They compared traditional Soxhlet with modern microwave-assisted and ultrasound-assisted methods, using seven solvents. The winner? Microwave-assisted extraction with methanol, recovering phytochemicals two-fold higher than the rest, at an efficiency of 370.57 ± 0.49 μg/mg.

The green extract was packed with polyphenols: phenolics at 74.17 ± 0.61 μg GAE/mg DW, flavonoids at 65.46 ± 0.40 μg QE/mg DW, and tannins at 55.97 ± 0.85 μg CE/mg DW. Its antioxidant muscle showed a DPPH radical scavenging activity of 81.37 ± 0.28%, with an IC50 of 0.30 mg/mL—matching the power of Trolox, a standard antioxidant. The ferric reducing potential also soared to 15.30 ± 0.30 μg GAE/mg DW.

The correlation between antioxidant capacity and polyphenol content was highly significant (p < 0.05), confirming that these compounds are the key players. This green nutraceutical study validates the ethnomedicinal value of Cleome brachycarpa, pointing to it as a promising candidate for isolating medicinal polyphenols.

Key Points

• Microwave-assisted extraction with methanol doubles phytochemical yield.
• Green extract shows DPPH scavenging on par with Trolox.
• Polyphenol content strongly correlates with antioxidant activity.