Comprehensive Analysis of Brassica oleracea: Phytochemical Composition, Radical Scavenging, and Anti-Proliferative Activity

Abstract

Background: Natural sources like plants, vegetables, and fruits contain vast micro and macro nutrients that are useful for livelihood and also act as a medicine for various health conditions. Brassica vegetable naturally contains high antioxidant property which aids in removing free radicals caused by organelles during cellular process. The study aims at preparing Brassica oleracea extracts using a range of polar and non-polar solvents and to evaluate its phytochemical, antioxidant and cytotoxicity properties. Methods: Brassica oleracea was extracted using hexane, ethyl acetate and ethanol. All the extracts were subjected to phytochemical analysis and antioxidant activity was performed using DPPH method. The antiproliferative activity was perfomed on THP-1 cells by MTT assay. The extract showing maximum activity was then characterized using FTIR and GCMS. Results: The extract study infers positive results for major secondary metabolites (alkaloids, glycosides, proteins, phenols, tannins, steroids, flavonoids, terpenoids and diterpenes) and negative for quinones and coumarins. DPPH radical scavenging assay showed high antioxidant activity for ethanol extracts 45-91% at 5μg/mL followed by ethyl acetate (37%-80%) and hexane extract (23%-73%). The anti-proliferative activity in THP-1 cells, revealed that the ethanolic extract significantly decreases cell viability relative to hexane and ethyl acetate extracts, indicating its potential as a natural anticancer drug. Conclusion: Cytotoxicity studies further demonstrated a concentration dependent effect on cell viability, indicating its potential bioactivity. The structural analysis performed with FTIR and GC-MS revealed important functional groups and bioactive compounds that could play a role in these effects.