CHARACTERIZATION OF PHENOLIC CONTENT AND ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITIES OF FERN SPECIES USED BY MALAYS IN TRADITIONAL MEDICINE (PENCIRIAN KANDUNGAN FENOLIK DAN AKTIVITI ANTIMIKROB OLEH SPESIS PAKU PAKIS YANG DIGUNAKAN OLEH MASYARAKAT MELAYU DALAM PERUBATAN TRADISIONAL)

Authors

  • Razanah Ramya Institute of the Malay World and Civilization The National University of Malaysia 43600 Bangi Selangor
  • Rashidi Othman Herbarium Unit Department of Landscape Architecture Kulliyyah of Architecture and Environmental Design International Islamic University Malaysia 53100 Kuala Lumpur
  • Farah Ayuni Mohd Hatta Institute of Islam Hadhari The National University of Malaysia 43600 Bangi Selangor Darul Ehsan Malaysia
  • Wan Syibrah Hanisah Wan Sulaiman International Institute for Halal Research and Training International Islamic University Malaysia 53100 Kuala Lumpur Malaysia
  • Nur Hanie Mohd Latif International Institute for Halal Research and Training International Islamic University Malaysia 53100 Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

Abstract

Abstract 

In the past, ferns were traditionally used by the people as food, medicine, domestic use, ornamental plants and in many handicrafts. However, studies have shown that ferns produce a variety of secondary metabolites that display many bioactivities that can help treat diseases. Thus, they are popularly used in Malay traditional medicines. In this study, the researchers evaluated 3 fern species namely piai raya (Acrostichum aureum), paku midin (Stenochlaena palustris) and paku resam (Dicranopteris linearis) for their total phenolic content, individual phenolic compounds and their probable antimicrobial activities. For this purpose, the leaves of the A. aureum, S. palustris and D. linearis were extracted using the water extraction technique, followed by the solvent re-extraction of the supernatant using petroleum ether, ethyl acetate and butanol. Thereafter, these fractional extracts qualitatively and quantitatively using the HPLC analysis and also tested their antimicrobial activities against pathogenic microorganisms. The findings of the study indicated that A. aureum extracts contained the highest total phenolic content, followed by the S. palustris and D. linearis extracts. Furthermore, the HPLC analysis indicated that the A. aureum extracts contained a higher number of phenolic acid compounds compared to the S. palustris and D. linearis extracts, such as Vanillic acid and 3-Coumaric acid (0.51 µg/g DW), 4-Hydroxybenzoic acid (0.35 µg/g DW), Ferulic acid (0.27 µg/g DW), Caffeic acid (0.18 µg/g DW) and trans-p-Coumaric acid (0.06 µg/g DW). When the researchers tested the compounds for their antimicrobial activities, all 3 fern species showed active antibacterial activity than antifungal activity. The researchers concluded that the medicinal herbs that showed good bioactivity with a higher phenolic content could be introduced as a medicinal drug for improving public health. However, additional research needs to be conducted for optimising the isolation and the purification of the bioactive compounds, for any future applications. 

Keywords: Ferns, Acrostichum aureum, Stenochlaena palustris, Dicranopteris linearis, medicine, ethnoscience

 

Abstrak 

Sejak sekian lama, spesies paku pakis telah digunakan secara tradisional oleh masyarakat sebagai sumber makanan, ubat-ubatan, penggunaan domestik, tanaman hiasan dan penghasilan kraftangan. Walau bagaimanapun, terdapat kajian lepas yang melaporkan bahawa paku pakis boleh menghasilkan metabolit sekunder dan menunjukkan bioaktiviti dalam membantu merawat penyakit. Selain itu, paku pakis juga banyak digunakan secara langsung sebagai perubatan tradisi masyarakat Melayu. Dalam kajian ini, penyelidik telah mengkaji jumlah kandungan fenolik, sebatian individu fenolik dan aktiviti anti-mikrob terhadap tiga spesies paku pakis iaitu piai raya (Acrostichum aureum), paku midin (Stenochlaena palustris) dan paku resam (Dicranopteris linearis). Bagi mencapai tujuan kajian ini, daun daripada A. aureum, S. palustris dan D. linearis diekstrak menggunakan teknik pengekstrakan air, kemudian hasil supernatan akan diulang ekstrak menggunakan pelarut berbeza seperti petroleum eter, etil asetat dan butanol. Seterusnya, setiap ekstrak dianalisis secara kualitatif dan kuantitatif menggunakan HPLC serta melakukan ujian anti-mikrob terhadap mikroorganisma patogen. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan jumlah kandungan fenolik dalam ekstrak A. aureum adalah tinggi diikuti oleh S. palustris dan D. linearis. Manakala analisis terhadap sebatian individu fenolik menggunakan HPLC menunjukkan ekstrak A. aureum juga adalah tinggi berbanding S. palustris dan D. linearis seperti asid vanilik dan asid 3-kumarik (0.51µg/g DW), asid ferulik (0.27 µg/g DW), asid kafeik (0.18 µg/g DW) dan trans-p-kumarik (0.06 µg/g DW). Hasil ujian terhadap aktiviti anti-mikrob terhadap ketiga-tiga spesies paku pakis tersebut menunjukkan kesan aktif aktiviti antibakteria berbanding anti-fungi. Kesimpulannya, ubatan herba yang menunjukkan bioaktiviti baik adalah tumbuhan yang mengandungi kandungan fenolik yang tinggi, ia dapat diperkenalkan sebagai ramuan ubatan dalam meningkatkan kesihatan masyarakat. Namun demikian, penyelidikan yang mendalam harus dilaksanakan bagi mengoptimumkan sebatian bioaktif melalui kaedah pengasingan dan penulenan untuk kegunaan pada masa hadapan. 

Kata kunci: Paku pakis, Acrostichum aureum, Stenochlaena palustris, Dicranopteris linearis, perubatan, etnosains.

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Published

2021-12-14

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 2 (2021)

Section

Language & Heritage