PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING ON THE ANTIOXIDANT PROPERTIES OF Aerva lanata FLOWER EXTRACTS AND THEIR In vitro ANTI-PROLIFERATIVE EFFECTS ON HUMAN LIVER CANCER CELL LINE (HEPG-2) RUNNING HEAD-PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING OF FLOWER EXTRACTS OF Aerva lanata

Herbal plants possesses unique properties which are used as medicinal plants directly or indirectly in the treatments of various ailments. Among them Aerva lanata is believed to contain an important phytochemical antioxidant used in treatment of cancer. Based on the phytochemical screening, antioxidant assays, the determination of herbal properties of Aerva lanata flower especially in relation to cancer was made. Three solvents of varying polarity as methanol, ethyl acetate and hexane were used in obtaining crude extracts from shade dried Aerva lanata sample. Various analysis conducted include thin layer chromatography to check the components, quantitative processes for the determination of active phytochemical components possessed by the flower. The antioxidant properties of Aerva lanata flower were determined using various assaying techniques viz., DPPH, Phosphomolybdenum; metal chelation; nitric oxide; reducing power and hydroxyl radical scavenging assays respectively, while HEPG-2 cancer cell line was used in the detection of cytotoxic effects of various concentrations of the flower in vitro using MTT assay. Based on the biochemical screenings and assays, it has been found that Aerva lanata flower contains phytochemicals in measurable amounts; these constituents are effective solvent-wise with in most cases, the methanol extracts showing the highest activities. The cytotoxic effects was determined by MTT assay on HepG-2 cancer cell-line, the flower extract was found to inhibit the growth of cancerous cells concentration-wise.