Phytochemical analysis, free radical scavening and antibacterial activity of Azadirachta indica (Margosa) leaves

Azadirachta indica (Margosa) has been used for a long time in agriculture and alternative medicine. Margosa had been proved effective against microbial which could affect human body and high antioxidant to reduce free radical. This is a laboratory-controlled prospective study conducted at Universiti Teknologi Mara. This study aims to analyse qualitative and quantitative phytochemical and evaluate antioxidant properties of various alcoholic leaf extracts of Margosa and demonstrate the antibacterial effect of Malaysian Margosa leaf extracts against Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis at different temperatures and times. Preliminary phytochemical analysis for phenols and flavonoids and quantitative phytochemicals for total phenolics content and total flavonoids content were made by following standard procedures. In vitro antioxidant activity of different leaf extracts was evaluated by assessing DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) method. The antibacterial potential of various alcoholic leaf extracts was tested using Agar well diffusion method. The quantitative phytochemical analysis of this species exhibited the presence of total phenolics content and total flavonoids content. The antioxidant activity of the species, Azadirachta indica clearly demonstrated that leaf part has prominent antioxidant properties. The leaf extracts showed inhibition against both bacteria Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis. From this study, it can be concluded that the species Azadirachta indica (Margosa) leaf part has the potential to be a powerful antioxidant and antibacterial activity against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria.