ellagic acid, garlic acid, jambosine, b-sitoterol, n-hentriacontane, gallotannin,
myricitrin, quercetin, myricetin, n-nonacosane, ellagicacids, n-hepatcosane, n-triacontanol, isoquercetin, malvidin-diglucosides, myricetin, betulinic acid, pinocarveol, cineole, oleanolic acid, b-sitosterol-D-glucoside, muurolol kaempferol,
myrtenol, eucarvone, noctacosanol, a-myrtenal, geranyl acetone, a-cadinol,
3-galloylglucose,
pinocarvone,
3,6-hexahydroxy
diphenoylglucose,
1-galloylglucose, 4,6-hexahydroxydiphenoylglucose, crategolic acid and flavonol
glycosides, myricetin 3-O-(4′′-acetyl)-a-L-rhamnopyranosides, a-terpeneol, were
also reported (Baliga et al. 2011). Bio-assays and mechanisms of action of
medicinal plants has been the interest in the area of pharmacognosy. The interest in
horticultural research on medicinal plants has been on optimal growth and yield in
cultivation. In this regards, bioactive compounds have been found to be good in
improving postharvest quality, crop immunity and growth parameters (Freire et al.
2015; Mustafa et al. 2014). Advancement in search for alternatives to synthetic
drugs and pesticides led to the wild harvesting of these plants yet the growth
conditions have not been optimized. The consequences could be loss of biodiversity, improper identification of plant and potential variation in medicinal plant
quality. Additionally, the feature of medicinal plants is seemingly being endangered
and by complacency regarding their preservation. Stocks and herbs of these plants
are in menace of extinction and diminishing in developing countries due to the
demands for the growing market for cheaper alternative healthcare products and
new plant-based therapeutic markets in preference to more expensive target-specific
drugs and biopharmaceuticals.
Extracts of plant origin are found to be the most pressing sources of natural
bioactive compounds and can be screened from local traditional plants (Mari et al.
2016; Freire et al. 2015). These plant bioactive compounds are extracted using
solvents of different polarities and are shown to acquire antidiabetic, antifungal,
antimicrobial, antioxidant and antibacterial properties etc. (Bhattacharjee and Dey
2014). Bioactive compounds obtainable from these plants have been shown to be
the best alternative for pharmaceutical drugs and chemical fungicides (Bahare et al.
2019; Mari et al. 2016; Sogvar et al. 2016). Extraction of these bioactive natural
compounds from species of medicinal plants is done by using various solvents and
methods of extraction. Bioactive natural compounds are mostly aromatic or organic
compounds that are saturated in nature. As a result, they are collected frequently
through initial extraction with ethanol or methanol. Ethyl aceted, hexane,
dicholro-methane, chloroform, acetone, butanol among others, and/or their appropriate ratio combination have been suggested by researchers (Gurjar et al. 2012) to
get the best solvent systems for their extraction. Filtration is a common method for
the extraction of bioactive natural compounds from plants which involves dissolving fresh ground sample (wet or dried) into certain volume of solvent, followed
by vigorous shaking and filtration after sometimes usually after 24 h. Serial
exhaustive is another extraction method for the bioactive compounds suggested by
Green and Beestman (2007) which includes successive extraction with solvents of
different polarity beginning from non-polar to higher polar solvents in order to
make necessary extraction of crucial quantum compounds with enough and
2 An Introduction to Bioactive Natural Products …
43
myricitrin, quercetin, myricetin, n-nonacosane, ellagicacids, n-hepatcosane, n-triacontanol, isoquercetin, malvidin-diglucosides, myricetin, betulinic acid, pinocarveol, cineole, oleanolic acid, b-sitosterol-D-glucoside, muurolol kaempferol,
myrtenol, eucarvone, noctacosanol, a-myrtenal, geranyl acetone, a-cadinol,
3-galloylglucose,
pinocarvone,
3,6-hexahydroxy
diphenoylglucose,
1-galloylglucose, 4,6-hexahydroxydiphenoylglucose, crategolic acid and flavonol
glycosides, myricetin 3-O-(4′′-acetyl)-a-L-rhamnopyranosides, a-terpeneol, were
also reported (Baliga et al. 2011). Bio-assays and mechanisms of action of
medicinal plants has been the interest in the area of pharmacognosy. The interest in
horticultural research on medicinal plants has been on optimal growth and yield in
cultivation. In this regards, bioactive compounds have been found to be good in
improving postharvest quality, crop immunity and growth parameters (Freire et al.
2015; Mustafa et al. 2014). Advancement in search for alternatives to synthetic
drugs and pesticides led to the wild harvesting of these plants yet the growth
conditions have not been optimized. The consequences could be loss of biodiversity, improper identification of plant and potential variation in medicinal plant
quality. Additionally, the feature of medicinal plants is seemingly being endangered
and by complacency regarding their preservation. Stocks and herbs of these plants
are in menace of extinction and diminishing in developing countries due to the
demands for the growing market for cheaper alternative healthcare products and
new plant-based therapeutic markets in preference to more expensive target-specific
drugs and biopharmaceuticals.
Extracts of plant origin are found to be the most pressing sources of natural
bioactive compounds and can be screened from local traditional plants (Mari et al.
2016; Freire et al. 2015). These plant bioactive compounds are extracted using
solvents of different polarities and are shown to acquire antidiabetic, antifungal,
antimicrobial, antioxidant and antibacterial properties etc. (Bhattacharjee and Dey
2014). Bioactive compounds obtainable from these plants have been shown to be
the best alternative for pharmaceutical drugs and chemical fungicides (Bahare et al.
2019; Mari et al. 2016; Sogvar et al. 2016). Extraction of these bioactive natural
compounds from species of medicinal plants is done by using various solvents and
methods of extraction. Bioactive natural compounds are mostly aromatic or organic
compounds that are saturated in nature. As a result, they are collected frequently
through initial extraction with ethanol or methanol. Ethyl aceted, hexane,
dicholro-methane, chloroform, acetone, butanol among others, and/or their appropriate ratio combination have been suggested by researchers (Gurjar et al. 2012) to
get the best solvent systems for their extraction. Filtration is a common method for
the extraction of bioactive natural compounds from plants which involves dissolving fresh ground sample (wet or dried) into certain volume of solvent, followed
by vigorous shaking and filtration after sometimes usually after 24 h. Serial
exhaustive is another extraction method for the bioactive compounds suggested by
Green and Beestman (2007) which includes successive extraction with solvents of
different polarity beginning from non-polar to higher polar solvents in order to
make necessary extraction of crucial quantum compounds with enough and
2 An Introduction to Bioactive Natural Products …
43