The in vitro Antioxidant Activity of n-Hexane Extract of Jatropha curcas L. Leaf

Oxidative stress is one of the well-recognized cause of many degenerative diseases. The antioxidant activities of many medicinal plants have been evaluated to obtain the alternative medicines for the prevention of oxidative damages. Jatropha curcas L. is a widely used plant. It has been used to treat many diseases. However, the antioxidant activity of its n-hexane extract has not been reported. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the in-vitro antioxidant activity of n-hexane extract of J. curcas L. leaf using DPPH free radical scavenging activity assay, reducing power activity assay and lipid peroxidation inhibition assay. The antioxidant activity of the extract was compared with trolox as reference standard. n-hexane extract of J. curcas L. leaf was found to be more capable in inhibiting lipid peroxidation process (IC50=56.629 μg/ml±2.145) than to scavenge DPPH· free radical (IC50=300.834 μg/ml±4.571). Data from reducing power activity assay indicated that this extract possessed higher reductive potential in inducing the Fe3+ ! Fe2+ transformation compared with control (P