Proximate, Mineral and Phytochemical Analysis of Piliostigma Thonningii Stem Bark and Roots

Proximate, mineral and phytochemical composition of Piliostigma thonningii stem bark and roots was investigated to determine the level of bioactive chemicals in the plant. The result revealed that proximate composition of Piliostigma thonningii stem bark (PSSB) contained moisture 7.11 %, dry matter (DM) 92.89 %, crude protein (CP) 4.22 %, crude fibre (CF) 52.81 %, ether extract (EE) 0.08 %, ash 8.11 %, carbohydrate 20.12 %, Nitrogen free extract (NFE) 26.67 % and energy 488.7 KJ/100g while Piliostigma thonningii root (PSSR) contained 8.34 % moisture, 91.66 % (DM), 7.40 % (CP), 41.60 % (CF), 2.10 % (EE), 12.80 % ash, 42.30 % carbohydrates, 27.76 % (NFE) and energy 922.6 KJ/100g. Mineral analysis of PSSB revealed the presence of Ca (55.19 mg/100g), P (29.93 mg/100g), Mg (40.10 mg/100g), K (18.73 mg/100g), Zn (12.09 mg/100g), Mn (3.11 mg/100g), Na (20.40 mg/100g), Cu (8.01 mg/100g), Fe (48.12 mg/100g), Cr (0.010 mg/100g), Cd (0.028 mg/100g), Co (0.021 mg/100g), Se (0.28 mg/100g) and Pb (0.010 mg/100g) while PSSR contained Ca (87.63 mg/100g), P (43.12 mg/100g), K (21.08 mg/100g), Mg (48.75 mg/100g), Zn (18.01 mg/100g), Mn (7.32 mg/100g), Fe (53.17 mg/100g), Na (22.72 mg/100g), Cu (12.54 mg/100g), Co (0.048 mg/100g), Cr (0.002 mg/100g), Se (1.56 mg/100g), Cd (0.040 mg/100g) and Pb (0.016 mg/100g). Phytochemical analysis of PSSR showed that it contained significant amount of bioactive chemicals of alkaloids (7.23 %), flavonoids (5.10 %), terpenoids (0.71 %), hydrolysable tannins (2.41 %), condensed tannins (0.10 %), phenols (5.02 %), saponins (0.17 %), steroids (2.00 %), phytates (0.77 %), glycosides (0.08 %) and cyanates (0.03 %) relative to alkaloids (5.11%), flavonoids (3.46 %), terpenoids (0.49 %), hydrolysable tannins (1.92 %), condensed tannins (0.19 %), phenols (4.00 %), saponins (0.22 %), steroids (1.18 %), phytates (0.51 %), glycosides (0.10 %) and cyanates (0.15 %) found in PSSB. It was concluded that PSSR contained appreciable amount of minerals and bioactive chemicals and could be considered as a potential alternative to antibiotics in livestock production