Untargeted metabolomic profiling of Prinsepia utilis Royle leaves by Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Quadrupole-Time of Flight-Mass Spectrometry

Prinsepia utilis Royle, native to the Himalayas, is esteemed in Chinese and Indian folk medicine for its diverse medicinal benefits, targeting arthritis, pain relief, bone disorders, and joint discomfort. This study examined the 25% aqueous methanol extract of P. utilis leaves using UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS, identifying 78 metabolites, 76 of which were reported for the first time in P. utilis. These included 64 phenolics represented by 56 flavonoids, 5 phenolic acids, 3 phenolic glycosides, 4 terpenoids, 2 lignan glycosides, and 8 other compounds, expanding the knowledge of its chemical composition. These findings lay a foundation for further research, providing insights into potential bioactive compounds and opening avenues for applications in natural product drug discovery, traditional medicine, and nutraceutical development, leveraging the plant's established traditional uses.

Antibacterial and Antioxidant Activities of Prinsepia utilis Royle Leaf and Seed Extracts

Our study was designed to screen the antibacterial potency of Princepia utilis leaf and seed extract and to measure their antioxidant effects, total phenol content, total flavonoid content, and total carbohydrate content. Collected samples were extracted by cold maceration. Hexane, ethyl acetate, methanol, and distilled water were used as extraction solvents. In the disc diffusion method, P. utilis ethyl acetate leaf extract was most prominent against Staphylococcus epidermis with a zone of inhibition (ZOI) of 13.83 mm. Similarly, methanolic leaf extract was most prominent against Staphylococcus aureus (ZOI-12.33 mm). Furthermore, the methanolic seed extract was most sensitive against Klebsiella pneumoniaee (ZOI-11.66 mm) Escherichia coli (ZOI-9.0 mm). The lowest minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values of 0.5 mg/mL and 0.6 mg/mL, respectively, were shown by ethyl acetate leaf extract against S. epidermis. Similarly, the highest values of MIC and MBC, i.e., 20.8 mg/mL and 33.3 mg/mL, respectively, were shown by hexane leaf extract against S. epidermidis. On the other hand, evaluation of antioxidant capacity revealed that ethyl acetate leaf extract showed the maximum antioxidant effect (IC₅₀: 66.69 μg/mL). The total flavonoid contents of different extracts were measured in the range of 37 ± 0.74 μg QE/mg dry extract weight (methanolic seed extract) to 321.84 ± 4.82 μg QE/mg dry extract weight (hexane seed extract). Likewise, the total polyphenol content ranged from the hexane leaf extract (17.33 ± 0.642 μg GAE/mg dry extract weight) to ethyl acetate leaf extract (62.56 ± 1.284 μg GAE/mg dry extract weight). We found a variation in total carbohydrate content in the range of 23.55 ± 1.125 μg glucose/mg dry extract weight (hexane leaf extract) to 96.63 ± 2.253 μg glucose/mg dry extract weight (aqueous leaf extract). Overall, this study revealed that leaf and seed extract of P. utilis exhibited noteworthy antibacterial effects against diverse pathogenic microorganisms.