Abstract

Methanol extracts of herbs hitherto reported to have antisickling activity namely,Carica papaya leaf extract, Fagara zanthoxyloides root extract, Cajanus cajanseed extract and Parquetina nigrescens leaf extract, were evaluated in this study. An assessment of their antioxidation potential was determined by assaying for their phytochemical constituents, total phenol content, scavenging activity on 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and total antioxidant status through the ferric thiocyanate method. The extracts have similar phytochemical constituents and exhibited high scavenging activity compared to gallic acid and ascorbic acid standards due to their relatively high total phenol content. These findings suggest that C. papaya leaf extract, F. zanthoxyloides root extract, C. cajan seed extract and P. nigrescens leaf extract are endowed with antioxidant phytochemicals whichmay act singly or synergistically to potentiate the antisickling action of the plants.

Key words: Antioxidant activity, antisickling plants, phytochemicals, scavenging, sickle cell anemia.