Qualitative phytochemical screening and extraction yield of whole plant of ethno-medicinal fern Drynaria quercifolia (L.) J. Smith

Abstract

The present investigation has been carried out on the qualitative phytochemical screening and extraction yield of the whole plant of the ethno-medicinal fern Drynaria quercifolia (L.) J. Smith. The present work is the first study reporting information on these ethno-medicinal ferns with respect to the whole plant parts. Phytochemical screening of immature and mature fronds of D. quercifolia was performed, and the results indicate that alkaloids were absent in immature fronds for aqueous, ethanol, and hexane extracts, but present in methanol, ethyl acetate, and petroleum ether extracts, while absent in ethanol and hexane extracts. Alkaloids were completely absent in all extracts of both immature and mature sterile fronds. Carbohydrates, flavonoids, coumarins, phenols, proteins, amino acids, and saponins were consistently present in all solvent extracts of both immature and mature fronds, indicating their abundance and solvent-soluble nature. Flavonoids, coumarins, phenols, and proteins/amino acids were consistently present in all solvent extracts of both immature and mature rhizomes. The highest extraction yield was obtained with methanol Soxhlet extraction of Immature fronds (15.14 ± 0.05%), mature rhizome (15.40 ± 0.21%), and mature Sterile Fronds (11.53 ± 0.37%). These findings highlight that both solvent polarity and extraction method play crucial roles in optimizing phytochemical yield. Phytochemical screening and extract yield of medicinal plants are important in identifying new sources of valuable compounds having medicinal significance to make the best and thoughtful use of available natural wealth.