Proximate, phytochemical and micronutrient compositions of Dialium guineense and Napoleona imperialis plant parts

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the proximate, phytochemicals and micronutrient analysis of Dialium guineense and Napoleona imperialis plant parts. The proximate, phytochemicals and micronutrient analysis of Dialium guineense and Napoleona imperialis plant parts were analyzed using standard methods. The qualitative and quantitative findings showed the presence of rich bioactive compounds such as alkaloid (0.11-0.98%), saponin (0.21-0.99%), tannin (0.10-0.99)%, flavonoid (0.11-0.88)%, glycoside (0.001-0.089)%, quinone ( 0.003-0.89)%, steroid (0.10-0.89) % and reducing sugar (0.0005-0.99)%. The proximate analysis revealed that the dominant components were ash D. guineense (73.6-90%) and N. imperialis (94.7-95.45%), moisture - D. guineense (5.8-20%) and N. imperialis (7.6-25%), while carbohydrate, protein, fibre and fat contents were relatively low. The vitamin content of the different parts of D. guineense and N. imperialis showed that a total of 6 vitamins were present. Vitamin C showed the highest concentration between 0.57 and 0.98 mg/ml, while vitamin D between 0.02 and 0.06 mg/ml showed the lowest concentration. Among the analyzed minerals, magnesium content was the highest (0.12-0.87) mg/100 g followed by calcium (0.054-0.56) mg/100 g and zinc (0.04-0.09) mg/100 g; however, the other elements were found at very low amounts. The plant samples were shown to possess significant amount of nutrients and phytochemicals, suggesting its beneficial effect in enhancing metabolic processes via enzyme activation hence its ethno-medicinal potential.