Evaluation of the Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Activity of the Pulp of Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam (Moraceae)

Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam. (Moraceae) - Jackfruit beyond its culinary uses has been used to treat ailments ethnomedicinally. Its bark, leaves, seeds, and pulp are rich sources of bioactive compounds. This research aims to evaluate the antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of the pulp of the fruit; to identify the bioactive compounds present, that contributes these activities. The pulverised dried pulp was extracted using dichloromethane and methanol (1:1) and partitioned into respective fractions using n-hexane and methanol. Proximate analysis and Phytochemical screening were carried out using standard methods. Gas Chromatography - Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) were used for chemical profiling and detection of functional groups respectively. Antimicrobial activity testing was carried out, using the agar well diffusion assay. Antioxidant activity was evaluated using DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) assay. Proximate analysis showed the presence of moisture (16.96%), fibre (20.89%), carbohydrate (50.63%), protein (7.20%), ash (2.26%), and lipid (2.06%). The phytochemical screening revealed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, phenolics, saponins, carbohydrates, proteins, tannins, steroids/triterpenoids and phlobatannins. Ten compounds were identified from the GC-MS Analysis. The pharmacologically active compounds were 9,12-octadecadienoic acid methyl ester, 9,12,15-octadecatrienoic acid methyl ester, 1-docosene, and lycopersene. FTIR analysis revealed the presence of aliphatic hydrocarbons (alkane, alkene) and oxygenated functional groups (hydroxyl, esters, aldehydes, ketones, ethers). The methanol, n-hexane fractions and total extract exhibited antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Escherichia coli. Regarding antioxidant activity, the methanol, n-hexane fractions and total extract showed IC50 values of 39.191 µg/ml, 102.5 µg/ml and 70.10 µg/ml respectively. The results of this study demonstrates that Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam. possesses significant antimicrobial and antioxidant properties due to the presence of bioactive compounds and holds promising implications for pharmaceutical applications.