Biological activities and phytochemicals of Hyptis capitata grown in East Kalimantan, Indonesia

Abstract

Hyptis capitata is a plant in the family of Lamiaceae used to prevent wound infection and as an antidote for food poisoning by the Bentian people, a local tribe in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Of the plants in the Lamiaceae family, the biological activities and phytochemical studies of H. capitata are less reported. This work aims to investigate the phytochemicals and biological activities of H. capitata grown at two locations in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Leaves of H. capitata collected from location 1, Samarinda (coded by HSM), and location 2, West Kutai areas (coded by HWK), were macerated using ethanol. The biological activities of the plant were evaluated in terms of antimicrobial and antioxidant activity, and cytotoxicity against Artemia salina, while phytochemicals were analyzed by qualitative and quantitative tests. The results showed that leaf extract of H. capitata contains alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, carbohydrates, and coumarins. HSM possessed higher phenolic and flavonoid content than that of HWK. HWK displayed more antimicrobial activity against the test microorganisms particularly P. acnes (29%), S. sobrinus (49%), S. aureus (51%), and E. coli (45%). HSM showed more radical scavenging activity in 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (IC50 13.69 μg/ml) and superoxide (IC50 65.11 μg/ml) tests. Brine shrimp lethality test showed no toxicity of H. capitata leaf extracts. The results displayed that H. capitata collected from the two locations showed good antibacterial and antioxidant activities. The results suggested that the biological activities and phytochemicals of H. capitata were affected by the environment where the plant was collected. A study into deep analysis of the effect of light intensity, temperature, soil nutrition, and predatory risks to the biological activity and phytochemicals of the plant is required.