Comparative studies of phytochemical, antimicrobial and antioxidant studies between two Lamiaceae species of Ocimum tenuiflorum L. and Ocimum sanctum L. from the regions of Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India.

Tulsi is one of the most popular plant in history of India. Present investigation is to compare the phytochemical, antimicrobial and antioxidant parameters of organic solvent extracts of hexane, chloroform and methanol. Qualitative phytochemical tests were used to detect the presence of alkaloids, tannins, saponins, flavonoids, glycosides and phenols, while two quantitative methods; Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) and diphenyl -1, 2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) were used to determine the antioxidant potential. The antimicrobial activity was determined by Agar well diffusion method and was screened against seven micro organisms. The highest antioxidant activities were observed in the methanol extracts of each plant, while the hexane extract showed the least activity irrespective of the method used. The presence of active phytochemical substances with antioxidant activities may provide substantial basis for the use of these plants in ethnomedicine.