green extraction, antioxidant, and hepatoprotective evaluation of calotropis procera leaf extract

The present study investigated the antioxidant and hepatoprotective potential of a methanolic leaf extract of calotropis procera obtained by cold maceration. physicochemical evaluation revealed total ash (5.1 % w/w), acid-insoluble ash (1.28% w/w), and water-soluble ash (3.81 % w/w), serving as diagnostic parameters for standardization. preliminary phytochemical screening confirmed the presence of flavonoids, phenolics, alkaloids, terpenoids, glycosides, tannins, and saponins, which are known for their pharmacological activities. the extract demonstrated potent in vitro antioxidant capacity, with ic₅₀ values of 2.88 µg/ml for dpph (p < 0.001) and 5.27 µg/ml for hydrogen peroxide scavenging (p < 0.001), significantly lower than those of ascorbic acid (12.60 and 69.22 µg/ml, respectively), while exhibiting a concentration-dependent increase in reducing power up to 100 µg/ml. in vivo, paracetamol administration (2 g/kg) induced hepatotoxicity in rats, as evidenced by elevated serum ast (109.33 iu/l), alt (137.33 iu/l), alp (152.16 iu/l), bilirubin (1.263 mg/dl), and lipid peroxidation (7.295 m/mg protein), along with depleted gsh (12.71 m/mg protein), sod (222.83), and cat (11.80 µm). treatment with c. procera extract (100 and 200 mg/kg) significantly reversed these changes (p < 0.001 for major biochemical markers) in a dose-dependent manner. at 200 mg/kg, ast and alt levels were reduced to 81.26 and 74.06 iu/l, bilirubin decreased to 1.002 mg/dl, and gsh, sod, and cat were restored to 15.99 m/mg protein, 281.07, and 14.17 µm, respectively. hematological indices including rbc, hb, pcv, and wbc also improved (p < 0.01–0.001). histological analysis confirmed the attenuation of necrosis and fatty degeneration. these findings established that c. procera is a promising hepatoprotective agent with strong antioxidant mechanisms underlying its efficacy.