PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY OF NIGELLA SATIVA (BLACK SEED)

Abstract

ABSTRACT Nigella sativa is an annual herb of the Ranunculaceae family, known by the common name “black seed”. It is widely distributed plant native to Arab countries and other parts of the Mediterranean region. In phytochemical analysis, the seed extracts were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The qualitative screening showed the presence of Alkaloids, Flavonoids, Saponins, Tannins, Cardiac glycosides, Steroids and Volatile oils. While the quantitative screening, showed that Alkaloids (1.40 ± 0.20), Flavonoids (15.40 ± 0.20), Tannins (0.02 ± 0.00), Saponins (1.33 ± 0.23), Steroids (6.00 ± 1.73) and Glycosides (0.13 ± 0.00). For antioxidant activity, different concentrations (40, 60, 80, and 100mg/ml) of the methanolic extract of black seed were tested for the degree of inhibition of DPPH but only 80mg/ml showed the highest percentage of inhibition. The results from this study prove the extensive use of the seeds of this plant in ethnomedicine and its potentials in food drug formulation.