Abstract

The purpose of this study was to understand and investigate the phytochemical and antimicrobial effects of different fractions of the methanolic extract of Corchorus capsularis leaf. For the extraction of lipophilic compounds with the help of methanol solvent system, cold extraction process was used, where the grinded coarse powder of the leaf was soaked in methanol and kept for four days for proper extraction. After that, the extract was concentrated by using rotatory evaporator and dried in room temperature. Compounds in the extract were separated according to their polarity by using vacuum liquid chromatography (VLC) and solvents of different polarity N-hexane, benzene, diethyl ether, chloroform, dichloromethane. Later, thin layer chromatography (TLC), flavonoid assay, disk diffusion, inhibitory action in nutrient broth was done for different fractions of the methanolic extract. Diethyl ether, chloroform, dichloromethane fractions showed good anti-oxidant property but poor antibacterial activity against different types of microorganism. Chloroform fraction showed good inhibitory activity against Aspergilus niger (fungus) in nutrient broth.

Key words: Corchorus capsularis, vacuum liquid chromatography (VLC), thin layer chromatography (TLC), disc diffusion method, nutrient broth, Bangladesh.