Title: Exploring the Antioxidant, Antimicrobial, and Metabolic Modulating Activities of Gynostemma pentaphyllum Extracts: Implications for Blood Lipid and Glucose Regulation
Authors: Tran Vy Anh, Le Mai Quoc Bao
Volume: 9
Issue: 9
Pages: 89-95
Publication Date: 2025/09/28
Abstract:
Gynostemma pentaphyllum (G. pentaphyllum), recognized for its long-standing application in Asian material medica, continues to be a subject of inquiry for its hypoglycaemic, hypolipidaemic, and cardioprotective effects. The present study undertakes a comparative phytochemical and pharmacological appraisal of decoctions and ethanolic macerated extracts, using a specific Vietnamese ecotype of the species, in order to elucidate the influence of solvent selection on the bioactive profile of the material. Antimicrobial, antioxidant, ?-glucosidase and lipase inhibitory assays serve as functional assays of therapeutic potential. Comprehensive phytochemical screening, employing standard reagents and chromatographic techniques, disclosed a far denser array of constituents in the ethanolic macerate, comprising gallic and caffeic acid derivatives, indolic alkaloids, a range of flavanol and flavan-3-ol glycosides, along with steroid and triterpene saponins. The aqueous decoction, in contrast, presented only flavanol aglycones and simple phenolics. The superiority of the ethanolic extract in all evaluated biological assays proceeded in the order of magnitude from antioxidant to lipase inhibition. Notably, its antioxidant capacity, measured by DPPH radical scavenging, was nearly 40 times greater than the aqueous extract (IC50=0.317 mg/mL). The ethanoic extract was noted to have unusual glucosidase inhibitory potential with an IC50 of 0.181 mg/mL, more than two-fold the positive control, Acarbose (IC50=0.411 mg/mL). Ethanoic extract of Vietnamese G. pentaphyllum might have greater therapeutic efficacy than previously believed, especially with the treatment of type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and highlights the usefulness of contemporary solvent extraction methods over traditional decoction in concentrating bioactive compounds.