Abstracto

Nutritional Properties and Antioxidant Activity of Chrysophyllum africanum Leaves and Pulp

Nwaogwugwu Joel Caleb,

The aim of this study was to determine the chemical composition and antioxidant activity of methanol extract of Chrysophyllum africanum leaves and pulp. Results revealed that the leaves contain considerable amounts of minerals and vitamins as follows: 14.14 mg/100 g for iron, 2.37 mg/100g for potassium, 1434.38 mg/100 g for manganese, 82.71 mg/100 g for magnesium, 185.49 mg/100g for calcium, 28.33 mg/kg for ascorbic acid, 13.33 mg/kg for thiamine and 55.83 mg/kg for pyridoxine. Furthermore, it was found that both the leaves and pulps were also rich in the following: 297.49-304.94 mg QE/100 g for total flavonoids, 2086.98-2304.72 mg GAE/100 g for total phenolics, 1.6-96400 mg/kg for citric acid and 130.23-515.23 mg/100 g for tannins. Our results therefore demonstrate that could serve as supplementary source of essential nutrients and antioxidant components with health benefits.