Known for its high nutritional and medicinal value, okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) is commonly used for replacing plasma and expanding blood volume in humans. It is a major economic crop cultivated in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. The present study aimed to investigate and evaluate the nutritional properties and prospective applications of the consumable parts of okra. The total ash content (mineral content), carbohydrate, crude fiber, fat, protein, and moisture fractions of okra pod aqueous extract were determined. The results show that okra aqueous extract contained 84.670–87.650% moisture, 1.514–1.197% ash, 7.857–8.261% carbohydrate, 2.367–3.410% crude protein, and 6.781–8.314% crude fiber. Okra was determined to have high nutritional value, with γ-tocopherol and α-tocopherol contents about 2.67 mg/100 g and 1.62 mg/100 g, respectively. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was performed to determine the sugars present in okra aqueous extract. The water-soluble polysaccharide content was 10.22–16.45 g/100 g. The tested aqueous extract was a rich source of total phenolic compounds in gallic acid equivalents (288.2–3426.2 mg/100 g), chlorophyll a (3.53 mg/100), chlorophyll b (2.43 mg/100), and carotenoids (1.3 mg/100 g). The detected minerals were Ca, Mg, Cu, Zn, Fe, K, Na, and Mn. Atomic absorption spectrometry analysis of these ashed minerals was performed. In addition to the nutritional benefits, okra pods exhibited antimicrobial, anticancer, and antioxidant properties. The aqueous extract was found to be potentially active against bacterial strains of Staphylococcus aureus (MIC value = 21.8 mg/mL), Escherichia coli (MIC value = 18.7 mg/mL), Bacillus cereus (MIC value = 20.7 mg/mL), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (MIC value = 20.2 mg/mL). Okra aqueous extract exhibited inhibitory activity against α-amylase (IC₅₀ = 120 µg/mL) and α-glucosidase (IC₅₀ = 115 µg/mL). The okra extract exhibited high anticancer activity, concentration-dependent and with an IC₅₀ value of about 158.3 mg/mL. The results indicated that okra pods have nutritional and medicinal properties and, hence, can be used as a functional food and broad-spectrum nutraceutical supplement.

The present study aimed to examine anti-microbial, anti-oxidant and cytotoxicity in leaf extract of Ricinus communis extract (in different solvent). The leaf powder of R. communis was extracted using different solvents. The anti-bacterial activity of the extracts was determined by agar well and disc diffusion method. The extracts were also subjected to phytochemical analysis. The anti-oxidant activity of the extracts was evaluated using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), alkaline DMSO, deoxyribose and nitric oxide scavenging assay. The cytotoxicity of the extracts was estimated using MTT cell proliferation assay. The photochemical qualitative analysis of methanollic plant extracts revealed the presence of alkaloid, flavonoid, tannins, glycoside, reducing sugar, anthraquinones and saponins. The methanollic extract showed zone of inhibition of 15 mm each against Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus epidermis and Saccharomyces cereviceae by using well diffusion method, whereas S. cereviceae gave 12 mm zone of inhibition by disc diffusion at a concentration of 40 mg/mL. The anti-oxidant activity by different methods gave IC50 value of 102.1 ± 4.16, 30.27 ± 3.85 and 382.6 ± 3.30 µg/mL in aqueous, benzene and ethyl acetate extract respectively by using DPPH method. The acetone extract gave IC50 value of 357.1 ± 4.96 µg/mL by nitric oxide method. The aqueous and acetone extract gave IC50 value of 860.1 ± 7.73 and 626.7 ± 2.25 µg/mL, respectively by deoxyribose method. The chloroform and ethyl acetate extract showed cytotoxicity in A549 cell line having IC50 value of 687 ± 3.92 and 957 ± 4.46 µg/mL respectively by MTT cell proliferation assay whereas, aqueous extract in Jurkat cell line gave IC50 value of 918 ± 2.05 µg/mL. This study demonstrates that the R. communis extracts are potential source for anti-microbial, anti-oxidant and anti-cancer agent. Further study is needed to identify the specific bioactive compounds, their mode of action and their non-toxic nature in in vivo condition.