PHYSICOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES AND PHYTOCHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS OF INDIGENOUS MEDICINAL PLANT VITEX NIGUNDO LEAF.

Abstract

Vitex negundo L. (Verbenaceae) is an important medicinal plant extensively used in traditional systems of medicine for the treatment of inflammation, pain, fever, skin disorders, and other ailments. The present study was conducted to investigate the phytochemical composition of V. negundo leaves using methanolic, aqueous, and chloroform extracts. Preliminary qualitative phytochemical screening was performed using standard chemical tests to detect alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, glycosides, phenolic compounds, terpenoids, steroids, carbohydrates, and proteins. The methanolic extract exhibited the richest phytochemical profile, showing positive reactions for most of the tested constituents, whereas the aqueous extract contained a moderate range of predominantly polar compounds. The chloroform extract showed comparatively fewer constituents and was mainly enriched with non-polar compounds such as terpenoids and steroids. The presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, phenolic compounds, and terpenoids suggests that V. negundo possesses a diverse array of bioactive metabolites that may contribute to its reported pharmacological activities. The findings support the traditional medicinal use of the plant and indicate that methanol is the most effective extraction solvent among those investigated for obtaining a broad spectrum of phytochemicals. This study provides baseline phytochemical information that may facilitate future quantitative analysis, isolation of active constituents, and evaluation of the plant's medicinal and biopesticidal potential.