Isolation and partial characterization of alkylferulate from Entada africana (Guill. & Perr.) stem bark extract

Investigation of the bioactive constituents of Entada africana crude extract afforded the isolation of alkylferulate. The hexane soluble portion of acetone/methanol (1:1v/v) crude stem bark extract of Entada africana was subjected to column chromatography on silica gel 60 (60-200) mesh size. Gradient column elution yielded an isolate coded AC4 with Rf value of 0.65 in hexane/diethyl ether (3:2). The isolate was characterized using IR, NMR and in comparison with literature data. The analysis of spectroscopic data and literature comparison strongly suggests that AC4 is an alkylferulate; a known hypolipidemic agent in addition to other biological uses. The isolation of alkylferulate partly lays credence to the use of Entada africana in traditional medicine practice.