GROWTH CHARACTERIZATION OF CALCIUM OXALATE MONOHYDRATE CRYSTALS INFLUENCED BY COSTUS IGNEUS AQUEOUS STEM EXTRACT

Calcium oxalate monohydrate (COM) and calcium oxalate dihydrate (COD) are frequently found in urinary calculi (stones). COM crystals were grown using both gel and liquid growth methods, and the inhibitory effect of aqueous Costus igneus stem extract on the growth of COM crystals was studied. The results indicate that with an increase in the concentration of aqueous C. igneus extract, the mass of the formed crystals was gradually reduced from 2.16 g to 0.08 g and from 2.89 g to 0.035 g for the gel and liquid methods, respectively. The crystals were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) to confirm the functional groups and powder Xray diffraction (XRD) analyses to confirm the phases of the COM and COD crystals. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed that the morphology of the crystals changed from hexagonal to bipyramidal, which is characteristic of a change from COM to COD. The average size of the crystals from the gel method was reduced from 1874.1 x 857.8 μm to 1075.5 x 990.5 μm from 0.524 μm to 0.291 μm using the liquid method. Lupeol and the Stigmasterol are the active compound were identified and isolated by High performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) techniques. This study confirms that the use of aqueous C. igneus extracts can promote the formation of COD crystals and reduce the nucleation rate of COM crystals, a major component of oxalate urinary stones.