Pharmacognostic and Pharmacological Studies on Flower Buds of Capparis spinosa L.

Capparis spinosa L. (Capparaceae) is growing wild on walls or in rocky coastal areas all over India and normally known as Maratimokku in Tamil. The current study was aimed reveal the botanical and chemical pharmacognostic standards, and pharmacological and toxicity properties of aqueous extract of C. spinosa flower buds. Powder microscopy revealed the characteristics features of the sample, which are useful in fixing the pharmacognostic standards. Preliminary phytochemical screening revealed the presence of alkaloids, reducing sugars, carbohydrates, saponins, phenolic compounds, tannins, anthraquinones and lignins in aqueous extract. LC-MS/MS analysis revealed the presence of quercetin as the major constituent in the aqueous extract. Strong antioxidant activity was observed in aqueous extract centered on the outcomes of DPPH radical scavenging (IC-50 1.74 µg/ml) and inhibition of lipid peroxidation (IC-50 4.01 µg/ml) assays. The aqueous extract exhibited anti-inflammatory activity in terms of inhibition of protein denaturation (IC-50 8.01 µg/ml), inhibition of protease activity (14.24%) and RBC membrane stabilization (IC-50 226.69 µg/ml) and also possess antibacterial activity against Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, Campylobacter jejuni and Salmonella enteritidis strains. Acute oral toxicity study revealed that it is safe up to the dose level of 2000 mg/kg bw in the experimental animals.