Secondary metabolite accumulation, antibacterial and antioxidant properties of in vitro propagated Clidemia hirta L. extracts are influenced by the basal culture medium

Abstract Clidemia hirta L., a tropical shrub used for traditional medicine in numerous countries, could constitute a new resource of phytochemicals for cosmetic applications. In vitro micropropagation of C. hirta was used to evaluate the influence of different culture media on plant growth, production of phytochemicals, and the antioxidant and antibacterial properties of leaf extracts. Quoirin and Lepoivre medium and Lloyd and McCown's woody plant medium gave the best results. Both production of phytochemicals (i.e., flavonoids, phenolics and saponins) and biological activities were affected by the culture medium composition with the strongest effects for plants cultivated on Quoirin and Lepoivre medium. Strong correlations were shown between the antibacterial activity and the saponin content and between the antioxidant capacity and the flavonoid content. The present study shows how mineral nutrition influences the production of secondary metabolites in C. hirta , thus modulating the biological activities of extracts with a view to their possible use in the cosmetic industry.