PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF FLUTED PUMPKIN LEAVE (TELIFAIRIA OCCIDENTALIS)

PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF FLUTED PUMPKIN LEAVE (TELIFAIRIA OCCIDENTALIS)

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

Many oxidative stress related diseases are as a result of accumulation of free radicals in the body and a lot of researches are going on worldwide directed towards finding natural antioxidants of plant origin. Plants are endowed with free radical scavenging molecules, such as vitamins, terpenoids, phenolic acids, lignins, stilbenes, tannins, flavonoids, quinones, coumarins, alkaloids, amines, betalains, and other metabolites, which are rich in antioxidant activity (Zheng and Wang, 2001; Cai et al,2003). Studies have shown that many of these antioxidant compounds possess anti-inflammatory, antiatherosclerotic, antitumor, antimutagenic, anticarcinogenic, antibacterial, and antiviral activities (Sala et al,2002, RiceEvans et al, 1995). The ingestion of natural antioxidants has been associated with reduced risks of cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and other diseases associated with ageing, (Ashokkumar et al, 2008; Veerapur et al, 2009], and in recent years, there has been a worldwide trend towards the use of the natural phytochemical present in berry crops, teas, herbs, oilseeds, beans, fruits and vegetables (Kitts et al, 2000; Muselík et al, 2007; Wang and Jiao, 2000). In Nigeria, as in most other tropical countries of Africa where the daily diet is dominated by starchy staple foods, vegetables are the cheapest and most readily available sources of important proteins, vitamins, minerals and essential amino acids (Thompson and Kelly, 1990). Vegetables are the fresh and edible portions of herbaceous plants, which can be eaten raw or cooked (Dhellot et al., 2006).