FTIR analysis and quantification of phenols and flavonoids of five commercially available plants extracts used in wound healing

TLDR

Natural products such as propolis, pomegranate, dragon’s blood, and sage are commonly used in wound‑healing biomaterials for their antimicrobial properties. The study aims to quantify phenols and flavonoids and evaluate antioxidant activity in five commercially available plant extracts used for wound healing. FTIR spectroscopy was employed to identify active phenolic and flavonoid compounds and to measure their concentrations. FTIR detected active compounds in all extracts, with Brazilian propolis richest in phenols, UK propolis highest in flavonoids, and pomegranate, UK propolis, and dragon’s blood exhibiting the strongest antioxidant activity (>82 %).

Abstract

ABSTRACT Natural products are used in wound healing in order to prevent infection. Propolis is a well known antimicrobial with phenolic compounds and flavonoid content which vary according to the propolis origin. Besides propolis (from both Brazilian and UK sources), pomegranate, dragon's blood and sage are possible antimicrobials to be used in biomaterials. The goal of this work was to analyze the amount of phenols and flavonoid compounds in these natural products, their antioxidant activities and the bonds present by FTIR. The FTIR analysis revealed the presence of active compounds in all drug samples. The phenols quantification showed that Brazilian propolis was rich in phenols compared to the other drugs, followed by pomegranate and UK propolis. UK propolis was the most rich in flavonoids, which is expected on account of its origin. Pomegranate, UK propolis and Dragon's blood presented the highest antioxidant activity. All samples presented antioxidant activity > 82%.