Screening of Bioactive Compounds and Antioxidant Activity of Ale-ale Shellfish (Meretrix meretrix) Crude Extracts from West Kalimantan, Indonesia

Abstract

The ale-ale shellfish (Meretrix meretrix) is a member of the Bivalvia class of the phylum Mollusca. It is a marine commodity that is widely used as a functional food ingredient and is hereditarily believed to have properties that may cure several types of diseases by the local community in Ketapang Regency, West Kalimantan. The purpose of this study was to determine the chemical components and antioxidant activity of Meretrix meretrix shellfish crude extract. Phytochemical screening of the M. meretrix was carried out qualitatively using phytochemical reagents, while the determination of antioxidant activity was carried out using the free radical scavenging of the DPPH method by measuring using a UV-Visible spectrophotometer. The results of the phytochemical screening of the shellfish extract showed that the components it contained were alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, and steroids. In contrast, the results of the antioxidant test showed that the methanol extract of M. meretrix shellfish had a strong antioxidant activity with the lowest IC50 value of 84.46 ppm.