CHEMICAL ANALYSIS AND GC-MS CHARACTERIZATION OF ALKALOID FRACTION FROM PERSEA AMERICANA SEED

The use of herbal medicines as alternative to orthodox medicines have given rise to many research methods of evaluating the medicinal values of most plant kingdoms so that their safety profiles can be ascertain. Hence the study investigated phytochemical screening and isolation of alkaloid from the methanol extract of Persea americana (Avocado pear) seed. The seeds were dried, pulverized and extracted with methanol solvent in a soxhlet extractor and crude extract was subjected to phytochemical screening using standard methods while a portion of it was subjected to separation by extraction to isolate the basic alkaloid fraction. The result indicated the presence of alkaloid, flavonoids, glycosides, terpenoids, steroids and phenolics. The GC-MS indicated hexadecamide (Rt: 26.43 31.21%), 9-octadecamide (Rt: 28.21; 17.80%) and oleic ester (Rt: 30.80; 26.78%) as major components. Minor components detected were oleic acid (Rt: 26.00; 0.29%), 1, 15-pentadecandioc (Rt: 29.86, 0.5%), a long chain alcohol. The presences of these phytochemicals suggest that the seed of Persea americana when subjected to pharmacological studies will be of immense medicinal value.