Antioxidant, Cytotoxicity, and Antiophidian Potential of Alstonia macrophylla Bark

The objective of this research was to find the possible pharmacognosy of the bark of the Philippine Alstonia macrophylla Wall. ex G.Don (AM). Gas chromatographic-mass spectral (GC-EI-MS) characterization and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) were performed to detect the bioactive constituents. EDX analysis of AM bark displayed a high content of potassium (3.26%) and calcium (2.96%). Eight constituents were detected in AM crude dichloromethane (DCM) extracts, which consisted of a long-chain unsaturated fatty acid (17:0) and fatty acid esters such as ethyl hexadecanoate and methyl hexadecanoate. Extraction of AM bark using methanol and dimethyl sulfoxide (MeOH/DMSO) solvents resulted in the identification of 17 constituents, principally alkaloids (alstonerine, 34.38%; strictamin, 5.23%; rauvomitin, 4.29%; and brucine, 3.66%) and triterpenoids (γ-sitosterol, 3.85%; lupeol, 3.00%; 24-methylenecycloartanol, 2.81%; campesterol, 2.71%; β-amyrin, 2.30%; and stigmasterol, 2.13%). MeOH/DMSO samples of AM were used in the selected bioassays. The samples exhibited efficient free radical scavenging activity (IC 50 = 0.71 mg/mL) and were noncytotoxic to normal HDFn (IC 50 > 100 μg/mL) and neoplastic THP-1 cell lines (IC 50 = 67.22 μg/mL) while highly degenerative to MCF-7 (IC 50 = 6.34 μg/mL), H69PR (IC 50 = 7.05 μg/mL), and HT-29 (IC 50 = 9.10 μg/mL). Most interestingly, the AM samples inhibited the northern Philippine Cobra's ( Naja philippinensis Taylor) venom (IC 50 = 297.27 ± 9.33 μg/mL) through a secretory phospholipase A 2 assay.