DOI: https://doi.org/10.55373/mjchem.v27i6.168

Keywords: Murraya koenigii, antiobesity; pancreatic lipase inhibitory assay; maceration; p-nitrophenyl butyrate

Abstract

Obesity is a growing health problem in many countries including Malaysia. Murraya koenigii, also known as curry tree, is a traditional herbal remedy from the family of Rutaceace valued for its wide range of traditional uses and pharmacological properties. While previous studies have shown its effectiveness as an anti-obesity agent in live animals through in vivo testing, the phytochemical components of this plant responsible for this effect remain relatively unexplored. The hexane and dichloromethane extracts of the roots of M. koenigii and their fractions were evaluated for their pancreatic lipase inhibitory activity via in vitro experiment. The dichloromethane (DCM) extract exhibited slightly higher inhibitory activity of 48.03%, followed by the hexane extract (37.08%), with FTIR analysis revealing key functional groups indicative of potential bioactive phytochemicals in the DCM extract. In addition, the DCM extract was further fractionated into ten fractions, namely Fraction 1 (DCM) to Fraction 10 (DCM), by column chromatography. Among all 10 fractions, Fractions 4 to 10 showed positive PL inhibition within the range of 61.83% to 95.78% at the concentration of 10 mg/mL. The results highlighted Fraction 7 (DCM), which exhibited the highest activity of 95.78%, with an IC50 value of 492.77 ± 54.72 μg/mL. The crude extracts derived from the roots of M. koenigii (L.) Spreng (Rutaceae) and their fractions exhibit a significant potential as inhibitors of pancreatic lipase.