Phytochemical Screening and GC-MS Studies of some Soup Thickeners in Southern Nigeria

Ezekwe Ahamefula Sunday^1,*, Rizwan, A. Ansari², Orluwene Chituru Godwill³, Wokocha Peter Gift⁴ and Ordu Kenneth Shelu⁵ Ewa Ogbonnaya^6
1Department of Medical Biochemistry, Rivers State University. Nkpolu Oroworukwo. Port Harcourt Nigeria.
²Department of Biochemistry, Yobe State University, Damaturu, Nigeria.
³ Department of Chemical Pathology, Rivers State University. Nkpolu Oroworukwo. Port Harcourt Nigeria.
4Department of Medical Biochemistry, Rivers State University. Nkpolu Oroworukwo. Port Harcourt Nigeria.
⁵Department of Human Anatomy, Rivers State University. Nkpolu Oroworukwo. Port Harcourt Nigeria.
⁶Department of Biochemistry, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria Nigeria.

ABSTRACT
The aim of this study was reveal in details the phytochemicals inherent in selected soup thickeners namely Brachystegia eurycoma (achi), Mucuna solannie (ukpo) Detarium microcarpuim (ofor). Matured clean seeds of the aforementioned thickeners were processed into flour samples which were subsequently subjected to extraction with methanol. The resulting samples extract were subjected to qualitative phytochemical and GC-MS analysis. The phytochemicals screened for included tannins, saponins, flavonoids, steroids, terpenoids, cardiac glycosides, phlobactannins, phenolics, proteins, reducing sugars, anthraquinnones, and alkaloids. While saponins, flavonoids and alkaloids were reportedly present in abundance (++), terpenoids and phlobactannins were completely absent (-) in Brachystegia eurycoma (achi) flour sample extract. However, analysis performed on ofor flour sample extract, revealed that flavonoids and alkaloids were more abundant (++), while tannins, terpenoids cardiac glycosides, phlobactannins, phenolics, reducing surgar were completely absecent (-). Result of the analysis on ukpo flour sample extract indicated that saponins and proteins were more abundant (++), while phlobactannins and anthraquinones were reportedly absent (-). GC-MS analysis performed on achi flour sample extract revealed the presence of 19 compounds and the three most abundant of these reported compounds include n-hexadecanoic acid (26.44%), followed by 9, 12 octadecanoic acid (Z,Z) (18.51%) and Cis vaccenic acid (19.19%). Same analysis carried out on ofor flour sample extract, showed that 17 compounds were present of which two most abundant of them reportedly present were 9,12 octadecadienoic acid (Z,Z) (28.59%) and Cis vaccenic acid (16.54%). However, GC-MS result obtained on analysing ukpo flour sample extract revealed the presence of 34 compounds of which n-hexadecanoic acid (15.17%) and 9, octadecanoic acid (E) – (15.35%) were reportedly the most abundant. The result obtained from this study clearly shows that the aforementioned condiments can deliver therapeutic benefits by virtue of the vital phytochemicals reportedly inherent in them.
Keywords: Thickeners, Phytochemicals, Saponins, Flavonoids and Alkaloids