GRAPE SEED AQUA ALCOHOLIC EXTRACT PREPARATION AND ITS ANTIOXIDANT, ANTIMICROBIAL AND CYTOTOXIC EFFECT - AN in vitro STUDY

Background: Oral diseases, such as dental caries, periodontitis and oral mucosal lesions, have been known to be the most common public health problems world-wide, and their effects on general health and quality of life are highly substantial.

Aim: To prepare an aqua alcoholic extract of grape seed and analyze its antimicrobial, antioxidant and cytotoxic effect.

Materials and Methods: Red grape seeds were dried and powdered, the powdered grape seeds were then mixed with water and ethanol. The aqua alcoholic extract thus obtained was then subjected to DPPH assay to analyze its antioxidant effect and was loaded in the agar wells made on Muller Hinton agar so as to assess its antimicrobial activity by using well diffusion method, against Streptococcus mutans, Lactobacillus and Candida albicans, the zone of inhibition was noted. The extract was then tested for cytotoxicity by using brined shrimp nauplii.

Results and Discussion: The aqua alcoholic extract of grape-seed showed highest absorbance at a concentration of 50 μl (90.9%) when subjected to DPPH assay to check for its antioxidant activity at a wavelength of 517 nm. The zone of inhibition for the prepared extract against Streptococcus mutans at the concentrations 50, 100 and 150 μl was found to be 24 mm, 30 mm and 40 mm respectively. Similarly for Lactobacillus, the zone of inhibition was found to be 6 mm, 8 mm and 12 mm. For Candida albicans, the zone of inhibition values were 6 mm, 8 mm and 14 mm respectively. The cytotoxicity of the extract was lowest at 10 μl.

Conclusion: The prepared extract of grape seed proved to be a potent antioxidant and antimicrobial agent and can therefore be used for the application in the medical field. The cytotoxicity assay revealed that the extract can be incorporated in biomedical uses, thereby concluding that grape seed extract can be a pioneering step towards the shift to greener medicine.