The Biological Activities of Hypericum perforatum L.

Abstract

Representing the Hypericaceae family, Hypericum perforatum L. offers antidepressant, wound-healing, antioxidant, antiviral, and analgesic properties for burns, bruising, and edema. With the demise of many current treatment choices and the worrying levels of antibiotic resistance produced by dangerous bacteria, new therapy approaches are required. This study focused on H. perforatum plant's total phenolic content, antioxidant capability, and antibacterial activity. The fatty acid composition and phytochemical constituents in H. perforatum were also analyzed by GC-MS. The antibacterial activity of the plant’s methanol extract was evaluated using disc diffusion method. Microorganisms utilized in the antibacterial activity assay included the fungus Candida albicans, bacteria strains Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Salmonella typhimurium. It was determined that H. perforatum's methanol extract exhibited remarkable antagonistic activity against the examined pathogenic microorganisms with the lowest and strongest antibacterial effects against S. typhimurium and P. aeruginosa, respectively. The Folin-Ciocalteu phenol reagent method was used to quantify the phenolic compounds, and H. perforatum methanol extract was shown to have a total phenolic compound content of 1538.98±11.88 µg GAE mL^-1. The antioxidant capability was evaluated with three different methods. The methanol extract of the plant exhibited a 1552.74±3.85 µmol TE mL^-1 DPPH radical scavenging activity while it showed 2876.92±15.46 µmol AAE mL^-1 and 3307.84±45.87 µmol TE mL^-1 PFRAP and CUPRAC values, respectively. The GC-MS analysis revealed that palmitic acid and linolenic acid were the predominant fatty acid species, along with the major phytochemical contituents were found as linalyl acetate and alpha-pinene.