Plant derived natural products have received considerable attention in recent years due to their diverse pharmacological activities³. Infectious diseases caused by bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites remain a major threat to public health, despite tremendous progress in human medicine. Their impact is particularly great in developing countries because of the relative unavailability of medicines and the emergence of widespread drug resistance⁴. Interest in natural products with antimicrobial properties has revived as a result of current problems associated with the use of antibiotics⁵.

Relevant to human existence and living is good nutrition. All human beings require a number of complex organic compounds as added caloric requirements to meet the need for their muscular activities. Carbohydrates, fats and proteins form the major portion of the diet, while minerals and vitamins form comparatively a smaller part. The increasing populations of the world food demands have overwhelmed the available land resources. It has been reported that protein-calories malnutrition deficiencies is a major factor responsible in nutritional pathology⁶. The dietary fibre plays an important role in decreasing the risks of many disorders such as constipation, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, obesity etc⁷. The carbohydrates are main source and store of energy. They are the starting substances for biological synthesis of many compounds. The trace elements, together with other essential nutrients, are necessary for growth, normal physiological functioning, and maintenance of life. They must be supplied in the food, since the body cannot synthesize them. Some of them are vitally important for health. Recommended intakes have been set for some trace elements and their deficiency can lead to disease^8,9.

Abrus precatorius Linn (Fabaceae) is distributed throughout India, ascending to an altitude of about 1050m in the outer Himalayas. It is called Indian Wild Liquorice, Jequirity, Crab’s Eye and Precatory Bean in English. It is uterine stimulant, abortifacient and toxic. Seeds are teratogenic. A paste of seeds is applied on vitiligo patches. Along with other therapeutic applications, the Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India has indicated the use of seeds in baldness. Seeds contain abrin, a toxalbumin, indole derivatives, anthocyanins, sterols, terpenes. Abrin causes agglutination of erythrocytes, haemolysis and enlargement of lymph glands. A nontoxic dose of abrin (1.25mcg/kg bodyweight), isolated from the seeds of red var., exhibited a noticeable increase in antibody-forming cells, bone marrow cellularity and alpha-esterase-positive bone marrow cells. Oral administration of agglutinins, isolated from the seeds, is useful in the treatment of hepatitis and AIDS. The seed extract exhibited antischistosomal activity in male hamsters. The methanolic extract of seeds inhibited themotility of human spermatozoa. The roots contain precol, abrol, glycyrrhizin (1.5%) and alkaloids—abrasine and precasine. The roots also contain triterpenoids—abruslactone A, methyl abrusgenate and abrusgenic acid. Alkaloids/bases present in the roots are also present in leaves and stems. A. fruticulosus Wall. Ex Wight and Arn. synonym A. pulchellus Wall., A. laevigatus E. May. (Shveta Gunjaa) is also used for the same medicinal purposes as A. precatorius ¹⁰. Abrus pulchellus Wall (Fabaceae) is a twinning shrub commonly known as Bili gulaganji in Kannada and Rosary pea in English. Leaves are pinnately compound, leaflets 9 to 12 pairs, oblong, leaf rachis 12 cm long, stipulate, adnate or free lateral stipules are present, entire margin, leaf apex obtuse, reticulate venation. Flowers are in axillary long racemes, calyx 5 lobed, fused, corolla rose/white. Fruit is a pod, flat appressed and pubescent. Seeds are pale yellow/white¹¹.

Seeds have nutritive and calorific values which make them necessary in diets. They are good sources of edible oils and fats. The amount of energy provided by one gram of fat/oil when fully digested is more than twice as many joules as do carbohydrates and proteins. Grain legumes are widely used as a cheap protein sources for man and livestock and they have been adjusted to be of good nutritional value¹². The boiled seeds of A. precatorius are eaten by the residents of Andaman Islands in India¹³. Although considerable information now exists on the nutrient composition of most well known and easily cultivated legumes, not much information could however be obtained concerning the nutritional properties of the seeds of A. pulchellus and A. precatorius. The purpose of this study was to evaluate comparatively antifungal activity and the proximate composition of A. pulchellus and A. precatorius.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Collection and identification of seed material:

The seeds of A. pulchellus (voucher no. SRNMN/ MB/Ap/101) and A. precatorius (voucher no. SRNMN/ MB/Ap/102) were procured from the local vendors, authenticated and the voucher specimens were deposited in the department of Microbiology for future reference.

Extraction and phytochemical analysis:

For extraction, 10 grams of powdered seed material was boiled in 100 ml of distilled water with constant stirring for about an hour. The solution was allowed to attain room temperature and filtered through three-fold muslin cloth followed by Whatman filter paper No. 1. The filtered extract was condensed to 1/5^th of original volume and used for antifungal studies¹⁴. The extract was subjected to preliminary phytochemical analysis to detect the presence of various Phytoconstituents namely alkaloids, steroids, saponins, terpenoids, flavonoids, tannins and glycosides by chemical tests¹⁵.

Screening for Antifungal activity of aqueous extracts:

Antifungal effect of the aqueous extracts of seeds of A. pulchellus and A. precatorius was studied against Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus oryzae and Mucor sp., which are known to cause opportunistic mycotic infections in susceptible individuals. The suspension of spores of the test fungi was prepared in a test tube containing 0.85% sterile normal saline containing 0.01% Tween 80 detergent¹⁶. The antifungal activity was assessed using Poison food technique¹⁷. The test fungi was allowed to grow in Sabouraud’s dextrose agar plates poisoned with aqueous extract (10%). The effect of extract on fungal growth was determined by measuring the diameter of the colony obtained on poisoned plate and comparing with control plates which were not poisoned with the distillate. The experiment was done in triplicate and average reading was recorded.

Determination of Proximate composition:

Proximate composition of powdered seed materials of A. pulchellus and A. precatorius was carried out to determine the moisture, ash, fat, crude fibre, protein and carbohydrate content¹⁸. The moisture content was determined by drying in an oven at 100°C until constant weight, ash by incineration in a muffle furnace at 550°C for 48 h, Proteins by nitrogen determination using the Kjeldahl method and conversion of nitrogen to proteins by the factor 6.25. Fat was by Bligh dyer technique, crude fibers by successive digestion of the defatted sample with 0.26 N sulphuric acid and 0.23 N potassium hydroxide solutions. Percentage carbohydrate was calculated using the formula: 100 – (percentage of ash + percentage of moisture + percentage of fat + percentage of protein).

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION:

Table-1: Phytoconstituents present in aqueous extracts of A. pulchellus and A. precatorius

Phytoconstituent	*A. pulchellus*	*A. precatorius*
Tannins	-	-
Flavonoids	+	+
Alkaloids	+	+
Saponins	+	+
Glycosides	+	-
Steroids	-	+
Terpenoids	-	-

Preliminary phytochemical analysis showed the presence of flavonoids, alkaloids and saponins in both the extracts. In addition to these, steroids were detected in A. precatorius and glycosides in A. pulchellus. Phytoconstituents namely tannins and terpenoids were not detected in both the extracts (Table-1).

Table-2: Antifungal activity of aqueous extract of A. pulchellus and A. precatorius

Test fungi	Colony diameter in cm
Test fungi	Control	*A. pulchellus*	*A. precatorius*
A. niger	4.5	1.9	1.8
A.oryzae	3.2	2.3	2.3
Mucor sp.	5.8	3.6	3.4

The result of antifungal activity of aqueous extracts of A. precatorius and A. pulchellus is shown in Table-2. The antifungal effect of extracts was studied in terms of reduced colony diameter of test fungi on poisoned plates. It appears that overall the fungi were found to be sensitive to extracts. Among extracts, A. pulchellus extract was more effective against A. niger and Mucor sp. There was no difference in the inhibition of A oryzae by both the extracts. The reasons for this could be that the components from the plant active against microorganisms are most often obtained through extraction. Antimicrobial activity of tannins¹⁹, flavonoids²⁰, saponins²¹, terpenoids²², alkaloids²³ have been documented. In the present study, phytoconstituents namely flavonoids, alkaloids, glycosides, steroids and saponins were detected in the extracts which may account for the activities.

Table-3: Proximate composition of A. pulchellus and A. precatorius

Parameter	*A. pulchellus*	A. *precatorius*
Moisture (%)	07.50	05.30
Ash (%)	03.75	02.75
Crude fibre content (%)	13.00	13.25
Total carbohydrates (%)	29.00	30.00
Total protein (%)	24.00	25.20
Crude Fat (%)	07.00	06.80

The comparative proximate composition of A. precatorius and A. pulchellus are depicted in the table-3. The moisture content was low in A. precatorius as compared to A. pulchellus. This may be advantageous in the view of shelf life of the seed. The result revealed that Abrus species are quite rich in fibre content. Although crude fibre enhances digestibility, the presence of high fibre levels in diet can cause intestinal irritation, lower digestibility and overall decreased nutrient utilization. The ash content of A. pulchellus (3.75%) was found to be slightly higher than A. precatorius (2.75%). This may be due to higher fibre content. The ash content of a sample is a reflection of minerals. Both the seed varieties exhibited more or less similar percentage of carbohydrate content. Legumes except oil legumes have been reported to be low in fat content ranging from 1-5%²⁴. Fat content obtained in this study was found to be slightly higher when compared to other legumes. The crude protein content of A. pulchellus and A. precatorius are 24% and 25.2% respectively. When coupled with the fact that it is abundant in this part of the world may encourage its use as high protein source in some food industries. Relevant to human existence and living is good nutrition. This is often a major problem in most developing countries of the world. Consequently, the cases of under –nutrition is more rife in these countries. To be able to reduce the adverse effect of hunger and or starvation, it is pertinent that some–lesser-known plants are investigated for their nutritive value or non ruminant nutrition¹².

CONCLUSION:

In the present study, a marked antifungal activity of the extracts of Abrus species was observed. Thus, the extracts could be employed in the control of opportunistic mycotic infections caused by species of Aspergillus and Mucor. The study showed that the seeds of Abrus species tested could be used as the feeding material for human or nonruminant animals judging from the protein content, energy content and the crude fibre content. There are reports of the presence of antinutritional factors in the seeds of the plant tested. In the view of the present study, it would appear that if the levels of antinutrient compounds are ascertained and appropriate method to reduce or remove the antinutrients, Abrus seeds could be utilized as a cheap source of protein, energy and antioxidant supplement for both man and or livestock.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

Authors are thankful to Heads of the Dept. of Microbiology and Dept. of Biochemistry and Principal, S.R.N.M.N College of Applied Sciences, Shivamogga for their support. Authors also express thanks to N.E.S, Shivamogga for the moral encouragement.

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Received on 27.03.2010

Accepted on 13.05.2010

Research Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry. 2(4): July-Aug. 2010, 284-287