Unveiling the Bioactive Compound Potential of Red Mariposa  Christia vespertilionis  Using Chemometric and ATR-FTIR Spectroscopy

Soraya Shafawati Mohamad Tahier; Nurfirzana Liyana Abdul Jaafar

doi:10.22146/ijc.106329

Unveiling the Bioactive Compound Potential of Red Mariposa Christia vespertilionis Using Chemometric and ATR-FTIR Spectroscopy

https://doi.org/10.22146/ijc.106329

Soraya Shafawati Mohamad Tahier^(1*), Nurfirzana Liyana Abdul Jaafar⁽²⁾

(1) Faculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu 21030, Malaysia; Advance Nano Materials (AnoMA) Research Group, Faculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu 21030, Malaysia
(2) Faculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu 21030, Malaysia
(*) Corresponding Author

Abstract

Red Mariposa Christia vespertilionis (MCV) is a medicinal plant containing potential bioactive compounds of interest; however, these have not been fully investigated. This work focuses on the antioxidant properties of red MCV, as evaluated by attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy with chemometric methods of analysis such as principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA).The highest total phenolic levels (15.91 ± 0.04 mg GAE/mL) were found in the leaf of aqueous extracts, and total flavonoid content, 15.7 ± 0.04 mg QE/mL, in hexane extracts, compared to other solvents, which is linked to better DPPH radical scavenging activity (74.24 ± 0.00%). The FTIR spectra demonstrated the presence of hydroxyl (O−H) and carbonyl (C=O) functional groups, indicating a significant abundance of polyphenols and flavonoids. The bioactive composition of the red MCV was definitively confirmed through chemometric techniques. The chemometric analysis revealed that methanol and aqueous extracts offer maximum antioxidant and optimum solvent profiles. These results show that red MCV is a feasible source for pharmaceutical and nutraceutical applications dealing with oxidative stress.

Keywords

Red Mariposa Christia vespertilionis; ATR-FTIR spectroscopy; phenolic compounds; flavonoid compounds

Full Text:

Full Text PDF

References

[1] Duc, C.K.T., Linh, T.C., Thanh, N.Q.C., Nhien, P.Q., Trang, D.T.X., Danh, L.T., and Tuan, N.T., 2024, Isolation and evaluation of the antioxidant capacity of compounds from Ehretia Asperula Zoll. & Moritzi, Indones. J. Chem., 24 (4), 1206–1217.

[2] Tumilaar, S.G., Hardianto, A., Dohi, H., and Kurnia, D., 2024, A comprehensive review of free radicals, oxidative stress, and antioxidants: Overview, clinical applications, global perspectives, future directions, and mechanisms of antioxidant activity of flavonoid compounds, J. Chem., 24 (1), 5594386.

[3] Abdul Jaafar, N.L., Mohammad Tahier, S.S., Maulidiani, M., Abas, F., Perumal, V., and Abdul Wahab, N.H., 2022, Chemical profiling and antioxidant properties of leaf and stem extracts of Christia vespertilionis, Malays. J. Chem., 24 (4), 59–67.

[4] Dai, J., and Mumper, R.J., 2010, Plant phenolics: Extraction, analysis and their antioxidant and anticancer properties, Molecules, 15 (10), 7313–7352.

[5] Abd Hamid, I.A., Laazizi, N., Mustapa, A.N., and Abd Rahman, N., 2023, Effect of pre-treatment methods on the extractability of Christia vespertilionis by supercritical carbon dioxide, Pertanika J. Sci. Technol., 31 (5), 2311–2328.

[6] Airouyuwa, J., Mostafa, H., Ranasinghe, M., and Maqsood, S., 2023, Influence of physicochemical properties of carboxylic acid-based natural deep eutectic solvents (CA-NADES) on extraction and stability of bioactive compounds from date (Phoenix dactylifera L.) seeds: An innovative and sustainable extraction technique, J. Mol. Liq., 388, 122767.

[7] Jesse, A., 2020, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis of Allium sativum L. and Nymphaea lotus L., Asian J. Appl. Chem. Res., 6 (2), 7–24.

[8] Singh, N., Mansoori, A., Jiwani, G., Solanke, A.U., Thakur, T.K., Kumar, R., Chaurasiya, M., and Kumar, A., 2021, Antioxidant and antimicrobial study of Schefflera vinosa leaf crude extracts against rice pathogens, Arabian J. Chem., 14 (7), 103243.

[9] Rajauria, G., Ravindran, R., Garcia-Vaquero, M., Rai, D.K., Sweeney, T., and O’Doherty, J., 2021, Molecular characteristics and antioxidant activity of laminarin extracted from the seaweed species Laminaria hyperborea, using hydrothermal-assisted extraction and a multi-step purification procedure, Food Hydrocolloids, 112, 106332.

[10] Burdějová, L., Tobolková, B., Polovka, M., and Neugebauerova, J., 2023, Differentiation of medicinal plants according to solvents, processing, origin, and season by means of multivariate analysis of spectroscopic and liquid chromatography data, Molecules, 28 (10), 4075.

[11] Shi, T., Dai, T., Wu, G., Jin, Q., and Wang, X., 2024, Camellia oil grading adulteration detection using characteristic volatile components GC-MS fingerprints combined with chemometrics, Food Control, 169, 111033.

[12] Sarabi, B., and Ghashghaie, J., 2022, Evaluating the physiological and biochemical responses of melon plants to NaCl salinity stress using supervised and unsupervised statistical analysis, Plant Stress, 4, 100067.

[13] Buitrago, D., Buitrago-Villanueva, I., Barbosa-Cornelio, R., and Coy-Barrera, E., 2019, Comparative examination of antioxidant capacity and fingerprinting of unfractionated extracts from different plant parts of quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa) grown under greenhouse conditions, Antioxidants, 8 (8), 238.

[14] Awad, A.M., Kumar, P., Ismail-Fitry, M.R., Jusoh, S., Ab Aziz, M.F., and Sazili, A.Q., 2021, Green extraction of bioactive compounds from plant biomass and their application in meat as natural antioxidant, Antioxidants, 10 (9), 1465.

[15] Sasidharan, S., Chen, Y., Saravanan, D., Sundram, K.M., and Yoga Latha, L., 2011, Extraction, isolation and characterization of bioactive compounds from plants’ extracts, Afr. J. Tradit., Complementary Altern. Med., 8 (1), 1–10.

[16] Luaces, P., Pascual, M., Pérez, A.G., and Sanz, C., 2021, An easy-to-use procedure for the measurement of total phenolic compounds in olive fruit, Antioxidants, 10 (11), 1656.

[17] Sari, K.R.P., Ikawati, Z., Danarti, R., and Hertiani, T., 2023, Micro-titer plate assay for measurement of total phenolic and total flavonoid contents in medicinal plant extracts, Arabian J. Chem., 16 (9), 105003.

[18] Umar, A.H., Syahruni, R., Ranteta’dung, I., and Rafi, M., 2023, FTIR-based fingerprinting combined with chemometrics method for rapid discrimination of Jatropha spp. (Euphorbiaceae) from different regions in South Sulawesi, J. Appl. Pharm. Sci., 13 (1), 139–149.

[19] Azizan, A., Lee, A.X., Abdul Hamid, N.A., Maulidiani, M., Mediani, A., Abdul Ghafar, S.Z., Zolkeflee, N.K.Z., and Abas, F., 2020, Potentially bioactive metabolites from pineapple waste extracts and their antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities by ¹H NMR, Foods, 9 (2), 173.

[20] Olszowy-Tomczyk, M., 2021, How to express the antioxidant properties of substances properly, Chem. Pap., 75 (12), 6157–6167.

[21] Surya, A., Abdul Rahman, A.A., Zaiyar, Z., Marliza, H., Juariah, S., and Endrini, S., 2025, DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl) method to determine the antioxidant quality of jengkol peel waste, J. Adv. Res. Micro Nano Eng., 32 (1), 84–93.

[22] Noor Hashim, N.H., Ali, A.H., Khatib, A., and Latip, J., 2019, Discrimination of Clinacanthus nutans extracts and correlation with antiplasmodial activity using ATR-FTIR fingerprinting, Vib. Spectrosc., 104, 102966–102972.

[23] Zhang, P., Wang, H., Xu, X., Ye, Y., and Zhang, Y., 2024, Correlation analysis between phytochemical composition and biological activities of Artemisia scoparia, Food Biosci., 62, 105342.

[24] Pham, A.G.Q., and Pham, T.T.M., 2025, Studying the extraction conditions on rosmarinic acid content and antioxidant activity of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.), Indones. J. Chem., 25 (3), 709–718.

[25] Chatepa, L.E.C., Mwamatope, B., Chikowe, I., and Masamba, K.G., 2024, Effects of solvent extraction on the phytoconstituents and in vitro antioxidant activity properties of leaf extracts of the two selected medicinal plants from Malawi, BMC Complementary Med. Ther., 24 (1), 317.

[26] Kozhantayeva, A., Tursynova, N., Kolpek, A., Aibuldinov, Y., Tursynova, A., Mashan, T., Mukazhanova, Z., Ibrayeva, M., Zeinuldina, A., Nurlybayeva, A., Iskakova, Z., and Tashenov, Y., 2024, Phytochemical profiling, antioxidant and antimicrobial potentials of ethanol and ethyl acetate extracts of Chamaenerion latifolium L., Pharmaceuticals, 17 (8), 996.

[27] Mohammed, E.A., Abdalla, I.G., Alfawaz, M.A., Mohammed, M.A., Al Maiman, S.A., Osman, M.A., Yagoub, A.E.A., and Hassan, A.B., 2022, Effects of extraction solvents on the total phenolic content, total flavonoid content, and antioxidant activity in the aerial part of root vegetables, Agriculture, 12 (11), 1820.

[28] Popescu (Stegarus), D.I., Botoran, O.R., and Cristea R.M., 2025, Investigation of phytochemical composition, antioxidant and antibacterial activity of five red flower extracts, Antioxidants, 14 (2), 151.

[29] Jin, W., Zhou, H., Zhao, H., Pei, Y., Su, F., Li, Y., and Luo, T., 2025, Isolation, in vitro antioxidant capacity, hypoglycemic activity and immunoactivity evaluation of polysaccharides from Coriandrum sativum L., Antioxidants, 14 (2), 149.

[30] Zakaria, Z., Soekamto, N.H., Nur, S., and Astuti, A.D., 2025, Comparison of antioxidant activity of stem bark, stem wood, and leaf extracts of bayur plant (Pterospermum subpeltatum C.B. Rob), JPPIPA, 11 (1), 382–387.

[31] Salerno, T.M.G., Coppolino, C., Donato, P., and Mondello, L., 2022, The online coupling of liquid chromatography to Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy using a solute-deposition interface: A proof of concept, Anal. Bioanal. Chem., 414, 703–712.

[32] Stanković Jeremić, J., Godevac, D., Ivanović, S., Simić, K., Trendafilova, A., Aćimović, M., and Milosavljević, S., 2022, HPTLC-based metabolomics for the investigation of metabolic changes during plant development: The case study of Artemisia annua, J. Serb. Chem. Soc., 87 (11), 1237–1244.

[33] Aziz, Z., Yuliana, N.D., Simanjuntak, P., Rafi, M., and Syamsudin, S., 2020, FTIR and HPLC-based metabolomics of yacon leaves extracts (Smallanthus sonchifolius [Poepp & Endl.] H. Robinson) from two locations in Indonesia, Indones. J. Chem., 20 (3), 567–578.

[34] Aboushady, D., Samir, L., Masoud, A., Elshoura, Y., Mohamed, A., Hanafi, R.S., and El Deeb, S., 2025, Chemometric approaches for sustainable pharmaceutical analysis using liquid chromatograph, Chemistry, 7 (1), 11.

[35] Mohammadi, N., Esteki, M., and Simal-Gandara, J., 2024, Machine learning for authentication of black tea from narrow-geographic origins: Combination of PCA and PLS with LDA and SVM classifiers, LWT-Food Sci. Technol., 203, 116401.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.22146/ijc.106329