TITLE:
Evaluation of Phytochemical Compositions, in Vitro Antioxidant and Cytotoxicity Potentials of Irvingia gabonensis Fruit Pulp for Possible Anticancer Activity
AUTHORS:
Uchechukwu Chibuzo Ogbodo, Ebubechukwu Prosper Nnaodi
KEYWORDS:
Irvingia gabonensis, Cancer Therapy, Oxidative Stress, Antioxidant, Phytochemicals, Drug Discovery
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Biosciences and Medicines,
Vol.14 No.9,
September
2,
2026
ABSTRACT: Background: Cancer continues to be a growing public health burden of the 21st century in both developed and developing countries with new incidence and mortality cases recorded annually. Several studies have implicated oxidative stress in the pathogenesis and initiation of cancer, which is why novel phytochemicals are sought to address this gap nutritionally and through drug discovery initiatives. This study was therefore carried out to investigate the phytochemical compositions, in vitro antioxidant and cytotoxicity potentials of Irvingia gabonensis with the aim of assessing its role in providing phytocompounds with possible anticancer relevance. Methods: Pulp of fresh fruits of I. gabonensis was collected, prepared and extracted using ethanol by Soxhlet extraction method. Standard phytochemical methods were employed to quantify phytochemicals whereas antioxidant assays were conducted using spectrophotometric determination of lipid peroxidation inhibition and glutathione activity, with butylated hydroxytoluene and ascorbic acid as standards and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay. Brine shrimp lethality assay was performed to assess its cytotoxic potential as an index of anticancer activity. Results: Findings showed alkaloids were the most abundant phytochemicals while phenols, tannins, flavonoids, and saponins were present in relatively low concentrations. The extract demonstrated moderate inhibition of lipid peroxidation with maximum inhibition of 84.50% at 100 µg/ml and an IC50 of 10.50 µg/ml compared to 9.23 µg/ml for ascorbic acid and 1.51 µg/ml for BHT. Reduced glutathione concentrations did not show a consistent dose-dependent increase, indicating limited ability of the extract to stimulate endogenous antioxidant defenses. In vitro DPPH results showed the highest scavenging activity of 80.68% at 80 µg/ml and the lowest at 10 µg/ml of 48.03% with an IC50 of 11.17 mg/mL representing a dose-dependent scavenging activity with increasing plant extract concentration though values were observed to be lower than those of the reference standard (BHT) but comparable in activity. The brine shrimp lethality assay showed a moderate lethality of 53.33% at 1000 µg/mL and LC50 of 1077.71 µg/mL, compared with 66.67% mortality at 1000 µg/mL and LC50 of 511.30 µg/mL for the positive control. Conclusion: The study demonstrated I. gabonensis possesses moderate antioxidant and cytotoxic potentials specifically linked to scavenging free radicals, which is the hallmark biochemical event in cancer initiation and progression with the concomitant promise for optimization in novel cancer drug identification and development.