Toxicity and α-Amylase Inhibitory Potential of Tagetes erecta Leaf Extract: In Vitro and In Silico Approaches

Abstract

Tagetes erecta is one of traditional herbs with a variety of pharmacological actions. This study attempted to assess the toxicity and antidiabetic activity of T. erecta leaf extract. The extraction was carried out by maceration, then continued with phytochemical analysis. Toxicity of the extract was conducted using the brine shrimp lethality test. The antidiabetic activity was evaluated by α-amylase inhibitory using the 3,5-dinitrosalicylic acid method. The phytochemical of the most active extract was identified using GC-MS and subjected to bind the α-amylase (PDB ID: 2QV4) employing molecular docking. The LC50 values of n-hexane, EtOAc, and MeOH extracts were 33.41, 14.00, and 35.03 ppm, respectively, indicating high toxicity. The antidiabetic activity showed that EtOAc extract has the lowest IC50 value (1053.95 mg/L). Molecular docking analysis revealed the compounds 1–5 has range of binding energy at −4.07 to −4.83 kcal/mol. Acarbose as a positive control showed the lower binding energy at −5.03 kcal/mol, indicated more effective α-amylase inhibitory. This study revealed that T. erecta leaf extract has significant cytotoxic potential, which may warrant further exploration for anticancer applications. However, the relatively weak α-amylase inhibitory and lower binding affinity compared to acarbose imply limited utility as an antidiabetic agent.

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