You have no items in your shopping cart.
Abstract
The need for natural medicine and nutrients form natural product sources cannot be overstressed. Plant parts like leaves, stem, root, seed, nut and flowers supply enormous minerals, phytochemicals and other bioactive constituents apart from the primary metabolites. Tetracarpidium conophorum is a combretaceous plant often found in tropical and subtropical regions. The plant has many uses as an ingredient in traditional medicine. Thus the main aim of this study was to determine the phytochemical constituent and composition of Tetracarpidium conophorum (walnut) root bark. The root bark was extracted using n-hexane and methanol solvent in a soxhlet extractor. While phytochemical and proximate composition were determined using standard methods. The mineral composition was analyzed using atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS) and flame photometer. Proximate composition revealed a moisture content of 11.22%, ash content of 11.28%, fibre content 33.87%, crude protein 23.12%, and fat of 6.10%. Elemental analysis indicated the presence of sodium (Na), calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg), Potassium (K) and Copper (Cu). Alkaloids, glycosides, phenolics, eugenols and terpenoid were present in both extract. Saponins and flavonoids was present in the methanol extract but absent in the n-hexane. This study indicated that root extract of walnut plant is very rich in calcium.
