The plant Mimusops elengi commonly known as 'Spanish cherry' is found mostly in South Asia. The stem, barks, leaves and fruits of the plant are used in the preparation of various Ayurvedic medications to treat some ailments. The pharmacognostic studies were carried out in terms of microscopy, macroscopy and fluorescence analysis of the dried powdered leaves as well as for the fresh leaf. The present study involves the preparation of ethanol, ethyl acetate, petroleum ether and aqueous extracts of the M. elengi leaves by soxhlet extraction method. The crude extracts were further subjected to preliminary phytochemical testing which reveals that petroleum ether extract contains fats, fatty acids and sterols. Aqueous and ethanolic extracts enriched with phenolics, flavonoids, sterols and carbohydrates. Moderate amount of phenolics and carbohydrates were present in ethyl acetate extract. GC-MS analysis on crude extracts of petroleum ether and ethyl acetate confirms the presence of squalene, Z,Z-6,28- Heptatriactontadien-2-one, Methyl 3-bromo-1-adamantaneacetate, 2,6,10,14,18,22-tetracosahexane, 2,6,19,15,19,23-hexamethyl ester, Chloroacetic acid, tetradecyl ester. The leaves of M. elengi contain a high percentage of an isoprenoid compound called Squalene. Squalene is used to control cholesterol related problems. Crude extracts of M. elengi was evaluated for their antioxidant properties by performing Hydroxyl Radical Scavenging Assay. Quercetin was used as the standard. Aqueous and ethanolic extracts shows potent antioxidant activity compared to ethyl acetate and petroleum ether extracts. The antioxidant properties of the leaf extracts aids in the treatment of diabetes, coronary heart disease, cancer and also retards the age related eye problems like cataract.
