Solvent effect on total phenolic contents, antioxidant, and antibacterial activities of Matricaria pubescens

• The extraction of polyphenol compounds by using various solvents.
• The determination of polyphenols, flavonoids, and condensed tannins.
• The determination of the antioxidant activity using different methods.
• The determination of the antibacterial activity.

Matricaria Pubescens (Asteraceae) is a well known medicinal plant used in the south west of Algeria against several diseases. This study was devoted to the determination of polyphenols, flavonoids, and condensed tannins contents of M. pubescens after their extraction using various solvents with different polarities (distilled water, aqueous acetone (50%), aqueous methanol (50%), aqueous ethanol (50%), acetone (100%), methanol (100%), and ethanol (100%)), as well as the determination of the antioxidant and the antibacterial activities of all obtained extracts. The results obtained indicate that the aqueous methanol (50%) and the aqueous ethanol (50%) extracts presented the highest contents of polyphenols. The antioxidant activity was evaluated using ferric reducing power, DPPH radical scavenging activity, ABTS radical scavenging activity, oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) and hydroxyl radical scavenging capacity (HOSC). The results showed that all extracts of M. pubescens, prepared using different solvent, have diverse antioxidant capacities, however aqueous methanol (50%), aqueous ethanol (50%) and aqueous acetone (50%) exhibited the highest antioxidant capacity. Extracts of M. pubescens exhibited an inhibiting capacity against the tested strains except: Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 and Acinetobacter baumannii 897. The aqueous methanol (50%) and the aqueous ethanol (50%) extracts were most effective; the greatest zone of inhibition was obtained with the aqueous ethanol (50%) extract against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureuscStaphylococcus aureusc. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) with the value of 0.78 mg/mL obtained against A. baumannii 610 using the aqueous methanol (50%) extract indicate that this plant is a potential natural antimicrobial agent. These biological activities could support the traditional use of M. pubescens.