Untargeted GC-MS metabolomics to identify and classify bioactive compounds in Combretum platypetalum subsp. oatesii...

Combretum platypetalum is used in traditional African healing practices against different infections. Unfortunately, no scientific knowledge of its phytochemical composition exists, except for the isolation of two compounds from the leaves. Scientific study has been limited to the leaves only, despite the applications of stems and roots in traditional medicine practice and natural product drug discovery programs.

Omics was applied to identify and classify different volatile and semivolatile bioactive compounds in the leaf, stem, and root parts of C. platypetalum. The thermal stability of the plant constituents at 60-65°C extraction temperature by Soxhlet and maceration at room temperature on the type, class, and concentration of compounds in the leaf was further investigated.

A GC-MS untargeted metabolomics approach, automated deconvolution by the Automated Mass Spectral Deconvolution and Identification System (AMDIS) for GC-MS data, preprocessing by Metab R, and multivariate statistical data analysis were employed in this study.

A total of 97 phytoconstituents, including 17 bioactive compounds belonging to the terpenoids, flavonoids, long-chain fatty acids, and other unclassified structural arrangements distributed across C. platypetalum, were identified for the first time. A correlation (r = 0.782; P = 0.000) between Soxhlet and maceration extraction methods relative to resolved chromatographic peak areas of metabolites was established.

Findings corroborate the reported bio-investigation of its leaf extracts, its traditional uses, and previous findings from the Combretum genus. The results substantiate the possible applications of C. platypetalum in natural product drug discovery and provide a guide for future investigations.