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Published on: March 31, 2021
Phytochemical profiles, chemical composition, molecular docking, and antibacterial activity of the Opuntia cladode
Abdalla A Mohamed1,2,3, Ines Dhouib1, Taher Abdelhameed2,3
1Laboratory of Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Sfax, Sfax, Tunisia.
Background:
Opuntia spp. are prickly pear cactus species that have long been used for medical purposes. Mature cladodes are also used to feed animals during droughts.
Aim:
The phytochemical and chemical composition of cladode extracts from Opuntia streptacantha and thornless Opuntia ficus indica cultivated in Al-Zawia-Libya and to evaluate their antibacterial activity through both in vitro assay and molecular docking analysis.
Methods:
Cladode extracts from two Opuntia species cultivated in Libya were analyzed in this study to compare their chemical composition and evaluate their antibacterial properties explained by structure-function relationships studies.
Results:
The ethanolic extract of O. streptacantha registered the highest total polyphenolic content, total flavonoid content, and tannin contents (112.00 ± 0.58 mg GAE/g, 64.67 ± 0.88 mg CAT/g, and 0.408 ± 0.046 mg CAT/g, respectively). The ethanolic extract of thornless O. ficus-indica exhibited strong antibacterial activity against several bacterial strains, particularly colistin-resistant Escherichia coli. Rutin and luteolin-7-O-glucoside interact with key active-site residues, including the catalytic residues Thr285 and His395.
Conclusion:
Opuntia spp. cultivated in Libya are a valuable source of biomolecules with significant antibacterial properties and may be exploited as a functional food.
