Phytochemical and functional profiling of agroforestry tree leaves and flowers from the Tarai region of Uttarakhand

Abstract

Sustainable, natural, plant-derived alternatives are becoming more well-known due to growing concerns about the long-term use and safety of synthetic feed additives and antibiotics. Agroforestry tree leaves and flowers harbor an abundant yet underutilized reserve of phytobiotics rich in secondary metabolites. The current study aimed for the evaluation of the phytochemical composition and in vitro bioactivity of nine different tree leaves and two flowers collected and evaluated at G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand, India. Methanolic extracts were prepared to analyze for total phenols, flavonoids, tannins, phytic acid and ascorbic acid. Assessment of antioxidant potential was carried out using total antioxidant capacity, DPPH radical scavenging and iron chelating assays. In addition, enzyme inhibitory activities against α-amylase and proteases were also evaluated to assess their metabolic modulation potential. Significant variation was observed in phytochemical composition and bioactivity among the evaluated plant materials. However, leaves such as Saraca asoca, Cinnamomum tamala, and Dalbergia sissoo revealed higher phenolic, flavonoid and tannin contents, which were also associated with antioxidant and protease inhibitory activities. Though the flower samples, particularly Bombax ceiba, possessed high levels of phytic acid and ascorbic acid, the antioxidant evaluation varied across assays. Overall, the findings indicated that the functional bioactivity of tree leaves and flowers arises from synergistic interactions among multiple phytochemicals rather than the dominance of a single compound. This study highlights agroforestry tree leaves and flowers as promising natural sources of antioxidants and enzyme modulators with potential application as alternative feed resources for livestock. Further in vivo investigations are warranted to validate their biological efficacy, safety and practical applicability.