Antioxidant and Antiinflammatory Compounds in Nutmeg (Myristicafragrans) Pericarp as Determined by in vitro Assays.

Nutmeg, Myristicafragrans, is known for its culinary and medicinal values. The nutmeg pericarp, abundant during the production of the seed, is also used in food and beverage preparations. In this study, the pericarp of M. fragrans was evaluated for its bioactive components using in vitro antioxidant and antiinflammatory assays. The hexane, ethyl acetate and methanolic extracts inhibited lipid peroxidation (LPO) by 82.5, 70.1 and 73.2%, and cyclooxygenase enzymes COX-1 by 44, 44 and 42% and COX-2 by 47, 41 and 36%, respectively, at 100 microg/mL. The bioassay-guided purifications of extracts yielded 20 compounds belonged to neolignans (0.13%), phenylpropanoids (0.28%), phenolic aldehyde (0.35%), triterpenoids (0.06%), triglycerides (0.20%), sugars (10.2%) and steroids (0.49%). Pure isolates 1-5 inhibited LPO by 70-99% and 3-12 inhibited COX-1 and -2 enzymes by 37-49%. This is the first report on the bioassay-guided characterization of constituents in nutmeg pericarp. Our results support the medicinal claims of nutmeg pericarp.