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Article

Phytochemical Profile, Toxicity Evaluation and Antinociceptive Effect of the n-Butanolic Fraction from the Leaves of Calotropis procera (Aiton) W.T Aiton (Apocynaceae)

by
Kailane Lourenço Araújo
1,
Natanael Teles Ramos de Lima
2,
Pedro Artur Ferreira Marinho
1,
Dara Rayanne da Silva Guedes
1,
Marcelo Sobral da Silva
2,
Yuri Mangueira do Nascimento
2,
Josean Fechine Tavares
2,
José Maria Barbosa Filho
2,
Cinthya Maria Pereira de Souza
1,
Vanda Lúcia dos Santos
1,
Harley da Silva Alves
1,
Ivana Maria Fechine
1 and
Alisson Macário de Oliveira
1,*
1
Departamento de Farmácia, Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde, Universidade Estadual da Paraíba, Campina Grande 58429-500, PB, Brazil
2
Departamento de Farmácia, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Joao Pessoa 58051-900, PB, Brazil
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Plants 2025, 14(23), 3622; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14233622
Submission received: 28 October 2025 / Revised: 21 November 2025 / Accepted: 24 November 2025 / Published: 27 November 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Phytochemistry, Pharmacology, and Toxicity of Medicinal Plants)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Calotropis procera, known as “Silk cotton”, stands out for the presence of various classes of bioactive compounds responsible for its ethnopharmacological properties. The study aimed to conduct a phytochemical investigation, evaluating the in vitro and in vivo toxicity together with the antinociceptive potential of an n-butanolic fraction (FB) from the leaves. The crude ethanolic extract (CEE) was obtained by maceration in ethanol for 72 h. It was then partitioned using a gradual solvent sequence. The FB was analyzed by HPLC-ESI-MS/MS in negative mode and 1H and 13C NMR. Toxicity was assessed by the erythrocyte hemolytic assay and acute oral toxicity test at a single dose of 300 mg·kg−1. The antinociceptive effect was assessed by the acetic acid-induced abdominal writhing test and the formalin test in mice at doses of 3.75, 7.5 and 15 mg·kg−1 per os. HPLC-ESI-MS/MS analysis identified flavonoids, phenolic acids, and the megastigmane roseoside, isolated for the first time in C. procera. The FB did not cause hemolytic effects or behavioral or physiological changes in mice. It showed an antinociceptive effect at all doses, reducing abdominal writhing by up to 91.46% and the licking time in phases 1 and 2 of the formalin test by up to 63.83% and 91.73%, respectively. In this study, it was possible to determine that an FB of a crude extract of C. procera leaves has antinociceptive activity, possibly associated with the phenolic compounds and roseoside found, with a lack of toxicity in vitro and in vivo, validating its ethnopharmacological use.
Keywords: “Silk cotton”; n-butanolic fraction; HPLC-ESI-MS/MS; roseoside; acute toxicity; antinociceptive activity “Silk cotton”; n-butanolic fraction; HPLC-ESI-MS/MS; roseoside; acute toxicity; antinociceptive activity

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MDPI and ACS Style

Araújo, K.L.; Lima, N.T.R.d.; Marinho, P.A.F.; Guedes, D.R.d.S.; Silva, M.S.d.; Nascimento, Y.M.d.; Tavares, J.F.; Barbosa Filho, J.M.; Souza, C.M.P.d.; Santos, V.L.d.; et al. Phytochemical Profile, Toxicity Evaluation and Antinociceptive Effect of the n-Butanolic Fraction from the Leaves of Calotropis procera (Aiton) W.T Aiton (Apocynaceae). Plants 2025, 14, 3622. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14233622

AMA Style

Araújo KL, Lima NTRd, Marinho PAF, Guedes DRdS, Silva MSd, Nascimento YMd, Tavares JF, Barbosa Filho JM, Souza CMPd, Santos VLd, et al. Phytochemical Profile, Toxicity Evaluation and Antinociceptive Effect of the n-Butanolic Fraction from the Leaves of Calotropis procera (Aiton) W.T Aiton (Apocynaceae). Plants. 2025; 14(23):3622. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14233622

Chicago/Turabian Style

Araújo, Kailane Lourenço, Natanael Teles Ramos de Lima, Pedro Artur Ferreira Marinho, Dara Rayanne da Silva Guedes, Marcelo Sobral da Silva, Yuri Mangueira do Nascimento, Josean Fechine Tavares, José Maria Barbosa Filho, Cinthya Maria Pereira de Souza, Vanda Lúcia dos Santos, and et al. 2025. "Phytochemical Profile, Toxicity Evaluation and Antinociceptive Effect of the n-Butanolic Fraction from the Leaves of Calotropis procera (Aiton) W.T Aiton (Apocynaceae)" Plants 14, no. 23: 3622. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14233622

APA Style

Araújo, K. L., Lima, N. T. R. d., Marinho, P. A. F., Guedes, D. R. d. S., Silva, M. S. d., Nascimento, Y. M. d., Tavares, J. F., Barbosa Filho, J. M., Souza, C. M. P. d., Santos, V. L. d., Alves, H. d. S., Fechine, I. M., & Oliveira, A. M. d. (2025). Phytochemical Profile, Toxicity Evaluation and Antinociceptive Effect of the n-Butanolic Fraction from the Leaves of Calotropis procera (Aiton) W.T Aiton (Apocynaceae). Plants, 14(23), 3622. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14233622

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