PROXIMATE AND MINERAL ANALYSIS OF DELONIX REGIA LEAVES AND ROOTS

Abstract

Medicinal plants serves as therapeutic agents as well as raw materials for the manufacture of modern medicines due to the presence bioactive chemicals (phytochemicals) and nutrients (protein, carbohydrates, fats, amino acids etc.).Among the potential medicinal plants is Delonix regia, therefore this study was carried out to determine the proximate and mineral composition in the plant(leaf and root). The result on proximate analysis of Delonix regia leaf (DRL) showed that it contained moisture (8.10 %), dry matter (91.90 %), crude protein (18.77 %), crude fibre (9.85 %), ether extract (1.33 %), ash (5.21 %), nitrogen free extract (56.74 %), carbohydrates (78.54 %) and energy (1703.5kj/100 g) while Delonix regia root (DSR) contained moisture, dry matter, crude protein, crude fibre, ether extract, ash, nitrogen free extract, carbohydrates and energy at 9.60 %, 90.40 %, 10.63 %, 7.44 %, 2.71 %, 9.30 %, 60.32 %,90.18 % and 1814 kj/100g respectively. Mineral analysis showed that DSR contained higher concentrations of calcium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, magnesium, sodium, copper, iron and cobalt at 95.43 mg/100g, 40.77mg/100g, 100.4 mg/100g, 7.21 mg/100g, 14.21 mg/100g, 41.22 mg/100g,10.2 mg/100g, 1.10 mg/100g and 0.05 mg/100g relative to calcium (77.31mg/100g), phosphorus (40.35 mg/100g), potassium (51.60 mg/100g), zinc(3.21 mg/100g), magnesium (10.35 mg/100g), sodium (33.18 mg/100g),copper (7.35 mg/100g) and iron (1.89 mg/100g) established in DRL. It was concluded that DRL and DSR contains various nutrients and phytochemicals that produce definite physiological action on the body of animals.