role in phytochemical screening is the selection of
solvents and extraction methods. Phytochemical
screening of simplicia powder and samples in wet
form includes checking the content of alkaloids,
flavonoids, terpenoids, tannins and saponins
according to procedures that have been carried out
by Harbone (Subramanian et al., 2016). The
effective parameters in these extraction methods are
the type and polarity of solvents and their ratio, time
and temperature of extraction and moreover
chemical composition and physical characteristics of
the samples (Garcia et al, 2015). Maceration is a
stepwise solid-liquid extraction method which is
carried out by leaving the solids submerged in a
solvent. The process of immersion in an effort to
extract a substance from this natural material can be
done without heating (at room temperature), by
heating or even at boiling temperatures. After
filtering, the residue can be extracted again using a
new solvent. A new solvent in this case does not
necessarily mean different substances from the
previous solvent but can be a solvent of the same
substance. This process can be repeated several
times as needed. If maceration is done with a water
solvent, a further extraction process is needed, it is
the water phase extraction obtained with organic
solvents. If maceration is directly carried out with
organic solvents, the extracted filtrate is collected
into one, then evaporated or distilled (Kristanti et al.,
2018). Partition is the process of separation to obtain
components of solutes from their mixtures in solids
using an appropriate solvent. It can also be defined
as the dispersion of the chemical component of the
extract which has been dried in an appropriate
solvent based on the solubility of the chemical
component and undesirable substances such as
insoluble salts. This extraction operation can be
carried out by stirring the solid suspension in a
container with or without heating (Jiao et al, 2015).
Thin Layer Chromatography on a larger layered
plate, usually 5 x 20 cm, 10 x 20 cm, or 20 x 20 cm.
Usually it takes 30 minutes to an hour of
development. In essence, TLC involves two phases,
namely the stationary phase or layer properties, and
the mobile phase or mixture of developer solvents.
The stationary phase can be a fine powder that
functions as an absorbent or buffer surface for a
liquid layer. The mobile phase can be almost any
kind of solvent or a mixture of solvents. The
selection of the right mobile phase is a very
important step for the success of the analysis with
TLC (Sri Atun, 2016). Phenol compounds are the
main class of antioxidants in plants. The content of
phenolic compounds is widely known as a free
radical terminator and in general the content of
phenolic compounds is positively correlated to
antiradical activity. Phenolic compounds are easily
found in plant parts such as stems, leaves, flowers,
and fruit. The large variety of groups which may be
substituted in the main framework of phenol causes
a wide structural variation in phenolic compounds.
There are more than 8000 types of compounds
included in the group of phenolic compounds and
whose structures are known include flavonoids,
simple monocyclic phenols, phenyl propanoids,
polyphenols (lignin, melanin, tannin) and phenolic
quinones (Marinova et al., 2015).
Phenolics are one of the major and diverse group
of active compounds in the plants which have at
least one aromatic ring and one or more hydroxyl
groups in their structures (Gharaati et al, 2017). In
terms of biogenetics, phenol compounds are
basically divided into two main types. The first is
the phenol compound derived from the shikimat
pathway and the second is the phenol compound
derived from the acetate-malonate pathway. Another
class of phenol compounds derived from a
combination of these two biosynthetic pathways is
the flavonoid compound (Kristanti et al., 2018).
Antioxidants are inhibitors of oxidation reactions
due to free radicals that can cause damage to
unsaturated fatty acids, cell wall membranes, blood
vessels, DNA bases, and lipid tissue, causing
disease. A plant has antioxidant activity if it contains
compounds that are able to ward off free radicals
such as phenols and flavonoids. Free radicals occur
due to complex chemical processes in the body that
can damage the body's immune system. If there are
excess free radicals in the body will be able to attack
anything that can have implications for the
emergence of various degenerative diseases,
therefore the formation of free radicals must be
prevented or served with antioxidants (Widyastuti,
2015).
Recent research conducted by Sinurat et al.
(2018) showed that the methyl gallate compound
isolated from saputangan leaves had a very strong
antioxidant ability with IC
50
value of 16,136 mg/ml.
Lubis et al. (2018) who isolated phenolic
compounds in the form of methyl gallate from
jengkol skin (Archidendron jiringa) which is a
Fabaceae family which is proven to have very strong
antioxidant power. Previous research was also
conducted by Dzoyem et al. (2017) regarding the
antioxidant, antimicrobial and cytotoxic activity of 8
compounds isolated from Entada abyssinica
(Fabaceae) where there are 4 types of phenolic
compounds that can act as antibacterial. Based on