Potential of Fig Leaf (Ficus carica L.) as Immunomodulatory Agent in vitro and in Silico

Abstract

Natural remedies are increasingly being used as alternatives to conventional medicine, and their popularity is growing. The fig plant (Ficus carica L.), which is known to contain secondary metabolites such as alkaloids, flavonoids, phenolics, terpenoids, steroids, and saponins, has the potential to act as an immunomodulator. The purpose of this study was to determine the content of flavonoid compounds based on Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC), total flavonoid content, total phenolic content, and immunomodulatory activity of ethanol extract and fig leaf fraction in vitro and silico (molecular docking). The fig leaf powder was extracted with 70% ethanol and fractionated with n-hexane and ethyl acetate to obtain ethanol extract, ethyl acetate fraction, n-hexane fraction, and water fraction of fig leaves. The extracts and fractions were then identified using the TLC method, and the total flavonoid and total phenolic levels were measured using the colorimetric method. Furthermore, the proliferation of lymphocyte cells and macrophage phagocytic activity were used to gauge the in vitro immunomodulatory activity. The results showed that the ethyl acetate fraction sample contained the highest total flavonoid and total phenolic content, namely 3.4630±0.04 mgQE/g sample and 220.1801±0.604 mgGAE/g sample. The immunomodulatory activity test findings revealed that fig leaf extract and fraction might enhance macrophage phagocytic activity in comparison to control cells. In the lymphocyte proliferation test, the value of IS>3 in the ethyl acetate fraction indicates that it has lymphocyte proliferation activity. This study showed that fig leaf extract and fraction could increase the phagocytic activity of macrophage cells. The ethyl acetate fraction of fig leaf could increase lymphocyte cell proliferation in vitro and silico.