Malays. J. Anal. Sci. Volume 30 Number 1 (2026): 1386

 

Research Article

 

Antibacterial, antioxidant and tyrosinase inhibitor potential of new 7-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-1-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-3-heptanone, a diarylheptanoid from rhizomes of Amomum uliginosum J. König

 

Nurul Syafiqah Rezali1* and Hasnah Mohd Sirat2

 

1Chemical Sciences Programme, School of Distance Education, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800, Minden, Penang, Malaysia

2Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310, Skudai, Johor, Malaysia

 

*Corresponding author: nsyafiqah@usm.my

 

Received: 11 October 2024; Revised: 3 December 2025; Accepted: 20 January 2026; Published: 28 February 2026

Abstract

Known as Puar Hutan or Tepus Merah by locals, the Amomum uliginosum J. König that belongs to the family Zingiberaceae and the genus Amomum was selected as a subject plant. Studies on the essential oil composition and some diterpenes and kawalactone from A. uliginosum have been reported, but information on its other chemical constituents and biological activities remains limited. Therefore, this study aims to identify additional phytochemicals from A. uliginosum rhizomes and evaluate their antibacterial, antioxidant, and antityrosinase activities. A new diarylheptanoid, 7-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-1-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-3-heptanone (1), together with two flavonoids identified as 5-hydroxy-3,7,4'-trimethoxyflavone (2) and 5,7,4'-trihydroxyflavanone (3) as well as two labdane type diterpenes, (E)- labda-8(17),12-dien-15,16-dial (4) and (E)-labda-8(17),12-dien-15-ol-16-al (5) were successfully isolated and identified from the cold extracted rhizomes of A. uliginosum J. König. The compounds were isolated through a combination of vacuum liquid chromatography (VLC) and successive column chromatographic techniques, while their structures were elucidated using an integrated suite of spectroscopic methods, including NMR, IR, UV, and mass spectrometry. Antibacterial properties of the ethyl acetate extract of A. uliginosum rhizomes (AURE) and isolated compounds were investigated against four clinical isolates of bacteria i.e. Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. A minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value of 112.5 μg/mL was obtained for both AURE and compound (1) on B. cereus and B. subtilis, respectively. Meanwhile, antioxidant activity of AURE and five isolated compounds was determined by radical-scavenging methods. The tested samples showed varied levels of total antioxidant activity with IC50 value ranging from 28.2 to >1000 μg/mL. The highest activity was exerted by compound (1) with IC50 value of 28.2 μg/mL and the least activity was exerted by compound (2). On the other hand, all tested samples were introduced to in-vitro mushroom tyrosinase inhibitory assays and gave wide-ranging levels of antityrosinase activity percentage inhibition value from 4.1±0.2% to 55.5±0.5%.  AURE sample exhibited highest antityrosinase activity at 55.5±0.5%, followed by compound (3) and compound (1) at 52.6±0.6% and 51.7±0.8%, respectively.

 

Keywords: Amomum uliginosum, diarylheptanoid, antibacterial, antioxidant, tyrosinase inhibitory

 

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