Bioassay-Guided Fractionation of Methanolic Leaf Extract of Cinnamomum tamala, GC–MS Analysis and In Silico Studies

Plants are being used in treating diseases since the beginning of human civilization. Cinnamomum tamala is a traditionally used medicinal plant used for various medicinal purposes. Methanolic leaf extract of the plant was subjected to bioassay-guided fractionation. Significant antimicrobial activity was recorded in the chloroform and methanolic fraction. Methanolic fraction was further fractionated by column chromatography and six fractions were collected of which F4 showed high antimicrobial activity. Bioautography of chloroform fraction and F4 reconfirm the presence of bioactive compounds. GC–MS analysis showed the presence of 7 compounds in F4 (dominating compound 2-pentanone,4-hydroxy-4-methyl) and 10 compounds in chloroform fraction (dominating compound 1,5-heptadien-4-one,3,6,3-trimethyl). Both the dominating compounds satisfied Lipinski rule and were within permissible limits to act like drug. Both interacted with drug targets, however 1,5-heptadien-4-one,3,6,3-trimethyl showed a better binding affinity and thus can be a potential inhibitor against the selected drug targets. Thus from the study, it can be concluded that the compound 1,5-heptadien-4-one,3,6,3-trimethyl has the potential to be a lead molecule that can be used in formulation of antimicrobial agents. Further studies in animal model system are needed to establish its efficacy.