Abstract

This study was aimed at unveiling the phytoconstituents of ten selected underexploited leafy vegetables which were Jatropha tanjorensis, Solanum nigrum, Talinum triangulare, Solanecio biafrae, Vernonia amygdalina, Crassocephalum crepidoides, Telfairea occidentalis, Amaranthus hydridus, Launaea taraxacifolia, and Solanum macrocarpon. Freshly harvested leafy vegetables were processed separately, oven dried and blended into fine powder. GC-MS analysis was carried out on the methanolic extract using standard procedures. The GC-MS analysis of the leafy vegetables shows revealed the presence of 27 phytochemical constituents in Jatropha tanjorensis and Solanum nigrum, 31 in Crassocephalum crepidoides, 20 in Solanum macrocarpon, 23 in Solanecio Biafrae and Talinum triangulare, 22 in Vernonia amygdalina, 28 photochemical constituents in Amaranthus hybridus and Launaea taraxacifolia and 32 in Telfairea occidentalis. The results also showed that the compounds belonging to the fatty acid, carboxylic acid and phenolic compounds were predominant constituents. All the vegetable samples contain n-Hexadecanoic acid at appreciable concentration. The studied leafy vegetables produce a wide variety of bioactive compounds. These compounds have potential applications in biomedical, pharmaceutical and agricultural industries.