Comparative GC-MS Analysis of Methanolic Extracts from Different Parts of Bitter Gourd (Momordica charantia L.) Fruit

Medicinal plants are used in traditional medicine since the prehistoric period. They are considered a rich resource for developing single drugs and formulations due to a wide variety of bioactive phytochemicals present. Bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.) is an important tropical and subtropical medicinal plant commonly cultivated in Asian and African countries for its health and nutritional properties. The bitter gourd fruits possess antidiabetic, anticancer, anti-obesity, antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-helminthic, and anti-HIV properties. In this study, we extracted the phytochemicals from the rind, pulp, and seeds of the two botanical varieties of bitter gourd, Momordica charantia var. charantia and Momordica charantia var. muricata in methanol, and subjected them to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. Phytochemical analysis revealed several important bioactive compounds such as n-Hexadecanoic acid, Linolenic acid, Vitamin E, Sitosterol, Stigmasterol, and Phytol. Biological activities were reported for some of these compounds. Identification of these compounds validates the medicinal value of bitter gourd. Further studies are to be carried out to isolate, characterize, and study the individual compound's mechanism of action.