Evaluation Of The Anti-Aging Effects Of Polyalthia Longifolia Leaf Extract In D-Galactose-Induced Aging Rat Model

Aging is closely associated with oxidative stress, telomere shortening, and cellular senescence, contributing to neurodegeneration and cognitive decline. Polyalthia longifolia, a polyphenol-rich plant with strong antioxidant properties, has been traditionally used for various therapeutic purposes. This study investigated the anti-aging and neuroprotective potential of polyalthia longifolia leaf methanol extract (plme) at 500 mg/kg/day for four weeks against d-galactose-induced aging rat model. Phytochemical analysis of plme revealed high phenolics (88.23 ± 0.001 mg gae/g) and flavonoids (66.97 ± 0.002 mg qe/g) contents, while ftir spectra identified key functional groups (-oh, -ch, c=o, and n-h), indicative of bioactive compounds. Plme demonstrated strong in vitro antioxidant activity, effectively scavenging dpph, h₂o₂, and o₂•– radicals, with ic₅₀ values of (74.0 ± 6.0; 54.0 ± 3.0; and 32.8 ± 1.0) μg/ml, respectively. In vivo, d-galactose administration effectively induced aging-related oxidative stress, significantly (p < 0.05) elevating serum malondialdehyde (mda: 9.66 ± 1.22 nmol/ml) while decreasing glutathione (gsh: 4.26 ± 1.61 μmol/ml) levels, and reducing superoxide dismutase (sod: 82.16 ± 3.01 u/ml) and catalase (cat: 11.71 ± 4.02 u/ml) activities. In contrast, plme treatment significantly mitigated these effects, lowering mda levels (5.32 ± 0.64 nmol/ml) while increasing gsh (7.22 ± 2.87 nmol/ml) concentration, as well as enhancing sod (106.09 ± 4.13 u/ml) and cat (15.22 ± 3.12 u/ml) activities.