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This study sought to characterize the interaction of phenolic extract from ‘amala’ with α-amylase, α-glucosidase and
angiotensin-I-converting enzyme (ACE) activities. ‘Amala’ is a local meal in western part of Nigeria that is prepared
by reconstituting dried unripe plantain flour in boiling water to form a thick paste. The ready to eat ‘amala’ was later
dried to a constant weight and milled into flour and kept as a sample. The free phenolic of ‘amala’ was extracted
with 80% acetone, while the bound phenolic was extracted from the alkaline and acid-hydrolyzed residue with ethyl
acetate; and their interactions with the enzymes were assessed. The phenolic extracts inhibited α-amylase, α-
glucosidase and ACE enzyme activities; however, free phenolic had significantly (P< 0.05) higher α-amylase, α-
glucosidase and ACE inhibitory activities than bound phenolic. Nevertheless, the extracts were strong inhibitor of
α-glucosidase when compared to α-amylase. The phenolics inhibited Fe2+ and sodium nitroprusside-induced lipid
peroxidation in pancreas in a dose-dependent manner in which the free phenolic also had higher inhibition. The
results of this study suggest that the free and bound phenolic extracts from ‘amala may be adjudged to be beneficial
as anti-diabetes and anti-hypertension.
Keywords: ‘Amala’, Free phenol, bound phenol, α-amylase, α-glucosidase.