Phytochemical Screening, In silico Analysis and In vivo Evaluation of the Immunomodulatory Activity of Extract of Dalbergia lanceolaria and Derris scandens Barks

Abstract

Dalbergia lanceolaria and Derris scandens are medicinal plants of the Fabaceae family containing diverse secondary metabolites with potential pharmacological properties. This study investigated the phytochemical composition and comparative immunomodulatory activity of methanolic bark extracts of D. lanceolaria (DLM) and D. scandens (DSM) using a doxorubicin-induced immunosuppression model in wistar rats. Successive solvent extraction, preliminary phytochemical screening, thin-layer chromatography (TLC) and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) were employed for phytochemical characterization. The methanolic extracts of D. lanceolaria and D. scandens yielded 2.5% and 3.0%, respectively, while GC-MS analysis identified 13 constituents in each extract. Oral administration of DLM and DSM at 200 and 400 mg/kg for 14 days attenuated doxorubicin-induced alterations in total and differential leukocyte counts and neutrophil adhesion, with the 400 mg/kg dose producing higher effects. Histopathological examination further demonstrated improved preservation of splenic and thymic architecture in extract-treated groups. Molecular docking of selected GC-MS identified compounds revealed favourable predicted interactions with NF-κB p52, TNF-α and viral interleukin-10, with β-sitosterol, agarospirol and azulene showed favourable predicted binding affinities, with docking scores of -8.0, -7.2 and -7.7 kcal/mol, respectively. The combined phytochemical, biological, histopathological and in silico findings support the preliminary immunomodulatory potential of DLM and DSM and provide a basis for further investigation of their bioactive constituents and molecular mechanisms.