The Effect of Colocasia esculenta L. Schott (Taro) Leaf Extract in the Clotting Time and Evaluation of Electrolytes as a Potential Clot Activator

Sebastian  P. Panganiban,; Hannah Kyla  D. Jose,; Chelsea Denise   O. Vindua,; Cee Jay   D. Camarce,; Jerome  N. Castañeda,; John Peter   V. Dacanay,; Edison  D. Ramos,

The Effect of Colocasia esculenta L. Schott (Taro) Leaf Extract in the Clotting Time and Evaluation of Electrolytes as a Potential Clot Activator

Discipline: Plant Sciences

Abstract:

Clot activators are substances added to blood collection tubes to initiate the coagulation cascade, separating blood into serum. Blood chemistry uses serum separator tubes (SST) as they promote rapid clotting and allow serum separation from cellular components through centrifugation. Taro (Colocasia esculenta L.) Schott is a tropical crop widely produced for its edible corms. Researchers used leaves as they remain underutilized, they contain alkaloids, terpenoids, saponins, flavonoids, and phenols, essential to mimic a clot activator and how it influences blood integrity. This study tests different concentrations (12.5, 25, 50, and 100%) of leaf extract to determine its effect on blood. The pre-test also recorded the clotting time and physical observation, whereas (gold top, 12.5%, 25%, 50%, 100%, and red top) had a time of 14:04, 10:45, 11:58, 12:09, 14:29, and 21:33 minutes, respectively. Researchers observed that the clotting time is slower as the concentration increases, and samples that did not hemolyze were used on eight healthy individuals. In each case, they collected 10 mL of blood and placed 2 mL in each respective vacutainer. All 40 specimens were sent to the laboratory for electrolyte testing, specifically for sodium, potassium, and chloride levels. After releasing the results, one-way ANOVA and Tukey's HSD Post-hoc Test were performed, setting the alpha value to 0.05 to determine significant differences between groups. The ANOVA result showed that 50% concentration had the most significant effect compared to 12.5% and 25% in (sodium, potassium, and chloride) with p-values of 6.71E-05, 6.14E-08, and 4.36E-05, respectively. Comparing all setups obtained p-values of 1.95E-13, 1.90E-15, and 1.19E-11, respectively, indicating significant differences among the groups. The findings suggest that taro leaf extract affected clotting time, blood sample integrity, and electrolyte values, with increasing concentrations leading to a more significant effect, showing the potential to act as a clot activator.

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