For centuries, plants have served as a primary source of phytonutrients, and recently, medicinal plants have gained prominence in medicine and healthcare due to their mild effects. This study aimed to investigate the gross morphological characteristics of Meistera muricarpa and determine its total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), and total antioxidant activity (TAA) of the ethanolic leaf and fruit extracts. The samples were extracted using absolute ethanol, and the TPC, TFC, and TAA were determined using the Folin-Ciocalteu, Aluminum Chloride, and Phosphomolybdenum methods, respectively. Results revealed that M. muricarpa exhibits bright yellow flowers, orange-red tinged indehiscent echinate fruits with dense prickles. The fruits obtained higher TPC and TAA than the leaves. Conversely, the leaves obtained higher TFC than the fruits. Specifically, the fruits had 6.99 ± 0.19 mg GAE/g sample of phenolics, whereas the leaves had 2.45 ± 0.04 mg GAE/g sample. The leaves yielded 5.11 ± 0.06 mg QE/g sample of flavonoids, exceeding the fruits with 0.29 ± 0.01 mg QE/g sample. Furthermore, the fruits exhibited higher antioxidant activity with 21.13 ± 0.87 mg AAE/g sample than the leaves with 8.28 ± 0.16 mg AAE/g sample. A strong positive linear correlation (r=0.99, p<0.001) was observed among the TPC, TFC, and TAA. These findings suggest that the leaves and fruits of M. muricarpa could be a valuable source of natural antioxidants

aluminum chloride colorimetric method, CEDAR, gingers, folin-Ciocalteu method, Philippine endemic, phosphomolybdenum method

capsule fruits, and dense prickles. Phytochemical analyses showed that the fruits exhibited higher total phenolic content (TPC) and total antioxidant activity (TAA) compared to the leaves. Conversely, the leaves had higher total flavonoid content (TFC) than the fruits. Specifically, the fruits contained 6.99 ± 0.19 mg GAE/g dry weight sample of phenolics, surpassing the leaves with 2.45 ± 0.04 mg GAE/g dry weight sample. The leaves yielded 5.11 ± 0.06 mg QE/g dry weight sample of flavonoids, exceeding the fruits with 0.29 ± 0.01 mg QE/g dry weight sample. Furthermore, the fruits demonstrated higher antioxidant activity with 21.13 ± 0.87 mg AAE/g dry weight sample, compared to the leaves with 8.28 ± 0.16 mg AAE/g dry weight sample

Rheenamae B. Lontian, Hannah P. Lumista, Noel E. Lagunday and Noe P. Mendez (2025). Morphology, Phenolic Content, Flavonoid Content, and Antioxidant Activity of Meistera muricarpa (Elmer) Škorničk. & M.F.Newman (Zingiberaceae). Biological Forum, 17(5): 95-102