## 4 Discussion  
The extraction methods, solvents used, and plant parts are the influencing factors in gaining bioactive phytocompounds. The fruits of _M. charantia_ are rich in vitamins, minerals, protein, and lipids. Its seed is a good source of polyunsaturated fatty acids, lipids, and linolenic acid [17; 18]. _M. charantia_ is rich in phenolic compounds that prevent oxidative damage. The fruit, pericarp, and seeds of _M. charantia_ contain various phenolic compounds and phytosterols [19]. The main bioactive compounds of bitter melon are gallic acid, genistein acid, catechin, epicatechin, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, \(p\)-coumaric acid, ferulic acid, saponins, polypeptide, fatty acids, and alkaloids [8]. The TPC of the aqueous extract of _M. charantia_ fruit flesh and inner tissue displayed 780.75 \(\pm\) 24.82 and 61.45 \(\pm\) 8.22 mg GAE/g of extract, respectively, which indicates flesh has higher TPC than inner tissue. The solvent with decreased ethanol displayed high TPC in flesh samples. At the same time, this phenomenon was not observed in the inner tissue samples. The blending of ethanol and water in different ratios creates many levels of solvent polarities. The polarities of the solvent affect the composition and types of compounds in the extracts, so the bioactivity of the extract is varied. Accordingly, finding an optimum solvent is critical to extracting the bioactive compounds, especially phenolics, from _M. charantia_ (Table 1). Individual antioxidants may act via multiple mechanisms, and therefore, no single antioxidant assay would accurately reflect the antioxidant activity of the sample. The ethanol/water extract of _M. charantia_ exhibits stronger antioxidant activities than other solvent extracts [20]. The alcoholic and water extracts were reported for the DPPH scavenging activity and inhibited the peroxidase and lipid peroxidation [21]. [PERSON] et al. reported that the aqueous extract _M. charantia_ reduced the serum level NO, aspartate transaminase, alanine aminotransferase, and inducible nitric oxide synthase [22]. The stems, pulp, and fruits of _M. charantia_ are reported for the ABTS scavenging activity, the hydroxyl radical scavenging activity, reducing power, and the metal-chelating activity [23; 24]. _M. charantia_ contains various biologically active chemicals such as cucurbitane-type triterpenoids, saponin, kuguacins F-S, vicine, and charantin, which may be responsible for free radical scavenging activity, \(\alpha\)-amylase inhibitory activity, and NO suppression. However, further studies regarding the purification of active compounds and the evaluation of their biological activities are necessary [25]. The result of the present study also indicates the superior free radical scavenging activities of the ethanolic and water extract of _M. charantia_ fruit (Table 3). A strong NO scavenging activity was noticed in both the aqueous and ethanolic extract of flesh and the inner tissue of _M. charantia_ fruit (Table 3), which displayed the anti-inflammatory properties of the plant. NO plays a role in the pathogenesis of inflammation [26]. _M. charantia_ extract displayed high NO scavenging activity (Table 3), and the water extract obtained from an inner tissue displayed the highest NO scavenging activity (6201.75 \(\pm\) 157.04 mg TEAC/g of the extract). Caffeine is a well-studied phytochemical for its role in hair-loss prevention. The antioxidant activity of caffeine helps maintain a healthy scalp, which stimulates scalp hair growth [27]. In vitro tests confirmed that caffeine could modulate IGF-1, keratinocyte  
Figure 5: The changes in the total phenolic content (**A**), viscosity (**B**), and pH (**C**) of the MELM were stored under different conditions for 12 weeks. growth factor, and TGF-\(\beta\)2 the same as minoxidil [28]. The polyphenols are versatile bioactive phytocompounds and have antioxidant, anti-inflammation, etc., activities.